Roasted Chicken

Isn’t it funny how making a roasted chicken makes you feel all Martha Stewart- like??

I experienced that feeling when for the first time in a very long time, I made a roasted chicken for dinner.

I know totally random, but I got the recipe and inspiration from a cookbook I’m loving right now called Run Fast, Eat Slow.

In the book, they highlight the huge nutritional value of drinking homemade chicken broth. After reading all the benefits, I was all-in and completely ready to brew up my broth.

So I set out to get some chicken bones… I know, some of you are laughing already.

Turns out all the stores I checked with, from basic grocery stores to higher end butchers, don’t sell chicken bones.

I heard the same recommendation over and over again from each butcher I talked to: “Just roast up a chicken and use those bones”.

Thanks Mr. Butcher, but have I mentioned I don’t cook??

Feeling option less, I took a hard look at the Whole Roasted Chicken recipe in the book.

It seemed easy enough, but how could making a roasted chicken really be that simple? Don’t all those Norman Rockwell looking roasts take extra special effort from an extra talented cook??

Turn out, that isn’t the case. And as I always say, if I can cook it, anyone can cook it.

Roasted Chicken Recipe

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 whole chicken (4 to 5 pounds)

4 or 5 sprigs of fresh herbs like thyme, oregano, and sage

2 tablespoons for extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon of sea salt

1 teaspoon of pepper

½ small red onion

3 cloves of garlic, smashed

Small bunch of fresh parsley

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Remove the giblets from the check (save for your stock!!) and place the chicken in a roasting pan.

Create the rub my mincing 1 tablespoon of the fresh herbs and combined them in a small bowl with the oil, salt and pepper

Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the onion, lemon, garlic, parsley and the remaining springs of fresh herbs that will fit. Pull the skin to cover the opening.

Cover the chicken on all sides and crevices with the herb rub and place breast side up in the roasting pan. Fold the wing tips underneath the chicken

Cook until the thermometer inserted in the inner thing resisters at 165 degrees and juices run clear. Likely about an hour. For best results, don’t open the oven to check on the chicken until the hour mark. Let rest for 15 minutes before carving.

And that’s it. It really was that easy! I even made it on a weekday and it was totally manageable.

The only thing was after I was done eating, I was done cooking too. I didn’t feel like making that homemade broth that started this whole process. Instead, I just froze the bones and plan to cook up that goodness this weekend!