Herby dressed turnips & roast chicken

Turn humble root veg into an unusual, flavour-packed side dish for your weekend roast

  • Prep:20 mins
    Cook:1 hrs 40 mins
  • Serves 4
  • Easy

Nutrition per serving

  • kcal 634
  • fat 40g
  • saturates 10g
  • carbs 14g
  • sugars 12g
  • fibre 7g
  • protein 53g
  • salt 0.86g

Ingredients

  • 1 small chicken, about 1½ kg
  • 5 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for rubbing
  • 2 garlic bulbs, separated into cloves
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 6 turnips, peeled, halved and cut into wedges
  • large handful flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
  • small handful capers, roughly chopped
  • small bunch watercress
  • 100ml white wine
  • 300ml chicken stock

Tip

Another idea for turnips: Honey-glazed turnips
Peel 3 large turnips and cut into large cubes or chunks. Cook for 4-5 mins in boiling water, then drain. Just before serving, heat 1 tbsp butter with 1 tbsp caster sugar and 1 tsp honey until sizzling. Toss through the turnips for 1 min until heated through and glazed. Serves 4 as a side dish.

Method

  1. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Rub the chicken all over with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in a roasting tin and roast for 1 hr. Scatter the garlic around the chicken and toss in the juices. Return the chicken to the oven for 30 mins more until it is cooked and garlic is soft.

  2. Place the chicken on a board to rest. Squeeze all the garlic cloves out of their skins and pound to a paste with a mortar and pestle. Mix with the 5 tbsp oil and the vinegar, then set aside. Make the gravy by adding the white wine to the roasting tin and bubbling down. Add the chicken stock, then pass the gravy through a strainer into a gravy boat.

  3. Boil the turnips in salted water for 6 mins until just cooked with a slight crunch. Toss them through the garlicky dressing with the parsley and capers, seasoning to taste. Joint the chicken, scatter with watercress, and serve with the herby turnips on the side.

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