Pages

Thursday, October 02, 2008

It's just a state of mind


It's hard for me to believe I used to be afraid of roasting a whole bird. Now I do it in my sleep. Well not quite in my sleep, but it's my go to easy dinner. It's one of those things I can make in advance and leave for Thatboy to carve up on my way home from work. It's actually one of the very few meals that can be ready and waiting for me when I get home (well, if I've done the necessary prep work of making the chicken.)

It's just so easy and endlessly variable. Different veggies/aromatics/herbs stuck in the cavity, different rubs on the outside, do I want oil or butter? My only thought process revolves around timing. See, me and my oven act civilized to each other, but secretly we are each plotting the other's demise. My oven is dead set on turning out undercooked meats and overcooked veggies, requiring far too much "let me just check again" time. With this chicken I finally FINALLY came upon just the right time and temperature to have a perfectly cooked chicken without having to stick in a thermometer every 5 minutes. I give part of the credit to the quasi-rotisserie style of cooking which also self bastes the chicken and gives it the lovely golden color.


Turn Turn Turn Chicken
  • whole chicken
  • 2 Tbsp butter
  • small onion, chopped
  • 2 rosemary sprigs
  1. Preheat oven to 400. Rub outside of chicken with butter and season with salt and pepper.
  2. Place onion and rosemary inside the cavity.
  3. Place chicken on its side in a roasting pan. Roast for 30 minutes.
  4. Turn the chicken on it's other side and roast for 30 minutes.
  5. Turn the chicken on its back and roast for 45 minutes.
Serves 4-6.
Each serving has:
Calories 277.1
Total Fat 9.0 g
Cholesterol 155.2 mg
Sodium 170.5 mg
Potassium 540.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate 0.0 g
Protein 46.1 g

7 comments:

  1. I like the "rotisserie style" of cooking this chicken. Perfect:D

    ReplyDelete
  2. You came, you conquered. That chicken never had a chance.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love roasted chicken! It is one of my all time favorites.

    ReplyDelete
  4. yum. i love rotisserie/roasted chicken, but i'm too lazy to make it myself. and it's just too easy to go down the street to costco and pick one up for $6. i know, i know.

    ReplyDelete
  5. i've roasted a chicken, but it still intimidates me a little. i figure i can conquer the fear just as soon as the weather drops.

    seriously, any day now folks!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oooh, what a nice looking way to do this. Count me in the "I've never found a roasting method I like" crowd. I'll have to try yours.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ha - I am one of those people afraid of roasting the whole bird! This looks great - maybe one day...

    ReplyDelete