A Classic Roast Chicken for Supper

Roasted chicken is one of those classic suppers that no one can resist. And there’s nothing quite as easy to make. After 10 minutes of prep, your dinner is in the oven and you’re free to go about your life while it cooks. After a quick 90 minutes, your kitchen smells amazing and you have an impressive roasted chicken ready to feed your family. Easy peasy!

Here’s how I prep: After a quick poultry spa service, washing inside and out, I find whatever aromatics I have handy (onions, citrus, herbs) and stuff them in the cavity. Then I make a quick compound butter, full of herbs and spices, which gets slathered over the whole chicken. Then you simply pop the chicken in a pan and roast until golden brown. If there’s anything better than a crispy piece of seasoned chicken skin, I haven’t found it yet! 

Now, because we’re in self-quarantine time, I don’t have all the fresh ingredients I typically use. Tonight, I’m out of lemons, and I don’t have any fresh herbs. But it’s all good… time to make some swaps!

• In place of the lemon, I’m using an orange. Any citrus will work great inside the bird. The fruit gets nice and steamy, which helps cook and flavor the bird from the inside.
• For the compound butter, I’m using dried herbs and spices because I don’t have fresh. You can tell from the picture below that I may have gone a little crazy, but there’s no wrong answer here -- use whatever you like in whatever amount you like! I love French flavors, so that’s the direction I went. I eyeballed everything, but let’s assume I used the following: 1 teaspoon of each Herbs de Provence, granulated onion, garlic powder, French thyme and Penzey’s Mural of Flavor seasoning, plus 1 tablespoon of dried lemon peel, and a sprinkle of each chervil and tarragon. Was it a bit much? Sure. But it was yummy!

When the chicken is out of the oven and resting, make sure you use the drippings to make a quick pan gravy. Never pass up the extra deliciousness.

Tip: If you want, you can also add fresh chopped vegetables to the pan surrounding the chicken for an excellent roasted veg side dish (use onions, carrots, potatoes, parsnips, fennel) that cooks at the same time as the chicken. I didn’t have enough on hand to do that this time, but I sure enjoyed my bag of mystery veg from the freezer! #QuarantineLife

Enjoy!

ROAST CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS

• 5 lb whole chicken
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 6 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
• 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, minced
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
• Salt and pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Remove the chicken giblets and rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pin feathers. Pat the outside dry. Salt and pepper the inside of the chicken.
3. Tuck the chicken wings underneath the breast. Stuff the chicken cavity with the rosemary and thyme sprigs, onion and lemon. Tie the chicken legs together with kitchen twine.
4. Place the butter, garlic, minced thyme, rosemary and parsley, and salt and pepper in a bowl. Stir to combine. (I usually just get in there with my hands to make sure it’s well-blended!)
5. Loosen the skin of the chicken breast. Rub the butter mixture all over the chicken, both on the outside of the chicken and underneath the skin.
6. Place the chicken in a roasting pan. (Pick a pan with lower sides, so that more of the bird is exposed.) Cook for approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165 degrees F (juices will run clear when you cut between the leg and thigh.)  Keep an eye on it; if it’s getting too dark, cover with foil.
7. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before carving.

View fullsize

View fullsize