·         1 bulb garlic

·         olive oil

·         sea salt

·         freshly ground black pepper

·         1 lemon

·         1 small bunch fresh thyme, rosemary, bay or sage, or a mixture

·         1.6 kg higher-welfare chicken

·         2 medium onions

·         2 carrots

To prepare your chicken

Take your chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes before it goes into the oven. Preheat your oven to 240°C/475°F/gas 9. There’s no need to peel the vegetables – just give them a wash . Break the garlic bulb into cloves, leaving them unpeeled. 

Pile all the veg and garlic into the middle of a large roasting tray and drizzle with olive oil. Drizzle the chicken with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper, rubbing it all over the bird. Carefully prick the lemon all over, Put the lemon inside the chicken’s cavity, with the bunch of herbs.

To cook your chicken

Place the chicken on top of the vegetables in the roasting tray and put it into the preheated oven. Turn the heat down immediately to 200°C/400°F/gas 6 and cook the chicken for 1 hour and 20 minutes. If you’re doing roast potatoes and veggies, this is the time to crack on with them – get them into the oven for the last 45 minutes of cooking.