Home cooking - I have a Chicken...

If you don't mind a 2 day process....brine. The next day drain, pick off all the bits and pieces of herbs, dry off with paper towels, toss in one of those baking bags by R*****S Aluminum Co. and roast per instructions on box. (can you call it roasting if it is in a bag?). Treat my Thanksgiving turkey the same way and is so moist and flavorful.

 

rub with oil, salt, pepper and thyme, stuff lemons inside with more thyme and roast. wen done carve it and eat then make soup or enchiladas out of the rest. I also have just dumped a bunch of Mae Ploy (sweet chile sauce) all over it and roasted it that way. makes a tasty sticky mildy sweet and spicy piece of chicken.

 

I'd poach it with mirepoix and then take all the meat off. Return the bones to the pot and continue cooking the stock. Now I have poached chicken (my favorite) that I can eat right away, or make into chicken salad or enchiladas or whatever. And then there's the stock!!!

 

I would throw the chicken into a large pot with shiitake mushrooms and garlic, add water and salt, and make chicken soup. Never gets boring.

 

Do I hafta to choose just one? Sorry, not gonna do it.

Brine first, if I have the time. Then:

Roast in the normal French way, hot oven, citrus and rosemary in the cavity, butter under very dry skin, truss, no basting, no bag, yadda, yadda;

Smoke, citrus and rosemary in the cavity. Smoked, how can you go wrong?

"Beer-can," in a hot, covered grill; or,

Romertopf, with lemon, un petit peu de vin blanc, and "40 cloves" of garlic. Loves me some Romertopf chicken.

BDL

 

Here ! Here ! with "Romertopf, with lemon, un petit peu de vin blanc, and "40 cloves" of garlic"

We should not be shy with the wine, Beaucoup ! One for you , 2 for the bird.

 

Brine 1Gal:1CupSalt:1CupMustard Dijon

I've never heard of anyone else doing the cup of mustard in there brine but I tried it once and loved it ever since...don't be cheep with citrus and shallots either!

Roast 475 to 100F bird then finish at 325.

love love love

 

Sugar in the brine! Salt on it's own will dry the meat. Sugar draws moisture. This could be a very long topic. It is like asking a baker if French or Italian buttercream is better....

 

of course sugar, not sure why i didnt mention that, but to cover my *** I use 50% of the amount of salt I use in sugar. So if I use 1 cup of salt, I then use 1/2 cup of sugar (or sweetener, maple syrup FTW)

 

Baak Chit Gai: Pure-Cut Chicken
There are some foods that are so good in themselves that everything possible should be done to preserve their individual character and flavor. A good prime steak grilled over charcoal or a fresh lobster boiled in sea water come to mind as excellent examples. However, we often ask ourselves “What can I do to dress up this or that food so it’ll be different?” We usually end up adding something, whether it be spices, other meats, vegetables, or sauces. Sometimes it is equally important to know when to subtract, or not add anything, in order to prepare a wonderful dish. In this recipe, chicken is the star, as if it were on center stage with a spotlight on it, and you are the director of the show. And, as the director, you must select the best chicken possible.

Don’t buy supermarket chicken. Go to a store that specializes in poultry, and get the freshest chicken possible, ideally one that has been recently killed. A roasting chicken of about five to six pounds is ideal, and if you can’t get that, get the largest fryer possible. A large fryer is often an older fryer, and it has developed to be tastier than a typical bird. Organic or pasteured chicken is best, but other high quality chicken will work as well.


Ingredients

1 Chicken (see above)
2 Tbs non-iodized salt (a good sea salt or Diamond Crystal Kosher salt)
1 ½ teaspoon fresh, coarse-ground Telicherry or other black pepper
1 - 2 Tbs MSG (1 Tbs should be ample) - optional - I don’t use it - in original recipe.
1 med-large clove garlic, lightly smashed (optional) - do not mince or chop
1 1-inch piece of ginger, smashed (optional but a nice addition)
Excellent quality water, or, for something really special, cook the bird in home made chicken stock or stock and water

Clean chicken and remove as much fat as possible from the cavity. Let stand until it reaches room temperature. Place chicken in a large pot and cover with cold water, stock, or water/stock combination, by about two - three inches. Remove chicken from pot and bring water to boil. Add the remaining ingredients.

Put chicken into pot, cover tightly with a lid (I’ll put something heavy on the lid to weigh it down and make a better seal), and immediately turn the heat down to a very low simmer. Cook for one hour. Don’t remove lid to check on the progress. Remove from pot and carve at table either Western style or cut into pieces Chinese style. Serve with

Salt Dip

2 Tablespoons salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Mix salt and pepper together, add the oil, and stir well. Spoon oil into individual serving dishes so that each diner can dip their chicken into it according to personal preference.

Water - If the water that comes out of your tap is mineral laden, smells of chlorine, or is in any way “off” use a good brand of bottled spring water.
Make sure that the chicken has been dead for at least four hours, a day is OK.

With good ingredients, this dish tastes better than it looks!

Schmoozer

 

Romertopf!! Just unpacked mine....Thanks for reminding me of that recipe......got me a chicken and I ain't afraid to use it

P.S. Petals....you have the ratio wrong

 

Yes I know,

Could not resist the laugh....
Like Julia Child used to do....."some for the bird, a generous amount, and now a glass or two for me".....Oh the wine ...

But I do enjoy it made that way too.

 

That is one gorgeous chickadee.

 

Deltadude,

It looks tasty , thank you for sharing the picture.

 

When I made chicken on the grill this way the first time, my husband took one look at it and said, "Looks like roadkill." Then he promptly ate his fill.

Hm... I might need a bit more time, but I'd poach the bird in wine and broth with shallots, celery, onion and leek. I'd use this as the basis for the sauce in a chicken pot pie- my husband's favorite!

A recipe my mom thought up was to spit the chicken, place it cavity-up in a broiler pan, splash equal parts of lemon juice and soy sauce in the cavity and over the meat, then season with garlic, pepper and oregano. Broil or grill and enjoy. (This works great for lamb chops, too.)

 

Roasting a whole chicken is great. And if you are into it, making stock with the carcass is a great side benefit.

I'll agree with others on the citrus and rosemary sprigs loosely packed into the cavity. One variant I use is lime wedges and fresh cilantro in the cavity, softened butter lightly laced with chili powder and ground cumin rubbed under the skin.

mjb.

 

America: Too Stupid To Cook | Ruhlman.com

read that!

and then put it in a cast iron lined with bacon and some potato in a 425 oven.