We all have our favorite way of making this popular and basic dish, yet there are roughly a million and one to do so.
I’d love to hear about yours - what you like about it, any tweaks to famous methods (e.g. Zuni, Pepin, MS, etc.), etc.
While I like the result of the Zuni chicken recipe, my hood and smoke alarm tend to do overtime, but it probably renders the crispiest skin I’ve achieved on a bird.
I almost always try to dry-brine at least overnight - ideally two nights - to get the bird nice and dry, but I haven’t found a method that isn’t as ‘messy’ as the Zuni.
I also love the Samin Nosrat buttermilk-brined chicken, bc it’s incredibly simple, the meat comes out perfectly seasoned (I omit the salt rub, as the salt in the buttermilk brine is plenty) and moist… but the skin doesn’t crisp up as much as I would like.
What are your tips and tricks for a roasted chicken that is juicy with crispy skin?
Agree on dry brining. If I’ve thought about it far enough ahead, I’ll tuck the bird in the roaster for a couple of days in the garage fridge with just S/P. But even 8 hours will help.
Then, I like to go with an hour-long preheat of the oven to 450° and roast for 15 minutes. Heat then gets turned down to 350° for the remaining cooking time, keeping an eye on the skin.
If I’m NOT looking for shatteringly crispy skin, I’ll make an herb butter and loosen the skin and tuck it as far under the breast meat that I can (this is after still doing a dry brine).
Zuni, but I don’t often roast whole, and sometimes “tweak” by roasting the whole breast on the bone, and use the dark meat and bones another way. The other “tweak” is doing it spatchcocked, and doing it with turkey.
I like what the dry brine does for the breast, and what the air dry does for the skin.
Not a big fan of whole roasted chicken (or even breasts). I primarily do skin-on thighs which I roast, grill, or fry… which I use in salads, Mexican food, Chinese dishes, etc… which is usually done in a marinade before cooking.
I think my favorite method is a brief marinade, tossed in corn starch and fried, followed by a quick toss in a pan fried sauce over some kind of rice.
My go-to is Thomas Keller’s recipe–not too different from “Zuni”.
Except, remove wishbone.
Wet brine and then completely air dry, at least overnight.
Sear backside of bird in duck fat for 5-10 minutes (for dark and light meat finishing together).
Then roast to desired breast temp.
Zuni. I go for at least 2 days dry brine, and try for 3. I do the bread salad, too. There’s a simplified method published somewhere that streamlines the steps, but I don’t recall off hand where it’s online.
Did a spatchcock the last time and over roasted a bit, forgetting it would take less time. Also, it’s crucial to check with instant read thermometer, to 160, it will get to 165 while resting (checking temp is not in original recipe). Even over roasted, it was still juicy and delicious…and otherwise, I am not especially fond of roast chicken!.
The Frugal Gourmet once did a show wherein he visited the Mediterranean home of a cooking friend, praising that man’s simple method for roast chicken. Mix equal parts roasted sesame oil, honey, and soy sauce. Rub all over the bird before roasting, and baste with the remainder while roasting. Alas, I don’t recall the temp but between the honey and the oil, the skin was crisp and delectable. I no longer roast whole chickens often but enjoy this marinade/baste on thighs.
My primary chicken roasting method is ATK’s take on Zuni roast chicken. I think the biggest difference is that ATK calls for spatchcocking the bird and roasting it atop bread cubes, then using the cubes as large croutons in a salad. My other one is based on “45”: a 4.5 lb bird roasted vertically at 450F for 45 minutes. I usually use a beverage can, but I have done it in a bundt pan, too. The bundt pan kept the skin from getting super crispy, though. Either way, I salt under the skin fairly liberally, and let sit in the fridge uncovered for at least 8 hours.
Draw and quarter me if you must, but I am not a fan of chicken skin. It never keep it’s crispiness after it has rested, exceptions are of course fried. I always spatchcock, my favorites are Peruvian style with aji verde or beer brined. And yes I have tried dry brining.
Marcella Hazan’s recipe: Roasted Chicken with Two Lemons is so simple but incredibly delicious. In her cookbook, she says to place roasting pan in upper third of oven. Since lemons from Costco are so big, I just quarter one and put it in the cavity after I put in the salt & pepper. I no longer tie the legs together.
It’s easy to turn it right side up after 30 minutes … the chicken isn’t very hot yet … I just grab paper towels in each hand and turn it over. Be sure to let the chicken rest before carving. Very important: I buy the best chicken I can find at Whole Foods.
Lately I’ve been sticking to a German-type roast chicken seasoning or lemon oregano seasoning most of the time.
Nice thread here, started by @pan. Haven’t seen him post lately, I hope he is okay.
Don’t tell anyone … just between you and me … I dislike cleaning my oven so much that I don’t do it. The last time I paid someone to do it was 2 -3 years ago. Outside looks clean. When I can afford it, I’ll hire someone again.
I wipe off the spillover and splattered gunk on the racks and walls with a wet paper towel every so often. I line a lot of pans with parchment. I bake tv dinners, frozen lasagnas, and frozen pies on cookie sheets to avoid spills.
I don’t think I do the self clean thing more than once every 2 or 3 years.
