No Recipe Recipe Roasting Chicken Food

PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pin feathers and pat the outside dry. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the bunch of thyme, both halves of lemon, and all the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Place the onions, carrots, and fennel in a roasting pan. Toss with salt, pepper, 20 sprigs of thyme, and olive oil. Spread around the bottom of the roasting pan and place the chicken on top.
• Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a platter and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes. Slice the chicken onto a platter and serve it with the vegetables.

THE BEST ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Sprinkle generously with at least 4 teaspoons salt all over the outside of the bird and inside the cavity. Let the chicken sit at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the salt to penetrate. Or you can refrigerate it, uncovered, up to 1 day ahead.
• Set a wire rack inside a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F.
• Toss the lemon wedges, garlic and herbs with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Stuff the lemons, garlic and herbs in the cavity of the chicken. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine and tuck the wing tips underneath the back. Transfer the chicken to the prepared baking sheet. If you refrigerated the chicken, let it sit at room temperature 30 minutes to 1 hour before roasting.
• Just before roasting, brush the oil over the entire outside of the chicken (but don't worry about the bottom), making sure to get into all the nooks and crannies so they evenly brown. Roast the chicken, rotating the baking sheet after 35 minutes, until the skin is golden brown and crispy and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 155 degrees F, 70 to 80 minutes (the temperature will climb to 165 degrees as the chicken rests).
• Let the chicken rest on the baking sheet for 20 minutes (do not tent with foil or the chicken will overcook and the skin will get soggy).
• Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and discard the lemons, garlic and herbs. Carve into serving pieces.