Skip the rotisserie counter at your grocery store and roast your own chicken! Roasting your own whole bird allows you to have total control over the ingredients and can offer major savings, especially if you prefer organic.
I start with a five pound roaster hen from my preferred source. My father-in-law brought us this chicken from a farm near his house, but you can get a similar bird for about $6 at Trader Joe’s or $11.00 at whole Foods. The key to a really good bird is seasoning it! I like to place a couple cloves of smashed garlic in the cavity, along with a half a fresh lemon. Then I rub a lemon pepper seasoning and dried minced onions all over the outside. I love the lemon pepper blend at Penzey’s spices.
You can also make your own lemon pepper with equal parts:
- Course Sea Salt
- Garlic granules
- Fresh ground black pepper
- Lemon zest
- Course ground Dried Onions
Place the bird BREAST DOWN in a roasting pan. I actually use an enameled lasagna pan. Placing the bird breast down will keep the white meat moist and allow the bits of meat on the back ribs get nice and charred.
I usually cram some carrots, potatoes, or parsnips around the chicken and pop it in the oven uncovered at 375*F on an upper rack for about an hour and 15 minutes. If I am uncertain whether or not it is done, I will stick a thermometer in the thigh.
The thermometer is usually not necessary since the bird is almost always done right around the time the dried onions turn black. Having all those crunchy, charred onions and garlicky lemon pepper makes the chicken skin ridiculously delicious and leads to a family squabble over the crispy bits.
This is actually one of the easiest meals to make for our family on a week night since the prep work only takes five minutes. Once you have it baking, you can walk away and carry on with other chores. Served with a side salad or steamed broccoli makes it perfect! The best part about making this type of very basic meal is you don’t need to worry too much about gluten, preservatives, MSG or the like so long as you get a quality seasoning or make your own season blend.
My favorite part of roasting a whole bird is the other meals I can make from the carcass. A chicken carcass makes excellent bone broth and stock for soups and stews. I used this bird to make a large crock of 24 hour bone broth for a chicken stew my kids love.
Do you use the whole bird? Why or why not?
Oh lordy this looks delicious!!!!