There’s nothing like roast chicken to soothe the soul. Chef Derry Clarke, owner of Dublin’s Michelin Star l’Ecrivain, has kindly shared this lip-smacking recipe for spicy, sweet and sour roast chicken to warm up your Sunday lunch. He suggests serving it with roasted vegetables seasoned with spices and it is also delicious with a Mediterranean cous cous.

Ingredients

1 whole chicken (not too big: about 1.3 – 1.8 kg or 3-4lb)

For the paste:
2 red chillies (- and chopped)
2 tablespoons of curry powder or any spice mix
50g ginger chopped
6 cloves garlic chopped
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons chopped thyme
1 tablespoon chopped sage
1 tablespoon sea salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Method

Preheat oven to 190C

Mix all the paste ingredients together except the oil and vinegar.
Rub the chicken with the olive oil and vinegar and sprinkle the dry mixture over the chicken.
Season with some freshly ground black pepper.
Roast the chicken for about two hours (30- 35 minutes per 500g/ 25 – 30 min per pound), basting frequently.
Allow to rest for 10 min before carving.
(Photographer: Ronan Temple Lang)