This juicy roast chicken is humbly presented, no adornments, fancy plating or decorative backdrop. It is simply an organic whole chicken seasoned with salt and pepper and roasted. Fanfare would not suit it. So, why am I even bothering you about such a simple dish? It’s all in the process baby.
I am not usually a whole bird kind of gal, but when whole organic chickens are on sale at the local grocer for 99 cents a pound, I become a whole bird kind of gal. Sometimes I brine a chicken to add juiciness, other times I just coat it in some wild seasoning and pop it in the oven. This time I decided to browse what others do to their birds. I saw some rather bizarre recipes, but a recipe called “Simplest Roast Chicken Ever” from Amanda Haas, in the Cooking Light Real Family Food cookbook caught my attention.
What interested me about it was that she roasted the chicken at a higher temperature, and started it out breast side down. This seemed like it would make for a juicier chicken. I then unceremoniously culled pretty much the rest of the recipe off (a nice herb butter sauce & , and instructions to trim & tie the chicken). My immodest bird went into the oven, butt in the air, wearing nothing other than salt & pepper. Oh, the indignity.
So dis this result in a juicy roast chicken? A picture is worth a thousand words, judge for yourself.
- 1 whole chicken (3½ to 4½ lb range)
- Kosher salt
- fresh ground pepper
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Remove the giblets and such from cavity of chicken.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper and place breast side down in non-stick roasting pan .
- Roast for 20 minutes, then flip it over continue roasting.
- After about 15 minutes check temperature of thick part of thigh. You are looking for a temp of 165 degrees. (you will probably need to cook the chicken more, but oven temps and chickens themselves vary, so it is always best to check)
- Once you have reached the temperature take it out & let it rest for about 10 minutes before slicing.
Oh man this looks good and I’m going to try this the next time I roast a chicken.
Great tip – I’m going to have to try roast chicken again this weekend!
That chicken looks so good! I eat a ton of chicken so I will definitely be trying this recipe!
We do our turkey like this each year. I love it!
Looks so yummy and moist!
It looks nice and juicy! Will have to try this recipe soon!
Oooh I’m definitely try this!
LOVE roasted chicken — this looks GOOD!
That looks so good!
Looks like a yummy recipe.
Wow that looks awesome I love how simple roasted chickens are!
Oh this would go great in a sandwich!
I saw that picture of the whole chicken and it literally made my mouth water. Looks amazing!
Great recipe – that chicken looks so good. Roast chicken is always a hit with my family!
That looks awesome
That does look juicy and good.
Wow, that does look super juicy!!
This sounds really Yummy!
Yummy! We love chicken here.
Okay that looks amazing!
Sounds amazing! Definitely will try this.
I love to roast chickens, so good.
I will try this. Hubs usually opts for dark meat only since it’s juicier.
Breast side down huh? I wouldn’t have ever thought of that but your chicken looks wonderful.
What?! You mean cooking a juicy, tasty chicken like that is so easy?! Thank you so much for sharing this. I’m always overcooking my chicken because I’m so nervous it’s not cooked thoroughly enough.
I need to give this a try it looks delicious!