When it comes to chicken, I always prefer cooking the whole bird rather than just chicken boobs. Mainly because I prefer brown meat to white meat (more fat, less dry), but also because I feel better about cooking the whole animal and using all of its’ parts. I’m also a big fan of home-made bone broth, and using the carcass of a roasted chicken makes for a super flavorful stock.
This is kind of a basic roast chicken recipe that I sometimes like to jazz up by adding spices to, but if you want nice simple flavor, this will do just fine.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 Whole chicken, about 3 Lbs (organic pastured chicken is best)
- ¼ Cup grass-fed butter or ghee, divided
- ¼ Cup of extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 2 Tbsp of prepared dijon mustard
- 6 Cloves of garlic, minced
- Zest of 1 lemon
- ¼ Cup of fresh lemon juice
- 1 Tsp of pink himalayan salt
- Fresh ground pepper
- 1 Yellow or White onion, cut into large chunks
- 2 Large carrots, cut into large chunks
- 2 stalks of celery, cut into large chunks
- A few sprigs of either fresh thyme or rosemary, or both
- 1 Cup of dry cooking white wine (optional, you may use water instead)
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Brush the bottom of a large roasting pan with some of the olive oil.
- Remove any gizzards or organs from inside of the chicken (if not removed already).
- Melt half of the butter (2 Tbsp), and keep the other half solid. Divide the solid half in two again and place each solid half in between the skin and the flesh of each breast, this will keep the breast extra juicy and moist (You will have to gently separate the skin from the flesh using your fingers).
- Place the chunks of carrots, celery and onion in and around the bird.
- Wash your hands. Brush the melted butter on top of the skin and place bird in the oven, WITHOUT a lid, for 20 minutes or until skin is golden.
- While your chicken is in the oven, make the marinade. In a small blender or food processor, place remaining olive oil along with dijon, garlic cloves, salt, pepper, lemon juice and lemon zest. Blend until obtention of a uniform sauce.
- After the skin is done browning, remove chicken from the oven and lower temperature to 300F. Brush with the marinade, laying a pretty thick coat on it. You should have enough to brush the bird at least one more time later on.
- Pour white wine or water at bottom of roasting pan and place sprigs of fresh herbs in the liquid.
- Place back in the oven WITH a lid on for approximately 3 hours or until internal temperature reaches 165F (place thermometer between leg and breast for best results). If you do not own a meat thermometer, you can also cut the skin between the thigh and the breast, and see if the juices run clear. If so, your bird is ready. If not, keep cooking.
- Remove from oven at least once or twice to add more marinade and baste chicken with the pan juices, this will keep it extra juicy.
- Allow chicken to rest for about 20 minutes before serving. Carve
yourself a nice portion and save the rest for later. When you are done
eating, simply pull the rest of the meat from carcass, place in a
container and refrigerate.
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