Skillet Roast Chicken with a Garlic and Thyme Jus

Tender, juicy chicken, simply roasted with olive oil and salt and pepper, to create a perfect golden brown, crispy skin and served with a delicious Thyme and Garlic Jus. It takes less than 2 minutes to get it in the oven and less than 10 minutes to make the jus when the chicken is cooked and resting. I like to serve it with boiled new potatoes, some roast vegetables, which I pop into the oven when the chicken is roasting, and also a salad.

Course Dinner, Lunch, Supper

Keyword chicken, Garlic, Jus, Roast, skillet, Thyme

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

The chicken:

1 medium chicken, (roughly 1.4 – 1.5kg)
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon fine salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Jus:

20g unsalted butter
80ml white wine
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
4 sprigs of thyme
250ml/1 cup chicken stock (or vegetable cooking water)
Salt to taste
Freshy ground black pepper

Instructions

Chicken with Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper:

Take the chicken out of the fridge roughly 30 – 45 minutes before you want to cook it – it is always best to start cooking chicken when it is at room temperature rather than straight from the fridge.
Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.
Preheat oven to Fan Oven 200°C/220°C/425°F/Gas 7
Cook the chicken: rub the oil over the chicken with your hands and season generously with salt and pepper.
The chicken will take around 1 hour and 15 – 25 minutes.
To check the chicken is cooked: pull the leg away from the bird slightly and skewer into breast flesh behind the leg. Any juices coming out of the bird should be clear and the meat should be opaque. If you see any pinkness or blood, cook for a further 5 – 10 minutes. If you use a meat thermometer, the internal temperature of the meat should read 165^oF or 75^oC.
When the chicken is cooked, transfer to a carving board or warmed serving dish and leave to rest for 15 minutes whilst you make the jus. If you want crispy skin, do not cover with foil or the chicken will sweat and the skin will lose its crispiness. It will still be quite warm so don't worry about not covering.

Garlic and Thyme Jus:

Spoon any excess fat out of the skillet and then put the pan on the hob over a moderate heat and add the butter. As soon as it has melted, add the garlic and thyme and cook for 1 minute until aromatic.
Add the wine and bring to the boil, scraping all the tasty bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Cook for 2 minutes.
Now add the stock or vegetable water and cook for a further 5 minutes to reduce slightly. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. (The saltiness of the stock or vegetable water will effect how much salt you need to add.)
Strain the jus before you serve it.

To serve:

I like to serve the chicken with new potatoes, some roast vegetables which I pop into the oven whilst the chicken is cooking, a salad and, I serve the jus on the side.
(See Recipe Notes for information on cooking the potatoes and roast vegetables.)

Recipe Notes

Equipment:

cast iron skillet or roasting tin if you do not have a skillet
kitchen scales, measuring spoons and cups
chopping board and knife

New Potatoes:

If serving with new potatoes, I put these on to cook 5 minutes before I take the chicken out of the oven. Put 600g of potatoes in a saucepan with 2 teaspoons salt and cover with cold water.Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 - 20 minutes or until cooked.

Roast vegetables:

when you take the chicken out of the oven, turn the heat down to Fan Oven 180°C/200°C/400°F/Gas 6
toss 400g of carrots, asparagus and broccoli with 2 - 3 tablespoons olive oil and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper
slice the ½ lemon and scatter the lemon slices over the vegetables.
roast in the oven for 10 - 15 minutes until lightly charred and cooked to your liking.