Irish chicken and barley casserole

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 150°C.
2. Place a large, heavy-based oven-proof saucepan on a high heat. Add the oil and chicken legs skin side down and cook until the skin begins to turn golden brown, seasoning heavily with salt and pepper.
3. Once the legs are browned all over, carefully remove them from the pan and place on a tray or plate to rest. Lower the heat slightly and retain the chicken fat in the pan. Throw in the carrots and leeks and let them get a little bit of colour. Peel outer leaves from spring onions, cut spring onions in quarters, throw the bottom parts into the pan and finely slice the green top for garnishing at the end.
4. Now add the chicken legs, along with any resting juices, back into the pan on top of the veg. Add the chicken stock (enough so that everything is just covered) along with mustard, thyme and Worcestershire sauce.
5. Stir, bring the broth to the boil then place a lid on the pan and place it in the oven. Cook for 1.5 hours until the meat is soft on the bone.
6. Carefully remove the legs and pick off the soft meat, discarding the bone and cartilage. Return the meat to the broth along with the barley, return to the oven with the lid on and cook for a further 20 minutes, until the barley is soft and the liquid has thickened a little.
7. Adjust seasoning and finish with a handful of parsley leaves and sliced spring onion greens. Serve in warm bowls.