A Mediterranean take on the classic roast chicken
Diana Henry
The Telegraph's award-winning cookery writer
Diana Henry is the Telegraph’s much-loved cookery writer. She shares recipes each week, for everything from speedy family dinners to special menus that friends will remember for months. She is also a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio 4, and her journalism and recipe books, including Simple and How to Eat a Peach, are multi-award-winning. A mother of two sons, Diana can satisfy even the fussiest of eaters.
Published
The perfect recipe for a Sunday lunch, with everything you need all in one dish. You have double carbs – orzo and stuffing – but it works: the bread becomes deliciously soft and soggy with the juices from the tomatoes.
Overview
Prep time
10 mins
Cook time
50 mins
Serves
6
Ingredients
- 1.8kg chicken
- 75g feta cheese, crumbled
- 115g tomatoes, chopped
- 75g coarse country bread, torn into small pieces
- 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to drizzle
- 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
- 3 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- 225g orzo
- 500ml boiling chicken stock
- 1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves, or chopped leaves from four oregano sprigs
- Green salad, to serve
Method
Step
Preheat the oven to 200C/190C fan/Gas 6.
Step
Put the chicken into an ovenproof dish – I use a cast-iron one – which is 30cm in diameter. Mix 75g feta, 115g tomatoes, 75g course country bread (torn into small pieces), 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, 2 finely grated cloves of garlic, 1½ tsp dried oregano and some salt and pepper in a bowl. Stuff this into the chicken cavity.
Step
Rub the chicken – breast and legs – with ½ tsp cayenne, sprinkle with the rest of the dried oregano (1½ tsp), then season the bird with salt and pepper and drizzle it with olive oil.
Step
Roast in the oven for 50 minutes.
Step
Sprinkle 225g orzo around the chicken and pour on 500ml boiling chicken stock. Return to the oven for a final 20 minutes. Check during this time to make sure the orzo isn’t becoming dry: there should be enough stock in it, but top it up with a little boiling water if it’s needed.
Step
The chicken should be cooked: check by piercing it deeply between the leg and body, the juices that run out should be clear, with no traces of pink. The orzo should be tender and the stock should have been absorbed.
Step
Stir the fresh chopped herbs into the orzo and serve the chicken straight from the dish. A green salad is all you need on the side.