It’s Saturday and in Maryland we’re under a wind advisory – 50mph gusts. It’s February days like today that scream, “COMFORT FOOD!!!”
I have a few favorite comfort foods, but none can compare with a juicy roast chicken whose seasoned skin is baked to crispy goodness. Served with mashed potatoes and gravy…MMMMMmmmm! How can you compete with that?
Perfect Everyday Roast Chicken
Ingredients
1 3lb chicken, rinsed and patted dry
2 cups water
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 medium onion, quartered
1 garlic bulb, halved
1 lemon, quartered
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Place the chicken breast side up on the rack of a roasting pan. Pour the water in the bottom of the roasting pan to prevent the drippings from burning while the chicken roasts.
Combine the olive oil and butter and brush the outside of the chicken liberally. Sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper, making sure to get the inside spaces, like between the drumstick and the body. Stuff the cavity with the onion, garlic and lemon.
Roast for 30 minutes, baste with additional olive oil and rotate your pan (it helps the chicken cook more evenly). Continue roasting for another 30 minutes (estimate a total of 20 minutes per pound), or until an instant read thermometer registers 170°F when placed deep into the thigh. Remove the chicken from the oven, and let it rest for 20 minutes before carving – the bird will continue to cook a few more degrees while it’s resting, and your juices will redistribute inside the meat.
Serves 4.
PS: The pan drippings mixed with the water make an AWESOME gravy. I’ll post my recipe another day….
Roast chicken really is one of my favorite comfort foods. Just don’t let my father-in-law, who doesn’t eat fowl (one to many boiled chicken when growing up) know.
UGH – boiled chicken? No wonder he doesn’t eat fowl.
now why didn’t I read this before I went grocery shopping? There’s always next week though
Matt – there *is* always next week.
I only buy whole chickens when they’re on sale – so it’s not an every week thing for me either.