My nana’s roast chicken in a bag

For the stuffing:
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 x 250 g packet Woolworths Heat and Eat barley
• salt, to taste
• white pepper, to taste
• 1 x 1.3 kg free-range chicken
• 4 T cake flour
• 4 sticks celery, roughly chopped
• 1 onion, quartered
• 4 large carrots, halved lengthways
• 1 head garlic
• 4 bay leaves
• 4 T olive oil
• 4 T butter
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 4 T sherry vinegar
• mashed potato, for serving
• mint chopped (for minted peas, for serving)
• peas (for minted peas, for serving)

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. To make the stuffing, heat the olive oil in a large pan over a medium heat, then add the onion and sauté until translucent. Add the garlic and thyme and sauté for 5 minutes, then add the barley and heat through. Season and set aside to cool.

2. When the stuffing has cooled, loosely stuff the chicken.

3. Place an open roasting bag on a work surface. Sprinkle the flour into the bottom of the bag, then add the celery, onion, carrots, garlic and bay leaves. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables, add the olive oil and butter, season and seal the bag.

4. Place the bag in a roasting pan and roast for 40 minutes, then open the bag and roast for a further 15 minutes to brown.

5. Remove the chicken from the bag and pour the roasting juices into a saucepan. Add the sherry vinegar, reduce for 5 minutes and serve hot with the vegetables from the bag, mashed potatoes and minted peas.

Find more chicken recipes here.