Roast Chicken a la Chef Meg
This is another of Chef Meg’s creations from Spark People. It is very similar to the recipe Allison used at her turk-a-thon, but I think she stuffed the turkey with oranges and onions. I’ve made some variations to better suit our cooking habits:
Tip: Save time and energy by roasting two chickens at once and freezing one (carve it first).
INGREDIENTS
- 1 T fresh rosemary, chopped
- 1/3 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
- 1 tsp sea salt (optional)
- 1-2 Tbs olive oil
- 1 lemon, cut into quarters
- 3 lb chicken
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 450F. Wash chicken with cold water; pat dry. Gently lift up chicken skin from the breast and the rub oil and rosemary between the flesh and skin. Season chicken with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste.
- Place lemon inside the cavity of the chicken. Tie legs together with cotton string. Place chicken in roasting pan on a roasting rack; feel free to add vegetables around the pan to make this a one-pot meal (root work best: onion, carrot, parsnip, turnip, potato, etc).
- Roast chicken 20 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 375F. Continue roasting until meat thermometer inserted into thickest part of inner thigh registers 180 -185 degrees Fahrenheit, about 1 hour and 15 min.
- Lift chicken and tilt slightly, emptying juices from cavity into pan. Juices should be clear. Transfer chicken to cutting board and cover chicken with aluminum foil to keep warm. Wait 10 minutes before carving.
This would be great on a salad, next to root veggies, or in soup. Here’s how you can use the carcass »
Note to future self: the chicken package suggests 375 for 15-20 min per lb or 500g, then baste the chicken, return to the stove and cook 20-30 min more, or it reaches 185F.
Serves 4. NOTE: Serving sizes will vary but you save about 125 calories and 11 g fat per serving by removing the skin from your platted portion.
