ofm top twenty: chicken with potatoes

this ofm top twenty chicken with potatoes recipe from jill dupliex, which calls for poussin, rather than a bigger bird, was a convenient one-dish supper for one. however, given that, in the spirit of this recipe challenge, i had to actually follow the recipe as written it was less satisfying to make than my usual home-alone ventures - i was particularly itching to add some lemon to the mix of chicken, tomatoes, red onions and potatoes. i also would have swapped the potatoes (which i’m not particularly keen on) for something more appealing, such as fennel or squash. however, i restrained myself and did as i was told.

so how did i get on?

this is very easy to make –it’s little more than an assembly job, with the different ingredients being added to the roasting tray at different points in the cooking time (which means you can’t just bung it in the oven and forget about it). as you can see, my tray ended up a bit blackened, and that’s with a slightly reduced cooking time, so keep an eye on things – add more liquid or lower the temperature to 200, if you see something similar happening.

the final verdict:

would i have tried this recipe if it hadn't been part of the ofm top twenty? no – for me there is nothing interesting about this and given i’m not a fan of one of the main ingredients (potatoes), i’d have taken a different approach to my one-tray roast.

would i try this recipe again in the future? no, not without making changes – the flavours do come together well but i would be mixing my potatoes up with other veggies and would definitely add the lemon plus some chilli flakes.

jill dupleix's chicken with potatoes (serves 4)

800g medium all-purpose potatoes

1 red onion, cut into wedges

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to drizzle

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon thyme leaves (i used fresh)

sea salt and pepper

200ml dry white wine

4 poussins (small chickens), about 450g each

12 cherry tomatoes on the vine

oregano and thyme leaves to serve (i used fresh)

heat the oven to 220c.

peel the potatoes, halve lengthways and slice thickly. toss with the onion, olive oil, herbs, sea salt and pepper. scatter over the base of a large, oiled, roasting pan. pour over the wine and 200ml water and roast for 20 minutes.

cut each poussin in half, firmly down on one side of the backbone, with a strong knife. add them to the roasting pan and drizzle with olive oil. roast for 20 minutes, shooshing the potatoes around once or twice to prevent them sticking. add the tomatoes and roast for another 20 minutes. strew with oregano and thyme leaves and drizzle with the pan juices. serve with a rocket or watercress salad.