Sometimes, the simplest of food can be the most enjoyable. Take
a roasted chicken, for example. Done right, it possibly is my
favorite meal. My fiancée swears by a roast chicken on
our day off together, she always hits this recipe. Something
about that aroma wafting through the house just brings it all
home. It’s nice to have a meal that virtually cooks itself.
Being a professional chef, I try to stay away from complicated
cooking at home. Simple food can also be fundamentally perfect;
for example, I almost can tell the exact doneness by the aroma
of the chicken as it roasts, kind of like hearing different
keys played on a piano…does that make sense? The skin
should be crisp, the legs and joints cooked through and the
breasts juicy. I thought to delve into this subject because
everyone should know how to roast a perfect chicken.
First, choose a decent bird, the best being free-range and organic.
Select a bird that looks healthy and is from a reputable source,
a local farm is a good place to start. Make sure the bird is
of normal proportions, between three and six pounds is nice.
For years, I bought my birds from Stone Church Farms in Hudson
Valley…unfortunately they are no longer doing poultry
business. Now, I would recommend Shaun Stanton at North Plain
Farm in Housatonic.
Get your bird and give it a good rinse in cold water. If there
are other goodies included, such as a neck, gizzard, liver or
heart, you can save them and use them later (that’s another
article). Season the bird inside and out with kosher salt and
cracked black pepper. Be sure to use generous amounts on the
breast skin. Next I like to put some soft green herb butter
right under the skin, maybe two ounces per bird. This gives
flavor to the meat and also keeps the lean white meat moist.
In the cavity of the bird we can squeeze a lemon and add a few
garlic cloves and some thyme stems. At this point, you can truss
the bird, basically tying it up to ensure even cooking using
butcher’s twine. I like to prop the bird up in the roasting
pan on root vegetables and more aromatics. In the past, depending
on the season, we have used parsnips, onions, Brussel sprouts,
celery, carrots, sunchokes, anything will end up tasting delicious.
I also like to splash some white wine in the roasting pan. By
doing this, you will create a steaming effect for the first
part of the cooking process. Start the oven at 375 degrees and
let it go for 30 minutes. After that time, turn down the oven
to 300 for another 45 minutes. As the wine evaporates and the
juices from the roasting chicken drip into the pan along with
the moisture of the raw vegetables, the magic begins to take
place. The butter melts and the herbs and aromatics infuse themselves
into the meat. Depending on your oven, this method should work
beautifully. Make sure you roast the bird fully until the juices
run clear. Check this by cutting away some of the skin on the
thigh joint.
There’s more to the chicken than you think…. have
you ever heard of a “chicken oyster”? Having nothing
to do with the shellfish, other than maybe the shape, there
are two on each and every bird. They are tiny muscles between
the thigh and backbone. When a chicken roasts for hours in the
traditional position these little “oysters” are
self-basting and literally braised in the pan juices. Any gastrom
will dive in for these right away, they become the most succulent
of morsels on the entire roast. Another interesting fact about
the chicken is that they will have a strong leg used more often
and a weak leg, the first having more meat. In France, a discerning
customer will always ask if the chef is serving the left or
the right before ordering. The chicken has been roasting in
our hearths for centuries, and will continue to do so. Next
time you are in the mood for chicken, buy the whole bird and
roast it on the bone, you will be pleasantly surprised.
Adam Zieminski is the chef/owner of cafeADAM in Great Barrington,
MA. For reservations or cooking class information contact 413-528-7786
or cafeadam.org.
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