Whole Roast Chicken

[Hank_Hill 18894]

Never done one. What’s the move? Spatchcock obvi. Any other tips?

[DalTxHornFan 3117]

I always brine chicken and turkey before roasting or smoking.  Salt, sugar, garlic powder and sometimes an herb such as rosemary. Overnight or longer. YMMV.

[FartingMonk 3608]

i have found that I cannot beat HEB or Costco on their price point of their roteserrie chicken.  Trying to cook it is not worth the time or the effort when you can buy a better product cheaper so I quit trying.  

[Incredulity 11683]

Rub with garlic and spices to taste.

then beercan that mf’er.

i like it better than above mentioned costco or HEB.  Which impo can be overdone(falling apart, not tender)

[jet black 236]

Whole roast chicken != spatchcock. Spatchcocking is for the grill imo.

Put that bird in a cast iron skillet. Rub with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook at 425 for about an hour. So easy yet so delicious.

[Jimbaround 975]

Just do the Thomas Keller recipe.

INGREDIENTS

One 2- to 3-pound farm-raised chicken
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons minced thyme (optional)
Unsalted butter
Dijon mustard

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Rinse the chicken, then dry it very well with paper towels, inside and out. The less it steams, the drier the heat, the better.
Salt and pepper the cavity, then truss the bird. Trussing is not difficult, and if you roast chicken often, it's a good technique to feel comfortable with. When you truss a bird, the wings and legs stay close to the body; the ends of the drumsticks cover the top of the breast and keep it from drying out. Trussing helps the chicken to cook evenly, and it also makes for a more beautiful roasted bird.

Now, salt the chicken—I like to rain the salt over the bird so that it has a nice uniform coating that will result in a crisp, salty, flavorful skin (about 1 tablespoon). When it's cooked, you should still be able to make out the salt baked onto the crisp skin. Season to taste with pepper.
Place the chicken in a sauté pan or roasting pan and, when the oven is up to temperature, put the chicken in the oven. I leave it alone—I don't baste it, I don't add butter; you can if you wish, but I feel this creates steam, which I don't want. Roast it until it's done, 50 to 60 minutes. Remove it from the oven and add the thyme, if using, to the pan. Baste the chicken with the juices and thyme and let it rest for 15 minutes on a cutting board.

Remove the twine. Separate the middle wing joint and eat that immediately. Remove the legs and thighs. I like to take off the backbone and eat one of the oysters, the two succulent morsels of meat embedded here, and give the other to the person I'm cooking with. But I take the chicken butt for myself. I could never understand why my brothers always fought over that triangular tip—until one day I got the crispy, juicy fat myself. These are the cook's rewards. Cut the breast down the middle and serve it on the bone, with one wing joint still attached to each. The preparation is not meant to be superelegant. Slather the meat with fresh butter. Serve with mustard on the side and, if you wish, a simple green salad. You'll start using a knife and fork, but finish with your fingers, because it's so good.

[dcbc 14509]

Before I moved to the WSM, I used a pit barrel cooker.  Still do, for chicken and sometimes ribs, etc.  That thing does chicken right.  Olive oil, rub of your choice, about 3 hours in there and it's about perfect.

I prefer cutting it in half first (only takes 2 hours), but since you asked about a whole chicken, I've included a picture of that, too.

 

Edited June 21, 2018 by dcbc

[Baboontyme 2824]

The best reviews I've ever gotten on chicken were Peruvian style. Well, smoked, after using the Peruvian marinade. 

 

http://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/pollo-a-la-brasa-peruvian-grilled-chicken-449529

[4th and 5 4915]

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/engagement-roast-chicken-recipe-1948980

my wife makes this, it is really good

[Hank_Hill 18894]

2 hours ago, jet black said:

Whole roast chicken != spatchcock. Spatchcocking is for the grill imo.

Put that bird in a cast iron skillet. Rub with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook at 425 for about an hour. So easy yet so delicious.

What negates the benefit of spatchcocking in the oven vs the grill? Don’t doubt you just curious.

[SimonBolivar 10959]

2 hours ago, FartingMonk said:

i have found that I cannot beat HEB or Costco on their price point of their roteserrie chicken.  Trying to cook it is not worth the time or the effort when you can buy a better product cheaper so I quit trying.  

