Roast chicken dinner is ready in 40 minutes with one-pan recipe

A Sunday roast is more than a meal for many households; it's a weekly gathering to share and take pride in simple, seasonal cooking. From pub carveries to family tables, roast chicken sits at the heart of classic Sunday lunch because it's comforting, versatile and economical. One bird feeds many and fuels sandwiches, pies and soups for days. This one-pan version keeps the spirit intact while trimming the time and the bill, delivering crisp skin, caramelised veg and proper gravy without monopolising the oven.

Sharing a recipe from their new energy-saving cookbook, the experts at Belling said: "Did you know that a traditional roast dinner can take two hours or more to make, but a few simple alterations can result in a just-as-tasty spread on the table in a mere 40 minutes, using 66% less energy?". Roast chicken is the centrepiece, supported by classic veg and quick stuffing balls, all cooked together so the juices mingle and flavour builds fast.

Roast chicken traybake recipe

Ingredients

• Eight chicken thighs, skin on, bone in
• Salt and black pepper
• One small lemon
• One tsp dried thyme
• Two cloves of garlic, grated
• One tbsp vegetable oil

For the vegetables:

• 700g small new potatoes, scrubbed and halved lengthways
• 300g carrots, peeled and cut into batons
• 300g parsnips, peeled and cut into batons
• One medium red onion, halved, peeled and cut into wedges with the root intact
• 1½ tbsps vegetable oil
• 125g frozen garden peas, defrosted
• 170g packet of sage and onion stuffing
• 20g butter, optional
• Homemade chicken gravy to serve

Heat the oven to 220C/Fan 200C/Gas mark 7. Meanwhile, place the chicken thighs on a plate, pat dry with kitchen paper and season with salt and black pepper.

Zest the lemon, then add the lemon zest to a bowl with the thyme, garlic and oil, and mix well until combined.

Put the prepared chicken, skin side up, into a large roasting tin, then rub the lemon thyme oil evenly over the skin of each chicken thigh, using your hands.

Wash your hands, then toss the potatoes, carrots, parsnips and red onion in a large bowl with 1 tbsp vegetable oil and season with salt and black pepper.

Place the vegetables into the gaps around the chicken thighs, then roast on the middle shelf for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, to make the stuffing balls, empty the sachet of sage and onion stuffing into a bowl, add boiling water as directed on the packet instructions, and butter if desired, then mix well.

Leave to stand for 5 minutes, then roll into 12 evenly-sized stuffing balls. Wet your hands to prevent the stuffing from sticking.

When the chicken and vegetables have been cooking for 15 minutes, pop the stuffing balls into the tray and continue to cook for a further 25 minutes, until the chicken skin is crisp and golden and the vegetables tender and roasted.

When the traybake has about three minutes left to cook, add the peas to the roasting tray. Return to the oven for two to three minutes until the peas are hot.

Serve the traybake on warm plates, with a drizzle of your favourite homemade chicken gravy.