Roast chicken with mustard and sage
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Roast chicken with mustard and sage
‘A roast chicken is just such a beautiful, classic, delicious thing. So is mustard – I am obsessed with mustard and put it in everything.’
Prep time: 25 minsTotal time: 
Sally Abé
Sally Abé, who may be familiar from her winning stints on Great British Menu and judging duties on MasterChef, is the chef-proprietor at Teal in London's East End, a happy marriage of French bistro and modern British flair
Sally Abé
Sally Abé, who may be familiar from her winning stints on Great British Menu and judging duties on MasterChef, is the chef-proprietor at Teal in London's East End, a happy marriage of French bistro and modern British flair
Ingredients
- 75g unsalted butter, softened
- 2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1⁄3 x 20g pack sage, leaves finely chopped, plus a few extra sprigs
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 x 1.8-2kg whole free-range chicken
- 500g baby potatoes, halved
- 2 onions, cut into wedges
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- fresh herbs, to serve (such as snipped chives or chopped parsley)
- steamed greens, to serve (optional)
Step by step
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Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas 6. In a bowl, mix together the softened butter, both mustards, the chopped sage, lemon zest and garlic. Pat the chicken dry and season inside and out. Carefully work your fingers under the skin over the breast and thighs. Spread about two-thirds of the mustard butter underneath the skin. Rub the remaining butter all over the outside of the bird.
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Toss the potatoes and onions with the olive oil, some seasoning and a few small sage sprigs. Spread them across a roasting tray and sit the chicken on top. Roast for 1 hour 20 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes, depending on the size of the bird. The juices should run clear and the thickest part of the thigh should reach 75°C on a cook’s thermometer.
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Remove the chicken from the oven and leave to rest for at least 20 minutes. Meanwhile, return the potatoes and onions to the oven if they need more colour. Serve the chicken with the roasted vegetables, any juices from the tray and the fresh herbs. Enjoy with steamed greens, if you like.
