Mary Berry might be best known for her sweet treats thanks to the Great British Bake-Off, but the Cordon Bleu-trained chef has some pretty impressive savoury recipes too.
For instance, she’s got a clever rotisserie-style method that helps to roast your chicken evenly. Her semolina-coated parsnips and roast potatoes offer the perfect mix of crunch and fluffiness, too.
But if you’ve ever tried to pair both crucial Sunday roast elements into one tray to save oven space and washing up, you’ll likely have been let down by the results.
When lined up beside my chicken, my same-tray roast spuds have always run flavourful but pallid, lacking the signature crunch you expect of the dish.
But – of course – Mary Berry is here to save us mere mortals from the common conundrum.
How?
In her roast chicken with tarragon butter recipe, she said that timing is crucial to keep the chicken “moist and flavourful” while achieving “really crisp potatoes”.
After rubbing the chicken both over and under the bird’s breast, she roasts it for 50 minutes alone.
While the chicken roasts, she puts peeled floury potatoes on to boil. After a five-minute simmer, she advises draining the pot, putting the spuds back into the now-waterless pot and shaking it to achieve rough edges.
The shaking should take place over a “very low heat”, she shared.
After 50 minutes, she bastes the chicken and then adds the parboiled potatoes to the same tray.
She cooks the chicken and spuds for a further 50 minutes, turning the potatoes halfway through.
When the time’s up, she transfers the chicken to a plate and covers it in foil ― then, she revs up the oven’s heat.
She then places the roasties into another tray, basting them in chicken fat before “return[ing] them to the oven to roast for about 10 minutes to get really crisp”.
Any other tips?
If you want a truly succulent roast chicken, Mary says you shouldn’t be afraid of butter.
That doesn’t just mean smearing a paltry amount on the chicken breast ― “Spreading herb butter under the skin makes the meat extra moist and flavourful,” she adds.
She even uses unflavoured butter on the thighs of the fowl (I’m not drooling, you are).