Ingredients

1. Whole Chicken with skin – 1 kg

Marinade

2. Olive oil – 3 tbsp
3. Hot chilli powder or paprika – 1/4 or 1/2 tsp
4. Dry Oregano – 1 tsp
5. Whole garlic head – 1/2
6. Sea salt – as required
7. Pepper powder (freshly ground) – 1 tsp
8. Dry basil – 2 tsp
9. Lemon juice – 3 tbsp
10. Garlic powder – 1tsp
11. Lemon (big) - 1
12. Butter (room temperature) – 3 to 4 tbsp

For potatoes

13. Potatoes (medium) – 5
14. Garlic cloves - 5
15. Olive oil – 1 tbsp
16. Sea salt - as required
17. Italian herbs – 1/2 tsp
18. Butter – 2 tsp
19. Pepper powder – 1/4 tsp

Method

1. I have used chilli powder made of bell peppers not Indian chilli powder, you can use any chilli powder or paprika or cayenne pepper also.
2. In the chicken and potato, I have used garlic cloves with skin, for chicken marinate 1/2 of the whole garlic bulb I have used.

To prepare your chicken

3. Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and left over pin feathers and pat the outside dry.
4. I have used the chicken skin part (few skin pieces of neck part) in the potatoes for more flavour instead of throwing it in the bin but it is optional.

For the chicken marination

5. Take a bowl add all the marinate ingredients except butter. I have used sea salt and lemon juice for the marinade. Add the olive oil and 1/2 garlic of the garlic bulb or head with its skin in the marinade and mix.
6. Rub this marinate on the chicken all over and inside its cavity (except keep the garlic clove). Cut the lemons into half and put the lemons half inside the cavity with the garlic cloves as half or separate the cloves and add inside the chicken cavity.
7. With the help of your 2 fingers loosen the meat and skin slightly and apply the butter inside the skin on the chicken chest , its back and its thighs, legs part, be careful not to tear the skin. Rub some softened butter also all over the chicken and under its cavity also. Cover the chicken and place it in the fridge for 2hrs or more.

Preparing potatoes

8. Cut the potatoes into half and sprinkle oregano and pepper on each potato, with little sea salt. Drizzle olive on each potato and the rub with little butter on each potato and keep it aside. Add the garlic cloves with its skin and mix with the potatoes. Keep it ready.

Cooking the chicken

9. Take your whole marinated chicken out of the fridge 30 to 40 minutes before it goes into the oven. Chicken is best cooked at its normal temperature.
10. Preheat oven to 200C for 10 to 15 minutes. Place the whole marinated chicken, breast-side up, in a grill or wrack and keep roasting pan or tray under the chicken, so that any juice of chicken and fat melts and falls under the roasting pan.
11. Roast the chicken on high temperature 220c for 20minutes and then lower the temperature for 180c for 40minutes.
12. After 20 minutes, take out the chicken, carefully with the grill stand and keep it on a plate, so that no juices of chicken go waste. Wear your hand gloves.
13. Take the roasting pan in which all the juice and fat of chicken is there, place the marinated potatoes with its marinate and mix it with the chicken dripped fat.
14. Place the roasting pan under the oven again and the chicken also with wrack or grill and cook the chicken and potatoes with the same temperature 180c for 30minutes.
15. Before increasing the temperature I turned the potatoes upside down, so that the potatoes are well coated with chicken fat which is dripping and get good roasting colour. Basting the potatoes with the chicken fats and its juice, gives more flavour and the potatoes tastes good and delicious. Wear gloves and turn the potatoes, need to be careful as the chicken is on the rack.
16. Turn the high temperature again for 230c for 30 to 40 minutes, until chicken and potatoes are cooked.
17. To test if the chicken is ready, insert a skewer into the thickest part of the thigh. If the juices run clear with no sign of pink, this indicates that the chicken is cooked. Even for the potatoes, insert and check.
18. Apply butter on the chicken again (optional) and cover the chicken with foil and set aside for 15 to 20minutes to rest before carving or cutting into pieces to serve.
19. After carving, I squeezed the lemon which was under cavity all over the chicken, my chicken was so succulent and juicy, I couldn’t resist to lick my fingers, it was heaven. My best roasted chicken. It was lemony and garlic flavoured. Carefully cut down between the leg and the breast. Cut through the joint and pull the leg off. I cut the chicken into 4 big pieces.
20. Serve carved chicken with the roasted potatoes and drizzle of remaining juice and fat on the chicken, its like flavoured thin sauce not gravy, if there is no sauce also, it does not matter as the chicken is so juicy and yum . Squeeze the garlic clove on the potatoes and chicken, my roasted chicken and potatoes were so delicious, it was finished in minutes licking fingers and also baking tray got cleaned by itself.
21. The potatoes also got roasted with garlic and chicken flavour.

Notes

1. Use butter and olive oil as per your requirement.
2. Always use oven gloves and tongs while cooking.
3. Cook the chicken as per your oven instructions, until the chicken is fully cooked.
4. If the chicken is cooked and potatoes are uncooked, just keep the potatoes alone in the oven to cook.
5. In between of cooking, keep basting the potatoes with the chicken fat and oil in the tray.
6. Remember to avoid opening the oven again and again, as it reduces the oven temperature immediately and the cooking time increases.