I really like HEB's and now the local Walmart is selling whole birds for under $5. Crazy.

[Sam Lin 3561]

4 hours ago, Hank_Hill said:

What negates the benefit of spatchcocking in the oven vs the grill? Don’t doubt you just curious.

Nothing - spatchcocking gives faster, more even cooking in all cases.

[52-80 19246]

Oil, salt, in oven for about 45-55 minutes in medium heat (until temp probe beeps).

 

Just like a steak, it's simple as fuck and comes out perfect.  No need for fancy covers, foils, tents, rubs, brines, multi step processes.

 

Although yeah often I'll just pick it up from the grocery store.

[Underdog 28773]

EVO, salt, pepper, butter on and under the skin, chicken broth, carrots, potatoes and onions in a roasting dish for about 45 minutes or when popper pops out @425.  One of my favorite dishes and the wife loves it too.  Have it about once every two months.  

Have had the skin much crispier than what this photo shows, oven in apt. at the time wasn't the best. 

[Tylerocks 2553]

Stuff with onions/lemon/thyme- salt & pepper

Olive oil around the outside, salt and pepper

 

Truss legs together.

Preheat oven and cast iron to 500.

Chicken in skillet, breast side up and roast for 15 min.

Reduce heat to 350 and roast until it comes to temp.  Usually about 45min

rest for 10.

We do one a couple times a month.

[jet black 236]

What negates the benefit of spatchcocking in the oven vs the grill? Don’t doubt you just curious.

In a cast iron skillet I haven’t found the need to spatchcock and it’s just more prep work. I’m not sure why the cast iron works so much better than even a roasting pan, but it does.

My main point was the thread title was whole roast chicken. To me that means leaving the bird whole.

[Bat Guano 359]

15 hours ago, FartingMonk said:

i have found that I cannot beat HEB or Costco on their price point of their roteserrie chicken.  Trying to cook it is not worth the time or the effort when you can buy a better product cheaper so I quit trying.  

They can sell roast chickens cheaper than raw chickens because they roast the ones they would have thrown away for being too old to sell. So cheaper yes, but better? Not so much. I can turn out a better product than the over-brined, mushy rotisserie birds easily. Just season it with S & P,  put some onions and garlic in the cavity, throw some herbs in and around it, and put it in the oven for an hour or hour and a half. Really easy.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Bat Guano

[luke duke 6414]

or when popper pops out

By “popper” do you mean the horribly inaccurate pieces of plastic that they give you at the grocery store or is that a code word for your penis?

[miguelito 11311]

Four fried chickens, and a Coke.

 

[Underdog 28773]

5 minutes ago, luke duke said:

 

By “popper” do you mean the horribly inaccurate pieces of plastic that they give you at the grocery store or is that a code word for your penis?

 

I’ve never had issues with them. 

[Jerry Callo 8727]

Dry brine with salt and baking powder gives an extra crispy skin.  I prefer spatchcocking.

[JimmyHoffa 1188]

I

 

I'm only half kidding. 

[Jerry Callo 8727]

10 minutes ago, JimmyHoffa said:

I

 

I'm only half kidding. 

Had that for dinner last night.  $5 is tough to beat.

[Kringelbert Fishtybuns 944]

I either go with Thomas Keller's version

or one of these for  variety

Regio Style

Peruvian Style

The problem sometimes is you can only fine the mutant breast sized chickens so the cooking times can vary wildly.

[Underdog 28773]

How much you “fine” them for?  Three-fiddy?

 

Had the Rotessierie chicken from HEB once and got sick off it, never again. 

[HouTex 1894]

My chickens always take about 1.25 hours to cook. My oven temp is correct but they always take longer to cook. Maybe I start with larger birds.

[bularry1 23]

pretty easy to roast in the oven and it is delicious, better than those overcooked things from HEB (and I buy those on occasion, too).

 

I think the key is to buy smaller birds (we get them at Whole Foods).  I like to put lemon in cavity and some butter under the skin.  healthy does of salt and Boom.

