Roast Chicken

I used to roast a chicken at 350 degrees for an hour, without much regard to the size of the bird.  It would generally come out with varying levels of dryness and flabby chicken skin.  Then, a few years ago my sister purchased Barbara Kafka’s “Roasting, A Simple Art” and we were initiated into the world of high heat poultry roasting.  In her book, Barbara recommends roasting a 5-6 pound chicken at 500 degrees for 50-60 minutes, or about 10 minutes per pound.

We successfully roasted a fair number of birds this way, and were enamored with the crispy skin and moist meat.  However, less than thrilling was that the oven had to be spotless, and even then, the amount of smoke that came wafting out of the oven would set off the smoke detectors a half a dozen times during the roasting.  I would end up asthmatic and wheezing, with all the doors open, my hair and clothes smelling of chicken smoke the rest of the evening.  Not exactly your cozy, relaxing meal.

So I usually end up with an oven temperature somewhere between 400 and 450, depending on how clean the oven is.  This usually prevents the bulk of the smoke, though you can still expect a little.  With the lowered temperature it is probably closer to 11-12 minutes per pound cooking time, but I still start checking at 10 minutes per pound.  Make sure the poultry is fully thawed, and take it out of the fridge while the oven is preheating so it’s not so cold.

Roast Chicken
Inspired by Barbara Kafka
Serves 4

One 3-4 pound chicken
One lemon
Salt
Optional for deglazing: 1 cup broth, white wine, or orange juice and 1 tablespoon butter

Lower your oven rack to the second notch from the bottom, and preheat to 450 (500 if you are brave).  Rub the inside of the cavity and chicken skin with salt.  Slice up the lemon and stuff inside the chicken cavity.  Feel free to throw in anything else that suits you–shallots, garlic, herbs.  Place the bird on a roasting pan, breast side up.  Roast the chicken for about 20 minutes, then rotate the pan for even cooking.  Start checking the chicken after another 20 minutes for a 4 pound bird, and remove from the oven when the juices run clear.  Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and allow to rest for a few minutes.  Pour or spoon off any excessive grease from the pan, and add the liquid for deglazing.  Cook the juices over medium high, scraping the bits from the bottom of the roasting pan.  Reduce the liquid by half, and then stir in the butter.