How to Make A Perfect Roasted Chicken

I have been meaning to do this post for a long time. Mostly because it’s one that I WISH I had seen on someone else’s blog back when I first got married and was getting used to cooking for the two of us. It can be tricky to make a roasted chicken that looks AND tastes completely perfect!

But after lots of practice, I am happy to share tips for those of you that might be looking for some. I make a roasted chicken about every other week. Jason and I typically eat the dark meat for dinner the night I make it, eat the white meat for salads and sandwiches in the days following, and I make stock with the carcass! Nothing goes to waste, and we enjoy every single bit of it.

My top tips for making a beautiful and delicious chicken:

#1- Buy a good chicken.

This seems overly obvious, but it’s not. Good doesn’t have to mean expensive, but the best chickens are generally going to be organic or kosher. If you have a local farm where you can get them, even better! Make sure the skin is intact everywhere and there’s no discoloration.

#2- Start with a dry chicken…

Make sure that you pat your chicken dry completely before you season it. Water on your chicken keeps it from browning properly!

#3- …Then lube it up!

I make a mixture of olive oil, lemon juice, and other seasonings and then rub it all over the entire chicken. For deliciously moist chicken breasts, gently lift up the skin of the breasts and rub the olive oil mixture underneath.

Some minced garlic under there makes it especially tasty! But I avoid putting fresh garlic or fresh herbs on the actual skin of the chicken because it can easily burn and make things a lot less attractive (though sometimes I do it anyways if I don’t care about the skin being a little ugly).

#4- Keep things tight.

This is a trick I learned from Barefoot Contessa. To keep any pieces of the chicken from drying out, everything needs to stay cozy and close together. Tuck the wings under the chicken by pulling the tip of the wing up…

then pushing it toward the backbone of the chicken…

and tuck it underneath the chicken.

And tie the drumsticks together with butcher’s twine the same way you would tie your shoes.

#5- Start the oven temp high.

I start at 450 to really get the skin browning, then lower the temperature to cook the chicken through. Then I keep an eye on it and make sure to rotate the pan in the oven a few times during cooking so that all the sides brown evenly.

Too much information at once? Haha, I apologize. But I put it into a handy Recipage entry for your convenience!  I promise that this recipe doesn’t disappoint. Time tested and made with love.

 

 

Along with the roasted chicken we had some sauteed zucchini and white wheat rolls. Rolls are something that I don’t get to make as much lately because of our school schedule! Quick diners have been saving my butt this semester, but ones like this that take more time are always SO worth it.

Tonight I made some gravy from the chicken drippings to go along with the meat. SO GOOD!

I also tried a new hard cider, which was amazing. I’ll definitely be repurchasing this!

With all the fun we were having this weekend, I delayed my usual grocery trip and meal planning to today.

I don’t know what it is…a stocked pantry or something…but I have been able to get our weekly groceries for SO CHEAP lately! I’m giving myself a pat on the back over here. This week’s groceries were only a little over $50, and that’s even WITH some splurge items like organic chicken and a mix-and-match six pack of beer and cider! Here’s our meal plan for the week.

Monday- roasted chicken, zucchini, white wheat rolls

Tuesday- Indian night: Royal Chicken, spiced brown jasmine rice, palak paneer

Wednesday- roast beef, crockpot potatoes, salad

Thursday- salmon with pan asian sauce, fried brown rice, broccoli

Friday- leftovers

We still have ONE MORE DAY left of fall break and I plan to take advantage of another great night of sleep before we have to go back to school.

Thanks for reading!

-Lauren