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Greece, Europe

Kotopoulo lemonato (Greek lemon chicken with potatoes)

A Greek family favourite: bone-in chicken and potatoes roasted in one tray with lemon, olive oil, garlic and oregano, so the potatoes soak up the tangy juices.

ServingsServes 2
Total cooking time1 h 25 min
DifficultyEasy
About servingsChicken must be cooked right through. Wash your hands, board and knife straight after handling raw chicken.

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C. Peel the potatoes and cut them lengthways into wedges 2–3 cm thick, then rinse and pat dry with kitchen paper.

    Add in this stepPotatoes 500 g

    oven

  2. Squeeze the lemons into a large bowl (fish out the pips) and add the olive oil, finely chopped or grated garlic, mustard, oregano, salt and pepper. Whisk well.

    Add in this stepLemons (juice) 1½Extra virgin olive oil 3 tbspGarlic cloves 3Dijon mustard 1 tspDried oregano 1½ tspSalt 1¼ tspBlack pepper ½ tsp

  3. Pat the chicken dry, add it to the bowl with the potatoes and toss with your hands until everything is coated. Spread the potatoes in a single layer in a 25×20 cm roasting tin and nestle the chicken between them, skin side up. Pour the leftover marinade over and the stock around the edges, not over the skin.

    Add in this stepBone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or legs 600 gChicken stock or hot water 150 ml

  4. Roast on the middle shelf of the oven for .

    oven

  5. Take the tin out, turn the potatoes and spoon the pan juices over the chicken; add a splash of hot water if the tin is almost dry. Return to the oven for more. It is done when the skin is golden, the potatoes are tender and browned at the edges, and the juices run clear when you pierce the thickest part of the chicken (75 °C near the bone).

    oven

  6. Let it rest out of the oven for so the juices settle. Serve with plenty of the lemony pan sauce spooned over, with bread and a salad.

Cook's tip

Use a tin big enough for the potatoes to lie in one layer, or they steam instead of roasting. Keep the liquid off the chicken skin so it crisps. Roasting mellows the lemon, so squeeze over a little extra juice at the end if you like it sharper.

Cooking it at camp

Instead of an oven, use a lidded cast-iron Dutch oven over charcoal with more coals on the lid. Marinate the chicken at home and carry it cold in a cooler, and cut the potatoes thinner so they cook in time. Always check it reaches 75 °C near the bone.