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1.
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Preheat the oven to 400 F.
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2.
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Remove the chicken from the packaging and pull out the yucky stuff (neck, liver etc.).
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I usually just toss it but if you like chicken livers, save them, by all means.
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I know they are very good for you, but I cant stand the taste of them so you wont find any recipes for them here.
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The neck of course comes in handy for soup, so you CAN pop that into a freezer bag and save it.
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3.
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Rinse chicken and pat dry.
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4.
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Sprinkle the cavity with kosher salt and pepper.
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Then, this is the part that makes it taste like a brined bird, you are going to run your hands under the skin on the breast side and separate it from the meat, all the way down.
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Once the skin is separated, but still attached to the bird, get a small handful of kosher salt, about two teaspoons per breast and smear it all over the meat, under the skin.
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5.
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Next stuff the cavity of the bird with lemon wedges, onion wedges and garlic.
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Just cram as much in there as you can and then truss the legs with kitchen twine, just so you keep all the stuff in the cavity.
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I dont get fancy with the trussing for this, I pretty much just cross the legs and tie them.
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No big deal.
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6.
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For the pan, just about anything with a rim will work, so long as you can put a wire rack in to keep the bird out of the juices.
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Lately I have been too lazy to get my big roasting pan down from the top of the cupboard so I have just been using a rimmed baking sheet with a wire rack in it and it works great.
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Place the bird in the pan on the rack, legs up.
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7.
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Using a pastry brush, baste the bird with a good layer of soft butter.
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8.
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Place it in the preheated oven, basting about every 20-25 minutes with more of the soft butter, until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast registers about 178 degrees F. Martha Stewart recommends 180 , but I feel like the breast is just a touch dry at 180 so I remove it from the oven once it is comfortably past 175 .
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Mine usually takes close to two hours to get up to temperature.
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If you are not at high altitude you can likely count on a little less time.
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I would guess maybe an hour and a half.
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9.
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If you want to make a simple gravy from the pan juices, move the chicken to a cutting board or serving platter and allow to rest while you make the gravy.
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Pour the drippings from the roasting pan into a saucepan or fry pan over medium heat.
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10.
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Toss in the flour and stir until it turns to a thick paste.
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11.
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To have a nice smooth gravy you must add the liquid slowly, stirring the whole time.
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So start with about a 1/4 cup chicken stock and pour that into the pan with the flour mixture, stirring as you go.
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Once it is smooth add another 1/4 cup and again, stir until smooth, repeat until all the stock has been added or you get the consistency you desire.
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If you need more than 2 cups stock, by all means, add more, likewise, if you get the consistency you want before all the stock has been added, then stop.
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Add a little salt and pepper and youre good to go.
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12.
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To serve you can carve the chicken ahead of time and place it on a platter or just put the whole thing on the table and let everyone dig in.
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Enjoy!
