Picnic chicken

1.Preheat oven to 200°C (fanbake). Cut the chicken in half, cutting down each side of the backbone with a pair of scissors or poultry shears, and force it to lie flat (snap the thigh and wing ball-and-socket joints). Pull off any fat and discard. Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels.

2.Sprinkle the inside of the chicken with a little sea salt, grind on a little black pepper, and add a sprig or two of rosemary or oregano. Transfer chicken, skin-side up, to a shallow roasting tin lined with baking paper. I usually add the backbone, too, for added flavour.

3.Rub the chicken skin with lemon quarters, squeezing on the juice. Sprinkle chicken skin with sea salt and rosemary sprigs or crumbled oregano and grind over black pepper. Drizzle with oil. Put the slices of lemon in the dish too (remove them to a side plate as soon as they are golden).

4.Cook chicken for 30 minutes, basting often, then lower heat to 175°C (fanbake). Cook for about 1 hour more, basting every 15 minutes. When chicken is well browned and cooked through, transfer to a heated serving plate. Let it rest for 10 minutes or up to 1 hour. Cut into serving pieces using a knife and fork. Garnish with slices of cooked lemon and fresh rosemary. Squeeze on a little extra lemon juice if liked.