Thursday, December 14, 2006

Finally, a roast chicken!



Not a big deal, surely - a roast chicken? Considering I've been cooking turkey for the past three years, what's a chicken compared to that? Well, I knew it wouldn't be very hard, but for some reason, I had never come around to actually cooking a chicken. Whole. In the oven. Until this week.

In fact, it was one of my new year resolutions! (And I'm having great fun thinking about five new resolutions for 2007!) Anyway. It was really easy, and really, really tasty. I read several recipes for roast chicken in my trusty Nigella and Jamie books, and then did something like this:

In the morning, I rubbed the chicken inside and out with salt and pepper. Back in the fridge it went. When I was ready to cook, I heated the oven to 200°C. I tossed in two small lemons with my boiling potatoes, and when they were hot I fished them out, stabbed them all over and stuffed them into the chicken. I then rubbed some olive oil into the skin of the chicken, tied it up neatly with my beloved FoodLoops and pushed it into the oven, where I left it for about an hour. And that was that.

We ate it with roast potatoes, roasted parsnips and carrots, and my favorite cold sauce, raitziki.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

This reminds me I should force my husband to make his wonderful roast chicken this weekend.

Oops...force? Of course I meant ENCOURAGE!

The best thing about his roast chicken is that every time he makes it it tastes different depending on what spices and other things we have at home. It's always super good though! I'll show him your recipe to press...I mean INSPIRE him.

The Cookbook Junkie said...

I almost posted a roast chicken today too. It wasn't my first, but it was the first time I used a recipe. I've yet to roast a turkey.

I have to go back and look at the resolutions I posted last year. I know there are a few things on the list that weren't accomplished.

Anonymous said...

Yes! I love to make roast chicken. Although I do it in a big caseroll with a lock on. After 1½- 2 hours the chicken is so tender that it almost falls off from the bone. And the best part.. its so easy! And cheap. :-)


Yours looks so lovely.. and now Im a bit curious about that foodloop. Sounds look a good thing to have in the kitchen.

Anonymous said...

Yes! I love to make roast chicken. Although I do it in a big caseroll with a lock on. After 1½- 2 hours the chicken is so tender that it almost falls off from the bone. And the best part.. its so easy! And cheap. :-)


Yours looks so lovely.. and now Im a bit curious about that foodloop. Sounds look a good thing to have in the kitchen.

Anonymous said...

Yes! I love to make roast chicken. Although I do it in a big caseroll with a lock on. After 1½- 2 hours the chicken is so tender that it almost falls off from the bone. And the best part.. its so easy! And cheap. :-)


Yours looks so lovely.. and now Im a bit curious about that foodloop. Sounds look a good thing to have in the kitchen.

Anonymous said...

I was wondering if those foodloops worked or not...

I made a roast chicken last week and stuff garlic and lemon slices under the skin which really imparted some great flavour, I suggest giving that a try!

Also- I gobbled up those foamy santa in no time, they're addictive! And if you could email me directions for that bread when you're got the time, that would be super! Thanks!

Anne said...

Maria - haha, hope you succeed!

Cookbook Junkie - there's not that much year left now! I have two more things on my list, and I doubt I can make both...

Tiggymon - ooh, I have a clay casserole that I want to use next. You have to let me know your recipe :)

Brilynn - the food loop is actually quite nice! It definitely works, and it's a lot nicer to handle than string. Or maybe it's just my gadget-addiction talking..

Nikki said...

Y'know, you can also put a whole chicken in a pan, sprinkle some salty spice on it if you like, put it in the oven and bake it. Simple. Cheap. Delicious. :)

Meeta K. Wolff said...

Love roast chicken. It is easy and does not need 100% of your attention. Thanx for reminding how good this is.

Anonymous said...

Looks delicious.

This was my year for my first roast chicken too, so I know exactly how you feel...after I made it and it was easy and so tasty, I wondered what took me so long!

Anonymous said...

HELLO!I AM BENGİSU.I LIVE IN TÜRKİYE.I LOVE YOUR WEB SITE ALSO CHICKEN LOOKS DELICIOUS AND WONDERFULL.I AM GOING TO MAKE IT TO MY HUSBAND AND DAUGHTER AT THIS WEEKEND.THANKS...

Melissa said...

anne - have you ever tried ina garten's (aka "the barefoot contessa") recipe for roast chicken? it is AMAZING, and extremely simple. i've been making it since i was 16 to rave reviews. you should give it a try! the recipe is available in many places online or in her first cookbook, "the barefoot contessa cookbook". happy roasting!

Anne said...

oooh, no, I actually haven't tried Barefoot Contessa at all! But hey, there's something to look into, and a new cook to explore! Thank you for reminding me about that! :)