recipes

Roast Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Leeks, Hasselback Baby Potatoes, and Thyme.

February 07

Roast Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Leeks, Hasselback Baby Potatoes, and Thyme might sound fancy, don’t worry, it’s deceptively easy to make. The chicken thighs roast to golden perfection while the leeks and potatoes caramelise into something deeply savoury and irresistible. The key here is to slice the baby potatoes thinly enough that they cook evenly but still hold their shape. This dish works just as well for a weeknight family meal as it does for a casual dinner with friends.

Serves 2
1 hour 15 minutes

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 210°C/190°C fan/410°F/Gas Mark 7
2. With a very sharp knife, make small slits through the potato as if slicing it finely but without cutting all the way to the bottom so the potato remains whole but with many small cuts along its length. A tip here is if you lie two wooden spoons along the top and the bottom of the potato as you slice, it stops you from being able to slice all the way through.
3. Rub all over with a drizzle of olive oil, making sure it gets into the slices, and scatter with salt and pepper, then place in a large roasting tin and roast for 15 minutes.
4. After 15 minutes, place the chicken into the pan, again, rubbing with a little olive oil and some seasoning. Add the sliced leek and place the halved garlic bulb into the tray too, sliced side down so it doesn’t burn. Nestle the lemon slices and thyme sprigs amongst everything and return to the oven for a further 20 minutes, until the chicken skin has started to brown and the leeks have taken on a little colour too.
5. While that roasts, melt the butter and place into a jug along with the white wine, chicken stock, and Dijon mustard. Mix everything together to combine.
6. After 20 minutes, open the oven door and pour the liquid into the roasting tray, giving everything a little shake to combine. Close the oven and leave everything to cook away for a further 20 - 25 minutes until the potatoes are tender and the chicken is cooked through and golden. Remove the tray from the oven and serve the potatoes, chicken and leeks onto 2 plates with a slotted spoon. Squeeze the garlic, which should be cooked through and tender by now, out of its skin and discard the skins along with the lemon slices, and thyme sprigs. Smoosh the roasted garlic into the sauce at the bottom of the tray, which should be glossy and rich with flavour. Taste for seasoning and season if necessary. If you want a super-smooth sauce you can blitz the sauce with a hand blender but the back of a fork should do the job just fine.
7. To finish, stir the sliced spring onion through the sauce and pour it over the chicken, potatoes and leeks. Garnish everything with some chopped chives and serve with a big green salad on the side.

2 cups baby potatoes

4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

1 large or 2 small leeks, sliced into thick coins

1 head garlic, cut in half

½ lemon, cut into thin slices

4 sprigs thyme

3.5 tbsp butter

⅓ cup white wine

¾ cup chicken stock

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 spring onion, sliced

Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

To serve:

Green salad

300g baby potatoes

4 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin on