The Perfectly Roasted Chicken by Mindy Fox
When is the last time you roasted a whole chicken? It’s been chilly and distinctly fall-like here in the Bay Area this past week, and a roast chicken sounds like just the thing. Then again, a good roast chicken is a meal that goes with any season, as Mindy Fox proves with this cookbook. She has over 20 ways to roast a chicken tonight — plus 80 various sides and ways to use up the extra meat. To this I say: game on!
Quick Facts
• Who wrote it: Mindy Fox
• Who published it: Kyle Books
• Number of recipes: Around 100 — 20 roast chicken recipes, plus 80 recipes for sides to serve with the chicken and various ways to use the leftover chicken.
• Recipes for right now: Roast Chicken with Basil, Scallion, Lemon Butter, and Potatoes; Devil’s Chicken with Sweet Peppers and Onions; Sweet & Spicy Korean Roast “BBQ” Chicken; Gigante Beans with Kale; Red Quinoa Salad with Roast Chicken, Tart Apple, Ground Pepper, and Fresh Basil; Carrot Soup with Chicken and Thyme; Chicken Pho
• Other highlights: As much as I love diving into a roast chicken still piping hot from the oven, I almost love the leftovers even more. It seems that Mindy Fox and I are kindred spirits. She gives us a few recipes for roasting whole chickens — a few basic Sunday dinner roasts and a few with spices and ingredients from further afield — but then focuses the majority of the book on using that roast chicken in all sorts of inventive and creative ways.
As grandmotherly as roasting a chicken can feel, these are not your grandma’s recipes! Ms. Fox brings in modern flavors and ingredients like freekah and quinoa, chipotle peppers and za’atar, swiss chard and fresh ginger. She draws inspiration from around the world — after all, pretty much every culture uses roast chicken in their own particular way. This is how we end up with roast chicken pho, chicken masala, and Cuban rice with chicken right alongside chicken noodle soup and chicken pot pie.
Besides all the ways to roast a chicken and use it up, Ms. Fox also includes plenty of easy side dishes to serve alongside a roast chicken dinner — veggies that roast alongside the chicken, simple grain pilafs, and mashed potatoes. It’s easy to see how a complete meal would come together.
A roasted chicken is a beautiful thing, to be sure. With this book nearby, not only will that roast chicken turn out perfectly every time, but we’ll surely be inspired with ways to use every single scrap until the whole chicken is gone.
• Who would enjoy this book? Anyone who loves chicken! There are so many ways to roast a chicken and use it up that we don’t need to worry about getting bored any time soon.
Find the book at your local library, independent bookstore, or Amazon: The Perfectly Roasted Chicken by Mindy Fox
• Visit the author’s website: Mindy Fox
Apartment Therapy Media makes every effort to test and review products fairly and transparently. The views expressed in this review are the personal views of the reviewer and this particular product review was not sponsored or paid for in any way by the manufacturer or an agent working on their behalf. However, the manufacturer did give us the product for testing and review purposes.
(Images: Emma Christensen)