Stuffed Cypriot Chicken by Jamie Oliver

This quick recipe by Jamie Oliver is from his book - 30 Minute Meals. I doubled the Veg as I was not making the other components in the book to go alongside the chicken. I also bought two whole chickens and divided them into breasts (bone in), legs (for soup), and carcass with the wings for stock. The recipe all up takes a little over 30 minutes, unless all ingredients prepped prior to assembly, and serves 4 people well or can be divided into meal prep.

Side Notes
Cost of non-staples: $40
Serves: 4

Ingredients
CHICKEN
small bunch of parsley
small bunch of basil
8 sun-dried tomatoes and some of their oil
3 garlic cloves
100g feta
zest of one lemon
4 springs rosemary
4 chicken breasts, skin on & bone in
VEG
6 garlic cloves
400g cherry tomatoes on the vine (2 punnets)
small bunch of thyme & rosemary
400g (or 4 bunches) asparagus
20 black olives, pitted

My Pantry Staples
sun-dried tomatoes
garlic
lemon
salt
pepper

The Method

1. Pile the Parsley, Basil and Sun-dried Tomatoes and a pinch of pepper onto a chopping board. Grate over the garlic and finely chop and mix together. Crumble over the feta and lemon zest. Chop and mix together.

2. Drizzle olive oil onto a frying pan on medium heat. Squash the garlic cloves and add to the pan with the vine tomatoes and sprigs of herbs. Reduce to low.

3. Using a small knife, slice the chicken breasts down the middle in order to open them up like a book. Careful not to cut all the way through. Divide the filling from the board and stuff the chicken. Fold the breast back over to hold the stuffing.

4. Add 2 lugs of oil to another fry pan over medium heat. Lay the breast, skin side down, into the hot pan. Scrunch a piece of grease-proof paper under water then lay over the chicken and leave to cook for 5 or so minutes.

5. Cut the heads of the asparagus off and add to the pan with the garlic and tomatoes. Chop the remaining asparagus spears and add to the pan along with the olives. Toss the veg together.

6. Once the chicken is golden underneath, gently torn over without disturbing the filling. Add the rosemary to the pan and recover with the grease-proof paper. Put a medium fry pan or small dutch oven on top to weigh the chicken down, until cooked through. Another 3-5 minutes.

7. Transfer the golden chicken to a wooden board and slice each breast. Pour over the juices from the pan and serve with the veg.
   
   TIP: My choice of feta is Danish or Persian for its creaminess.