Fall equals Roast Chicken for me. For some reason the Fall makes me crave family dinner nights. I think it’s something about the start of school equals a real yearning to reconnect and come together–especially at the beginning of a week. One of my favorite ways of accomplishing this is a roast chicken. Which is saying a lot since I don’t like chicken. A wonderful way to get a home-cooked family dinner at the end of a weekend, without actually having to give up too much of your weekend in prep time.
Roast chicken is so easy for me anymore. It’s relatively hands off, and it’s also a great recipe for several nights of dinners (i.e. chicken salad, chicken soup, chicken stock, chicken quesadillas). But one of the best things about it is how amazing it makes the house smell while it’s roasting–the very epitome of the Fall.
Roasting a bird is one of those things that everyone has their own “perfect” way. And I used to think my old way was perfect. Turns out, I was wrong because this way is way more perfect!
I learned this technique from Lara over at Nothing to It cooking center. I LOVE her! She always has great lessons and ideas, and after the whole class you go home with a huge batch of wonderful new recipes! I learned this technique while taking her “Techniques” series. A series of eight classes that features a different basic cooking technique for every week. This one has changed my life.
I must say, I’ve been reading the old post here while rewriting the new one. It’s crazy how much this recipe has changed for me. I still am able to change up the vegetable choices with the season, but I’m now much more “liberal with butter or bacon grease” than I am with olive oil. And honestly, I can’t imagine it changes the health benefits too much for a COMPLETE improvement in flavor. I used to love the Weight Watchers recipe, but I can’t believe how much moister this one is. I also find it really funny that I wrote back then that this was a “family meal” to me, but I didn’t actually have anyone to share it with at the time. Nowadays, in order to get the other recipes I mentioned in the last post (i.e., chicken soup, chicken salad, quesadillas, and stock), I actually have to make TWO chickens at a time to do that. Behold my new life! Thanks, Law of Attraction!
So, have a great weekend, and make sure to take this Autumn weekend to spend some time with family and have a meal together. I know we will! Happy Cooking!
Roast Chicken
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Ingredients
- 1 or 2 Natural Free-Range Chickens
- ¼ - ½ Cup Butter or Bacon Grease (I know it sounds gross, but honestly, you don't get the "bacon" flavor, and the grease locks in the moisture better than anything else I've ever tried.)
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic Powder
- 1 Onion, Chopped
- 4-5 Cups Seasonal Various Vegetables (Carrots, Potatoes, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Turnips, even Beets)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Rub the chickens with Grease or Butter and sprinkle generously with Salt, then Pepper and Garlic Powder. (I have no idea if it works, but I feel like putting the salt on first allows the salt to preserve the moisture.)
- Put the chickens UPSIDE DOWN on the cooking rack. Meaning Breast-Side-Down.
- Cook 20 Minutes.
- After 20 minutes, remove from oven and flip the birds over with tongs or chicken forks.
- Reduce heat to 350.
- Put birds back in oven, legs facing the back. Set timer for 25 minutes at a time and check temperature until the thigh hits at least 155, but preferably 160, depending on what you're comfortable with.
- To get that final "brown" look, I occasionally turn the broiler on at the end for 2-3 minutes. You don't want to dry out the breasts, but you'll get that browned glow you're looking for.
Leave a Reply