No matter which day of the week I happen to roast a chicken, it always feels like a Sunday dinner to me. Pulling a burnished chicken from the oven feels like a step above my usual haphazard meals, and special in its very simplicity. Here are a few different takes on roast chicken that have caught my eye recently.
A chicken doesn't need much more than a rub of good olive oil and a sprinkle of salt to make it tasty. Sometimes I crave that those straightforward flavors more than anything else. Other times, I throw open my cupboards and begin rooting around for spices and sauces that will transform my Sunday chicken into something extra-tasty.
• Sichuan Pepper-Salt Roasted Chicken from Gourmet
• Thai Sticky Chicken from Eat Little Bird
• Honey and Cinnamon Moroccan Style Roast Chicken from Bon Appétit
• Yogurt-Marinated Roast Chicken from Fine Cooking
• Bourbon Brown Sugar Chicken from Sweet on You
• Mexican Tropical Chile Roast Chicken from Sunset
• Orange Lacquered Roast Chicken from Parsley, Sage, Desserts, and Line Drives
What is your favorite take on roast chicken?
Related: Small-Scale Entertaining: A Roast Chicken Dinner
(Image: Romulo Yanes/Gourmet)
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love roasted chicken with olive rosemary tapenade stuffed under the skin....tastes delicious and the chicken stays really moist
I've tried a million variations on roast chicken, but once I tried a recipe from epicurious called "thomas keller's favorite roast chicken" I will NEVER go back. It is quick, juicy, and amazing. AMAZING. We do it once a week now and then make stock from the bones.
We usually roast ours on a beer or soup can filled with beer, wine or some other flavorful combination. This way all the skins gets crisp and the inside stay very moist.
<a herf="http://wp.me/p14qCO-dq">Beer Butt Chicken</a>
Last night for the first time in awhile I made the Jamie Oliver chicken with milk that I learned about here! Does it count? It's less roasted than it is braised...although I do it on a bed of rice that soaks up most of the milk (and makes this amazing savory rice pudding side dish), so the chicken itself comes out a little roastier... It's delicious and so easy and hands-off. Looking forward to eating the leftovers tonight!
I do also LOVE a more straightforward roast chicken. I make a paste of herbs (usually rosemary and parsley), lemon zest, salt and pepper, and olive oil and butter, rub it all over the chicken, esp. under the skin. Mmmm...
Just had a great roasted chicken from Melissa Clark's book Cook This Now -- garam masala, chickpeas that turn kind of crisp as they roast alongside the chicken, carrots, and slivers of lemon -- nice!
Yes, Thomas Keller's roast chicken is AMAZING! Its pretty much the simplest recipe imaginable and a million times better than any other roast chicken I've had.
I love to cover the chicken inside and out in herbs de provence. Splash white wine in the pot with some olive oil. Roast the chicken with 1 in slices of baguette or country bread underneath. SO DELICIOUS!!
@Brooklynnina - I LOVE the idea of cooking rice with the chicken-in-milk (which I say totally counts, by the way). I must try this soon.
My all time favorite is Martha Stewart's Roasted Chicken recipe. http;//www.marthastewart.com/351255/roasted-chicken-101
I love the final result of the onion juices incorporated in the reduction sauce. The bird ends up so tender and juicy. The reduction sauce is to die for.
I love both roasting AND eating roast chicken!. I have a citrus salt that I sprinkle inside and outside of the chicken, stuff the cavity with some garlic cloves and whatever herbs I have on hand. Thickly sliced onions make a great "roasting rack", pour a liberal glass of whatever white wine I am sipping in the pan and into to the oven the bird goes! YUM:)
I have to agree that Thomas Keller's recipe for Roast Chicken from Bouchon is hard to beat - once you've tasted a roast chicken that has been brined, it's hard to roast a chook any other way.
But thank you for taking notice of my post of Rachel Allen's Thai Sticky Chicken. It's been one of my favourite stand-by meals for during the week, and given that I always make sure to have ingredients like lemongrass and cilantro on hand, it's always quick and easy to make, plus it tastes fab :-)