Free Range Chicken Recipes

To make this recipe you will need:

• 8 chicken thighs, bone in.
• 1/2 jar wild garlic pesto
• 1.5 mugs orzo
• 2.5 mugs chicken stock
• 1 leek, diced
• 120g mature cheddar cheese
• 200g stale bread turned to breadcrumbs OR shop bought natural breadcrumbs
• Olive oil
• Salt & pepper
• A little butter
• Rind or parmesan If you have it 

And here’s how to do it…

• Set the oven to 200⁰
• Melt the butter in a large skillet.
• Brown the chicken thighs skin side down in it, for around 5 minutes.
• Once golden, set them aside on a plate.
• In the same pan, now add the leek and soften for 5 minutes.
• Add the orzo and toast slightly in the leeks and butter.
• Add all of the stock and one tablespoon of the Wild Garlic Pesto.
• Bring to a simmer. It may seem very liquidy, but the orzo will absorb all of that soon.
• Add parmesan rind if you have one, and salt and pepper.
• Put the chicken on the top of the orzo and stock, skin side up in a circle.
• Put the whole dish into the oven for 20 minutes.
• After 20 minutes, top each chicken thigh with a small spoonful of the pesto, about 1tsp. And a slice of thin cheddar.
• Sprinkle the breadcrumbs across the top of each piece of cheese and put it all back in the oven.
• A further 15 minutes, and you should have golden breadcrumbs, perfectly cooked chicken, and melty cheese with gorgeous silky orzo beneath. 

Serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon and enjoy!

Takes 1 hour 30 minutes

Preheat your oven to 200⁰c

To make this recipe you will need:

• Cornish Free Range Medium Chicken Whole 1.8kg
• OR Get one already spatchcocked HERE
• Potatoes
• Peppers
• Olive Oil
• Oregano

The Mexican Spice Rub:

• 3 tablespoons natural yogurt
• ½ teaspoons chilli flakes
• ½ ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 tsp dried cumin
• 1 tsp smoked sweet paprika
• 1 tsp garlic granules
• 1 tsp onion granules
• 1 tsp dried coriander

Cornish Coleslaw:

• 3 carrots grated (box grater or food processer)
• 1/4 cabbage (shredded finely)
• ¼ white onion (cut into thin slices)
• 2 tsbs of natural yogurt
• 1-3 tsbs of mayonnaise depending on how creamy you like it
• 1 cap of apple cider or white wine vinegar
• A squeeze of lime
• salt, pepper

And here’s how to do it…

1. Locate the back bone.
2. Using sharp kitchen scissors cut along both sides of the back bone as close as you can get.
3. Once this is removed store it in the freezer in a container or bag to use in stocks.
4. Now locate the breastbone, between the rib cage.
5. Just lightly push your knife between the underside of the breasts and youll feel the chicken open slightly.
6. Thats it youve spatchcocked your chicken it should lie nice and flat ready for the spice rub.
7. In a large oven tray, scatter potato wedges, large wedges of peppers, and quarters of onion.
8. Generously season with salt, pepper, oregano, and olive oil and toss together using your hands until everything is equally coated.
9. Now lie your chicken under side up and spoon on your yogurt and all the spices.
10. Use the spoon to slightly combine the spices, then use your hands to massage the spiced yogurt all the way over the underside then upper side of the chicken.
11. Once the chicken is thoroughly coated, and the chicken is now lying top side up, place the tray into the oven and cook for 1.20 hour, or until the thigh and leg juices run clear.
12. Set the chicken aside to rest under some foil  and put the potatoes back into the oven after turning, until golden and cooked through.
13. While the chicken is cooking you can start on the coleslaw

14. Combine all of the ingredients, season to taste (you may want to add some more salt or lime or mayo)

To serve

Serve the chicken up on a board with forks to pull apart.

The slaw in a bowl, the potatoes and peppers in the pan with the juices.

