How to update a roast

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My kids are big fans of a roast for Sunday lunch so we have it quite a lot, and I really like having the leftovers for meals in the week.

Standard is roast whatever (today I’m doing chicken) plus roast potatoes, parsnips, 3 veg which I usually steam, plus gravy and other sauces. Yorkshire pudding with beef only in this house 😉

Sorry, posted too soon. Am looking for ways to make the veg more interesting without having that thing where every element of a meal is too rich and you lose the balance. Basically to Ottolenghify it a bit. I’m fine doing this with other meals or even with a less trad roast chicken. There’s something about pouring gravy all over it however that makes me lose my vegetable mojo (and I definitely don’t want to lose the gravy). Any ideas?

Do you change the flavour of the chicken and roast potatoes? You can add all different herbs or spices. If you make the roast potatoes, add the same as the chicken to the par boiled potatoes and toss the herb/spice in semolina. Makes them crispy too. Another thought is if you are using lemongrass to flavour the veg make a spicy coconut milk instead of gravy. In terms of beef smother it in black pepper and mustard, dauphinois potatoes? And lamb stab a knife through multiple times and stuff with rosemary and slices of garlic, reduce red wine with shallots and brown sugar and blitz as use as a base for gravy. You can honey glaze carrots and add thyme. It maybe try some of the exotic veg?

I sometimes do honey carrots with a roast and that adds a nice touch of sweetness to all the savoury. Also stuffing?

So make the vegetables interesting so they work with a roast?

We love aubergine parmigiana with roast chicken.
Ratatouille. If you look up vegetable gratins they go really well.

Forgot to add pork or chicken in masala wine is nice too and make the sauce by adding cream and tarragon

To my family what you describe is 'a roast'. Doing something different can result in delicious outcomes but be prepared to be told it's 'not a roast!'

That said sometimes it's really nice to have a change.
I've had success with coating the chicken in tandoori curry paste and adding spices to the roast potatoes. Then serving with garlicky green beans. The problem I always have is the gravy element, so tend to make a very simple, tomato based vegetable curry with cauliflower, onion and butternut squash.

I loved Jamie Oliver's spicy roast chicken. He also does a version with lamb as well. I serve it with rice something's instead of the Bombay potatoes, and salad as well.
A simpler version would be to use a jar of curry paste rather than make your own spice, but it's not as good.

www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/chicken-recipes/spiced-roast-chicken/

I really like roast chicken with wilted spinach and blue cheese risotto, but that might be a step too far.

I don’t eat meat but went round to a friends for a roast where she’d done a roast lamb with Moroccan spices, a few salads, some roasted spicy new potatoes, baba ganoush, hummous and breads. The salads, dips and breads alone were divine the lamp looked amazing.
Slmething like this?

I think a traditional roast becomes a different meal if you do too much with the veg - still lovely but just not a roast as PP said.

I've a few ideas, possibly not as 'modern' as you were asking for but different to plain old veg!

Roasting the veg rather than steaming or boiling makes a difference.

We love cauliflower cheese with a roast, you can add any other veg such as carrots & broccoli in the sauce til.
Also leeks baked in a cheese sauce are delicious.

Red cabbage is not just for Christmas! I make a ton of it before Christmas and freeze in family size portions.

You mentioned parsnips - have you tried Delia's Parmesan parsnips?

White cabbage, a little bit of chopped cooked bacon and a splash of double cream all warmed through together is lush.

I prefer mashed swede to cubed. I prefer parsnips roasted to mashed on their own but quite like them in a mixed mash (swede, parsnip, carrot). My Mum used to mash carrots in with potato, which works really well but there would be uproar here if we didn't have roasties on a Sunday.

We had Sunday lunch out recently and I rolled my eyes when they brought it as the veg included asparagus, tender stem broccoli and sugar snap peas - I prefer boring old traditional veg with a roast - but actually I was proved wrong and made me realise I need to be more adventurous too, so watching this thread with interest. .

Another vote for roast veg. Drizzle with oil, crumble a stock cube over and add some herbs. Delicious every time!

Flavour your chicken or lamb with lots of lemon and fresh herbs and serve with a big pile of mixed greens (beans, tender stem broccoli, mange tout, asparagus etc). A nice yoghurt and tahini dressing is nice and you can still serve with roast potatoes although I would go for smaller ones that are less crispy.

Some kind of lamb kleftiko _ with the lamb and potatoes cooked together.

Replace the vegetables with a cauliflower and broccoli cheese.

Placemarking

Honey roast carrots and/or parsnips
Cauliflower cheese
Garlicky green beans
Sprouts and bacon
Minty peas
Braised celery
Carrot and swede mashed with butter
White cabbage with. Butter and black pepper
Ratatouille type tomato, courgette stew