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Roast Chicken & Mac

A whole roast chicken and a pan of real baked macaroni and cheese.

Makes

One chicken and a pan of macaroni, feeds four

Hands on

45 min

All in

1 h 50

Oven

190 °C (375 °F)

What you need

• 1 (about 4 lb)whole chicken
• 3 tbsp (45 ml)butter, soft
• 2 tsp (10 ml)salt
• to tastepepper and thyme
• 3 cups (750 ml)macaroni
• 3 cups (750 ml)milk
• ¼ cup (60 ml)butter — for the sauce
• ¼ cup (60 ml)flour — for the sauce
• 3 cups (750 ml)old cheddar, grated
• ½ cup (125 ml)breadcrumbs

How it goes

1. 1

   Salt the chicken all over and leave it uncovered in the fridge for a few hours if you have them — that is what dries the skin so it crisps.

2. 2

   Rub it with the soft butter, thyme and pepper. Roast breast up in a cast iron skillet at 190 °C (375 °F) for 70–80 minutes, until the thigh reads 74 °C (165 °F).

3. 3

   While it roasts: melt the ¼ cup butter, whisk in the flour and cook one minute. Add the milk a splash at a time, whisking, until it is a smooth sauce that coats a spoon.

4. 4

   Off the heat, stir in the cheddar until it melts. Off the heat — boiling cheese sauce goes grainy.

5. 5

   Boil the macaroni two minutes short, fold it into the sauce, pour into a buttered dish, top with breadcrumbs, and bake 20 minutes alongside the chicken until the top is crisp.

6. 6

   Rest the chicken 15 minutes before carving. Pour the pan juices over the carved meat.

A couple of things

• Both dishes at 190 °C is the whole reason this works as one meal from one oven.
• The carcass makes stock. Do not throw it out — that is a free litre of soup.

Contains : wheat, milk