Simplest Roast Chicken
Submitted by moniquemcc
High-heat roast chicken stuffed with lemon and garlic, cooked at 500F for crackling skin and juicy meat. A dead-simple pan sauce finishes the deal. Just 5 ingredients.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
30COOK
1 hrsREADY
Every home cook needs one roast chicken recipe they can make with their eyes closed, and this is the one.
A whole 5-pound bird gets stuffed with halved lemon and garlic cloves, seasoned with kosher salt and pepper, and roasted at screaming high heat until the skin is shatteringly crisp and the juices run clear.
No trussing fuss, no basting, no herb butter under the skin. Just heat, salt, and time.
The pan drippings get deglazed with chicken stock on the stovetop, scraped up into a quick sauce that’s rich and savory with zero effort. Serve the sauce on the side to keep that glorious crispy skin intact.
Kitchen Tips
- Let the chicken come to room temperature for 30 minutes before roasting. A cold bird straight from the fridge cooks unevenly and the skin won’t crisp properly.
- Pat the skin bone-dry with paper towels. Moisture is the enemy of crispy skin, especially at high heat.
- Move the chicken with a wooden spatula after the first 10 minutes to keep it from welding to the pan. After that, leave it alone.
- Tilt the bird over the pan when transferring to a platter. Those cavity juices are liquid gold for your pan sauce.
Ingredients
Directions
Place oven rack on second level from bottom.
Heat oven to 500 degrees F.
Remove the fat from the tail and crop end of the chicken.
Discard the neck and giblets or freeze for making chicken stock later.
Reserve chicken livers for another use.
Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the lemon, garlic and butter (if using).
Season the cavity and skin with salt and pepper.
Place chicken in a 12-by-8-by-1½-inch roasting pan, breast side up.
Put in oven legs first and roast 50 -60 minutes, or until juices run clear.
After the first 10 minutes, move the chicken with a wooden spatula to keep it from sticking.
Remove the chicken to a platter by placing a large wooden spoon into the tail and balancing the chicken with a kitchen spoon pressed against the crop end.
As you lift the chicken, tilt it over the roasting pan so that all the juices run out of the cavity and into the pan.
Pour off excess fat from the pan and put the pan on top of the stove.
Add the stock and bring to a boil, scraping the bottom vigorously with a wooden spoon.
Let reduce by half.
Serve the sauce over the chicken or, for crisp skin, in a sauce boat.
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