Chicken braised with cider and red cabbage (and proper baked potatoes) – (Serves 4)

Ingredients

• 1.3kg freedom food endorsed whole chicken (£3.63)
• 2 large onions (30p)
• 1 small red cabbage (45p)
• 4 baking potatoes (70p)
• 440ml (1 can) of dry cider ( 90p from the local off licence)

The cupboard staples…

Salt, black pepper, flour, 4 cloves of garlic, 3 bay leaves and whole grain mustard.

Total cost

If you already have the cupboard staples, then according to mysupermarket.co.uk, this trolley was cheapest at Sainsbury’s where it came to £5.98 - that’s £1.50 per head!

Instructions

• First up you’ll need to de-bone the chicken – you’re looking for 2 thighs, 2 legs, 2 breasts (cut into 4 pieces) and 2 wings and of course the carcass left over for a stock. This video is an excellent demonstration of how to de-bone a chicken:
• Now for the stock. Get a medium sized saucepan on the heat, add a drizzle of olive oil and brown off the chicken carcass for a few minutes. Then add a few peppercorns, three bay leaves and enough water to cover the chicken carcass (probably around 3 or 4 pints). Bring up to the simmer and skim off any impurities that rise to the surface. Leave simmering for around 80 minutes or until you have about a pint and a half of stock.
• Whilst the stock is simmering away you can start to prepare the chicken dish and jacket potatoes. For the potatoes lay them individually on a square piece of foil (enough to wrap the potato), season with a good pinch of salt and add a drizzle of olive oil. Then wrap and set to one side ready to go in the oven.
• Now for the chicken. Dust all the chicken pieces with 2 tablespoons of seasoned flour and finely slice the onions, cabbage and garlic. Get a good pan on the heat (heavy bottomed best and one that can go in the oven) and add some olive oil. When the oil is hot add the chicken pieces and brown nicely on all sides – once browned remove the chicken from the pan and set to one side until the stock is ready. Keep the pan for later as well. Pre-heat the oven to 165C.
• Once the stock is ready just drain with a sieve. Now get the pan back on the heat (add a little more olive oil) and sauté off the onions and garlic for a few minutes. Then add the cider and reduce down for 1 minute. After the cider has reduced down, add 2 teaspoons of mustard and 1 and ½ pints of the stock along with the chicken and cabbage. Season well and then place in the oven (covered with foil) for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Do check the chicken every now and then to see if it needs a little more liquid.
• You can put the jacket potatoes in the oven at the same time as the chicken.
• After 1 hour and 30 minutes the chicken will be lovely and tender, but the jackets will probably need a quick blast at a higher heat, so just unwrap the foil and turn the oven up as high as it will go for a further 5 or 10 minutes.
• Happy eating!

Taken from our Frugal Recipe range

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