¾ cup pitted green olives
1.6kg whole chicken
4 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 tablespoons lemon zest
250g cherry tomatoes
sea salt and cracked black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oilPreheat oven to 200°C (400°F). Soak the olives in cold water for 5 minutes to remove the excess salt. Drain. Divide the chicken into 8 pieces or ask your butcher to do so. Place the chicken in a baking dish, skin-side up, and put a piece of garlic under each chicken portion. Combine the olives, parsley, lemon zest, tomatoes, salt, pepper and oil and spoon over the chicken.
Bake for 45–55 minutes or until the chicken is golden and cooked through. Place on serving plates and serve drizzled with the pan juices. Serves 4.
