Creamy Calvados pot-roast chicken

Name: Creamy Calvados pot-roast chicken
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 50 min
Total time: 2 h 5 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 200 g pack No.1 Free Range Beech Smoked Bacon Lardons; 1 tbsp olive oil (optional); No.1 British Free Range Whole Chicken (1.6kg typical weight); 5 echalion shallots, halved; 3 Cox apples, peeled, cored and quartered; 5 sprig/s tarragon; 100 ml fresh chicken stock; 1 tbsp cider vinegar; 75 ml Calvados (or other brandy); 4 tbsp No.1 French Crème Fraîche

This is based on the classic French dish poulet à la Normande, and while pot roasting it might seem humble, the flavours under the lid are outrageously good.

5 out of 5 stars(4) Rate this recipe

Serves6
CourseMain meal
Prepare15 mins
Cook1 hr 50 mins
Total time2 hrs 5 mins
PlusResting

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200g pack No.1 Free Range Beech Smoked Bacon Lardons
1 tbsp olive oil (optional)
No.1 British Free Range Whole Chicken (1.6kg typical weight)
5 echalion shallots, halved
3 Cox apples, peeled, cored and quartered
5 sprig/s tarragon
100ml fresh chicken stock
1 tbsp cider vinegar
75ml Calvados (or other brandy)
4 tbsp No.1 French Crème Fraîche

Heat a large casserole over a medium heat, then add the bacon lardons and fry for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden. Scoop out onto a plate, leaving the fat behind, then set aside. If there isn’t much fat in the dish, add the oil.
Turn up the heat slightly, season the chicken and add to the dish, breast-side down so it’s leaning to one side. Fry for 10 minutes until the skin is deep golden, then turn and cook on the other breast for 10 minutes more. Turn over, brown the underside for 5-10 minutes, then lift out and set aside on a plate. Preheat the oven to 160ºC, gas mark 3.
Add the shallots and apples to the casserole and fry for a couple of minutes, until taking on a little colour. Add 2 tarragon sprigs and the chicken stock, then simmer for 1 minute, scraping up any bits from the base of the dish. Sit the chicken on top, breast- side up, cover with the lid and cook in the oven for 1 hour, or until cooked through, the juices run clear and no pink meat remains.
Remove the dish from the oven, lift out the chicken and leave to rest on a clean plate under a loose sheet of foil for at least 15 minutes. Meanwhile, discard the tarragon from the sauce, return to the hob and add the vinegar and Calvados. Bring to the boil and simmer for 3-4 minutes to cook off some of the alcohol. Strip the leaves from the remaining tarragon, then roughly chop. Stir in the crème fraîche, lardons and most of the tarragon leaves, then cook until heated through. Season.
Return the chicken to the pan and scatter over the remaining tarragon leaves, or bring it to the table on a serving platter. Add any resting juices to the sauce. Carve the chicken, then serve with the sauce, seasonal greens and crusty bread, rice or mashed potatoes, if liked.

Cook’s tip

This is just as good with two packs of No.1 British Free Range Chicken Thighs instead of a whole chicken. Brown in a deep, ovenproof frying or sauté pan until the skin is crisp and golden. Follow the recipe above and simmer on the hob for 45 minutes, skinside up, until surrounded in sauce and cooked through.

Typical values per serving when made using specific products in recipe