This simple, melt-in-your-mouth pot roasted chicken was inspired by another one of my foodie Gods, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.  As always I added another ingredient of my own, purely to put my own spin on it and actually because I thought it would taste better (sorry Hugh)……it did!  Succulent, crispy skinned, chicken pieces in a rich, winey, garlicky sauce laced with aromatic tarragon topped with sweet, plump, oven roasted truss tomatoes.   Simple, French……perfection.  Thanks Hugh xx

Prep time:  20 minutes        

Cooking time:     1 hour          

$   Low Budget

Serves 4

4 Chicken Marylands, cut in the leg joint

Olive oil for frying

3 cloves of garlic, finely sliced

1.5 cups of dry white wine

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

2 tbs of finely chopped tarragon

8 cherry truss tomatoes (normal cherry will do, I just like the green stalks)

1 heaped tsp of cornflour

1/2 cup of cold water

Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Sea salt and cracked black pepper

For the mash:

4 medium dutch cream potatoes

100ml of cream

40gm of unsalted butter

Sea salt and cracked black pepper

Steamed green beans to serve

Pre heat the oven to 180°C

Heat a heavy based, oven proof pan or casserole dish and add a good lug of olive oil.  Season the chicken well on both sides and add to the pan, frying on both sides until nice and brown and crispy.   Remove from the pan and set aside on a plate.

Add the lemon juice and wine to the pan to deglaze and lift all the left over chickeny bits off the bottom.  Add the garlic and allow to simmer for 2-3 minutes just to reduce a little.  Return the chicken to the pan and spoon over the sauce and simmer for a further 5-10 minutes before scattering over the tomatoes.  Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil over the tomatoes before transferring the dish, uncovered to the oven.  Bake for 40-50 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken pieces until cooked through and the tomatoes are nice and blistered.

While the chicken is in the oven, peel and chop the spuds into chunks and bring to the boil in a medium sized saucepan.  Cover with a lid and boil for 20 minutes or until tender.  Drain the potatoes and return to a low heat, add the cream and butter and mash with a potato masher until lump free.  Season well with salt and pepper and whip with a wooden spoon until you have smooth creamy mash.  Set aside and keep warm.

Remove the chicken from the oven  and return it to the stove top at a low simmer. Mix the corn flour and water to form a paste and pour it into the sauce.  It is important that you dissolve the flour in cold water, to avoid lumps. Stir it in and the gravy should thicken instantly.   Divide the mash among four serving plates and top with a couple of chicken pieces and gently place a couple of the tomatoes on top.  Add the chopped tarragon to the pan and stir to combine before spooning the sauce over the top of the chicken and tomatoes.  Serve immediately……

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