This is great with a green salad & corn on the cobs or even corn tortilla wraps to load up too, make it your own and enjoy x 

To make this recipe you will need:

From your Cornish Food Box

• 2 free range chicken legs
• 2 small leeks
• 4 carrots
• 4 potatoes

From your pantry

• ½ tin sweet corn
• Chicken stock (650ml)
• 1 heaped tbsp Plain flour
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 2 garlic cloves
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp marmite
• 1 heaped tsp wholegrain mustard

From the garden...

• 2 bay leaves
• Parsley

Optional extras (these do really step the flavour up though so i highly recommend)

• Juice of 1 lemon
• Grated aged parmesan cheese

And here’s how to do it…

• Start by seasoning the chicken legs with plenty of salt and pepper, i adore Cornish Seasalt's salt and peppery blend. This is available to add to your Cornish Food Box.
• Then in a hot non stick pan, brown the chicken legs for about 7-8 minutes per side.
• Pop the now browned chicken legs on a plate and keep aside
• Now add the garlic, and diced potatoes to the same pan and the dried rosemary. Add a little olive oil if needed, you want to lightly fry the potatoes until they’re golden on the edges, this takes about 5 minutes.
• Add tomato puree and coat the potatoes, then add the leeks, carrots and some salt and pepper and let it all sizzle for a couple of minutes.
• Now add the flour and coat all the veg in it.
• Pour in the chicken stock, and bring to a simmer.
• Add the marmite, mustard, bay leaf, and stir.
• Pop the chicken legs on the top and cover with a lid and leave cooking on the hob for 30 minutes (you can alternatively pop it in the oven on 180 for 25 minutes).
• Once the time is up, remove the chicken, add the sweet corn, and then shred the chicken off the bones, and put back into the pot, including the bones if you have any bone gnawing lovers in the family they’ll love these. They also keep adding so much more flavour to the pot.
• Serve with the lemon juice, chopped parsley and a scattering of grated parmesan. 

To make this recipe you will need:

• 
  1 Butternut Squash (use a mandolin or slice thinly with a knife to about 2mm thick)
• 4 large Cornish Potatoes, sliced the same size as above.
• 1 Cornish Onion, thinly sliced
• Cornish salted butter for greasing the pan and seasoning the chicken.
• 1 free range Cornish Chicken, giblets removed.
• 1 Mug (approx 200ml) of hot chicken stock.
• Grated cheese, I used a mixture of Parmesan and Davidstow cheddar, but use up whatever hard cheeses are leftover in your fridge.

FOR THE DRESSING

• 3 tablespoons olive oil.
• 3 teaspoons of Dijon mustard.
• The juice of 1 lemon (keep the squeezed lemon skins to put in the chicken cavity).
• Black Pepper and Cornish Seasalt.
• 3 garlic cloves diced.
• 1 tbsp dried thyme.

And here’s how to do it…

• Set your oven to 220⁰C.
• Start by prepping and slicing all of your ingredients.
• Mix all of the dressing ingredients together in a mug.
• Grease a deep oven proof pan with butter.
• Layer up the butternut squash, onion and potatoes, drizzling a couple of teaspoons of the dressing between each layer, until everything is completely used up.
• Prepare your stock in the same mug that had the dressing in, no need to rinse it, you want all that flavour.
• Pour the stock over the layered veg.
• Put the whole chicken on top of the veg, and rub it all over with the butter, salt and pepper. 
• Place the lemon halves that you used for the juice into the cavity of the chicken.
• Wrap the whole thing tightly in foil so no steam can escape, and pop in the oven for 1 hour. 
• Remove from the oven and take off the foil. 
• Return it all to the oven, for a further 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked and the juices run clear when you poke a knife in at the bone.
• Set the chicken aside, under foil and a clean tea towel, to keep it warm whilst it rests.
• Grate the cheese over the gratin, and drizzle with a little olive oil and a pinch of black pepper, and put back into the oven for 20 more minutes until golden.
• Serve the gratin with slices of the chicken and seasonal Cornish greens. 

TOP TIP 

Cook your greens (I used chard) in a wok in a little butter or olive oil, with fresh ginger, garlic and lemon zest to really bring a zingy side to accompany the dish.