Main course Polish
Roast chicken with apples and marjoram
Meat & fish
Editorially prepared
Chicken legs roasted with marjoram, garlic and onion, with apples added halfway through. The chicken has browned skin, while the softened fruit combines with the roasting juices to make a simple sauce.
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Ingredients
4 servings · metric units
Keep the chicken in a single layer and leave space for the apples. For a larger batch, use a larger dish or two dishes rather than stacking the legs. Roasting time depends on the size of the pieces and how full the oven is; it does not increase in proportion to the servings. Check the temperature of each larger piece.
Substitutions
Substitute amounts are adjusted to your selected servings.
- Instead of rapeseed oilsunflower oil
Use the same volume in place of rapeseed oil. Its neutral flavour will not alter the character of the apples and marjoram.
- Instead of dried marjoramfresh marjoram
Replace the dried herb with finely chopped leaves, using roughly three times the volume as a starting point. The flavour is gentler; divide the leaves between the chicken and apples in the same way as the dried marjoram.
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Optional ingredients and substitutions
You’ll need
Oven · Large baking dish, approximately 30 × 40 cm · Chopping board and sharp knife · Small bowl for seasoning and a bowl for the apples · Kitchen scales and measuring spoons · Probe thermometer · Spoon, tongs and oven gloves · Heatproof trivet
Method
0/6 stepsSeason the chicken
Heat the oven to 200°C conventional or 180°C fan. Peel 200 g of onion, cut into thick wedges and spread in the baking dish. Chop 12 g of garlic and mix with 30 ml of rapeseed oil, 1 tsp of salt, ½ tsp of pepper and half the marjoram. Reserve the remaining half of the marjoram for the apples. Pat about 1200 g of chicken legs dry with kitchen paper without washing them. Rub with the seasoning mixture, including the flesh side, and arrange on the onion in a single layer, skin-side up. Wash your hands and clean the equipment and surfaces that touched raw chicken. Allow about 15 minutes for this preparation.
Season the chicken Start roasting
Pour 80 ml of water around the edge of the dish without wetting the skin. Check that the oven has reached the set temperature and put the dish on the middle shelf. Roast uncovered for 30 minutes from the moment it goes into the oven. Meanwhile, prepare the apples in the next step. By the end of this stage, the skin should be starting to colour, but the chicken need not be cooked through. If the skin is still pale, leave it uncovered for the next roasting stage; if it is becoming very dark, loosely shield the chicken with foil.
30:00Start roasting Prepare the apples
During the first roasting stage, wash 600 g of apples, remove the cores and cut the unpeeled fruit into thick wedges. Toss with the remaining reserved half of the marjoram. Allow about 8 minutes. Set aside until the first 30 minutes of roasting are complete; the chicken stays in the oven during this preparation.
Prepare the apples Finish roasting with the apples
After the first 30 minutes, carefully pull out the dish. Check the bottom: if it is dry and the onion is starting to catch, pour a little warm water around the edge. Arrange the prepared apples between the chicken pieces without covering the skin, and moisten them with a little liquid from the dish. Return to the oven and roast uncovered for about 30 minutes from the moment the dish goes back in. Towards the end, probe the thickest part of the meat without touching bone: it should hold at least 75°C for 30 seconds. The skin should be golden brown and the apples tender when pierced with a fork but still in pieces. If either the chicken or apples are not ready, continue roasting and check every 5 minutes; loosely shield overly dark skin with foil.
30:00Finish roasting with the apples Rest the chicken
Once the chicken has reached the required temperature and the apples are tender, remove the dish and place it on a trivet. Rest the chicken with the apples for 10 minutes from the moment it leaves the oven. Do not cover tightly, as trapped steam would soften the skin.
10:00Rest the chicken Serve with the roasting juices
Gently stir the onion and juices at the bottom without crushing the apples. Serve in the baking dish on a trivet. Give each person a chicken leg with apples, onion and a little of the juices, keeping the browned skin free of sauce.
Serve with the roasting juices
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Tips
- Leave the chicken uncovered during the main roasting stages. If the skin browns strongly before the centre is cooked, loosely shield just the chicken with foil.
- Cut the apples into thick wedges and leave the skins on to help them hold their shape. Very ripe fruit may break down into the juices.
- Pour liquid into the bottom of the dish, not over the skin. Spoon the finished juices over the cut side of the meat or serve them alongside to avoid softening the browned surface.
- If the dish dries out and the onion starts to catch, pour a little warm water around the edge.
Storage
Store only fully cooked chicken. Divide leftovers into smaller portions and refrigerate in covered containers within 2 hours of cooking. Eat within 48 hours or freeze with the apples and cooking juices. Defrost in the fridge. Reheat only once, until the chicken and accompaniments are piping hot throughout; the centre of the meat should reach 75°C for at least 30 seconds.
Timing
Hands-on: 33 min · Cooking: 1 hr · Resting: 10 min
The total allows for tasks done in parallel. The individual times can overlap.
