Roast red wine chicken (poulet rôti au vin rouge)

A beautiful dish that cooks in one pot. The chicken is roasted to perfection and the resulting skin should be crisp.

Credit: Rachel Khoo

• serves

  4

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  1 hour

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 150 ml red wine
• 100 g tomato paste
• 3 sprigs thyme, leaves picked
• 3 sprigs marjoram, leaves picked, or ½ tsp dried
• 100 ml red wine vinegar
• 1 whole chicken cut into 8 pieces (approx. 1.5 kg)
• salt and ground black pepper
• 500 g baby potatoes, washed
• 3 onions, peeled and cut into quarters
• 6 carrots, peeled and cut into quarters lengthways

Marinating time 30 minutes to overnight

Instructions

Mix together the red wine, tomato paste, herbs and red wine vinegar. Season the chicken pieces with plenty of salt and pepper then place in a bag with the marinade. Shake the bag to make sure each piece is well coated. Place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

In the meantime, place the potatoes in a pan of cold water, put the lid on top and bring up to the boil. Boil for 1-2 minutes, then drain in a colander. Place the onions, carrots and potatoes in a large baking dish or tray (big enough to fit the chicken and the vegetables) and pour over 125ml of water.

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Remove the chicken from the fridge and arrange the pieces, skin side up, in a layer on top of the vegetables in the dish. Pour the rest of the marinade over the chicken. Cover with a sheet of baking paper or foil and roast in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.

Remove the baking paper or foil and baste the chicken with the cooking liquid. Roast, uncovered, for another 15 minutes or until the skin is crisp. Serve immediately.

Les petits conseils - tips

• Buying a whole chicken always works out more affordable. If you aren't up for dissecting it yourself, ask your butcher to cut it into pieces for you. Otherwise if there's no knife-wielding butcher about you can always cheat and go for chicken thighs. If you're unsure whether the chicken is cooked through, pierce with a sharp knife and the juices from the chicken should come out clear.

Faire en avance - get ahead

• The veg and chicken can be prepared up to a day in advance, then simply pop it all in the baking tray and cook as indicated in the recipe.

Photography by David Loftus

Recipe and image from My Little French Kitchen, Rachel Khoo (Michael Joseph, $39.99 hbk).

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.