Take note of the weight of your chicken and guesstimate how it will need to cook: A chicken takes 20 minutes per pound of weight + 20 minutes extra.
(please note this is not at all scientific as I have no way of testing the internal temperature of the Dutch oven - see above to find how to ensure the meat is cooked and safe to eat)
About an hour before you want to start cooking, build up a good strong fire.
Separate the fire into two - a small fire on one side producing new coals and a good bed of embers on the other side for cooking on.
Place a trivet in the bottom of your Dutch oven. You can also use a layer of root vegetables, or even a bunch of scrunched up tin foil. Anything that will raise the chicken off the bottom of the pan to prevent it burning.
Lay the chicken on the trivet. Pop the lid on and place the Dutch oven on to the embers. Using a shovel, tongs or a welders glove, cover the lid of the Dutch oven with hot coals.
Keep an eye on the time (or set an alarm on your phone) for halfway through the guesstimated cooking time.
Using a digital thermometer (or Method 2 as mentioned above) check to see if the chicken is cooked all the way through. If not, replace the lid and cook for longer.
When cooked remove from the fire and serve in crusty baguettes with mayonnaise. Delicious!
Please enjoy my recipe! Jane | hedgecombers.com