[Walden Ponderer 12639]

Musakhan. My wife learned how to make this stuff from an immigrant family that owns a halal grocery here in bumfuck aggyland, and I swear by the stuff now.  It's basically roast chicken with sumac and grilled onions, served on a fairly thick bread that's a lot like naan.  I'm drooling right now just thinking about it.

[JimmyHoffa 1188]

4 hours ago, Jerry Callo said:

Had that for dinner last night.  $5 is tough to beat.

And the leftover options are endless. 

 

[Kringelbert Fishtybuns 944]

4 hours ago, Underdog said:

How much you “fine” them for?  Three-fiddy?

I base it on the breast size. Do you know about the cup sizes and all?

You've got the A.  The B.  The C. And the D.  That's the biggest.  

[elfenix 34332]

jaime oliver's chicken in milk sounds really weird but was delicious the one time i had it

 

https://www.thekitchn.com/jamie-oliver-chicken-in-milk-best-chicken-recipe-all-time-80388

[Chips O'Toole 1327]

I'll try it, but there's no way it can beat a delicious milksteak.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

[Sam Lin 3561]

5 hours ago, Kringelbert Fishtybuns said:

I base it on the breast size. Do you know about the cup sizes and all?

You've got the A.  The B.  The C. And the D.  That's the biggest.  

The D is not the biggest.

[Kringelbert Fishtybuns 944]

9 hours ago, Sam Lin said:

The D is not the biggest.

Get out of here.  Next you will tell me that they are made of lycra spandex.

Don't make me get Farkus on the phone.

[DoobieWah 1460]

Team Spatchcock. (Save backbone in freezer for stock.)

Make a paste with olive oil and/or butter, and your choice of herbs and spices. (Paprika, garlic, pepper, lemon juice, thyme, curry powder, etc, and always salt.)

Gently lift the skin away from the meat and rub the paste under the skin. It take four applications - one for each breast and each thigh.

Rub remaining paste or just olive oil over the top AND bottom and roast at 450' until done, (About 40-50 minutes depending on size of your bird).

Serve with choice of sides.

Make chicken salad or tacos with the leftovers.

 

 

Edited June 22, 2018 by DoobieWah
Parenthetically speaking...

[ohchaucer 1443]

I do the Keller approach and it's pretty consistent... the key is to REALLY salt the skin.  I'm intrigued by the potential of mixing a little baking powder into the salt to add a little more crispness.

 

 

[captained 57]

I used to use the Thomas Keller recipe all the time, great stuff. A couple of years ago today I changed it up and have a new whole chicken go-to recipe - essentially an indoor cast iron version of chicken under a brick.

Take a 4-5 lb chicken and butterfly it (shear out the backbone, trim wing tips, then really press it flat to break the joints). As an aside, I keep all of my chicken bones/parts in a freezer bag then run it through the pressure cooker with vegetable scraps to make stock. Pat the chicken completely dry with paper towels. Put a little vegetable oil in your palm and rub all over the chicken, making sure you cover the skin. Mix 1 tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp ground coriander, and 1/2 tsp black pepper together and rub over chicken.

Preheat oven to 400 with cast iron in it. Remove cast iron and put over med-high heat on stove and add a very small amount of vegetable oil (just enough to get it started, the chicken fat will render while cooking). Put chicken skin side down in pan and place another cast iron or heavy pot on top to weigh it down flat and cook for 5 minutes to char the skin. Flip it over to skin side up and move to oven for 45-50 minutes. Allow to rest for 10 minutes or so before quartering.

Following that, I usually wipe out the majority of the rendered fat but leave a small amount and sauté sliced zucchini with a little garlic salt. 

[elfenix 34332]

I'm pretty sure that stove cost more than my car

[Johnny Sack 8397]

21 minutes ago, captained said:

I used to use the Thomas Keller recipe all the time, great stuff. A couple of years ago today I changed it up and have a new whole chicken go-to recipe - essentially an indoor cast iron version of chicken under a brick.

Take a 4-5 lb chicken and butterfly it (shear out the backbone, trim wing tips, then really press it flat to break the joints). As an aside, I keep all of my chicken bones/parts in a freezer bag then run it through the pressure cooker with vegetable scraps to make stock. Pat the chicken completely dry with paper towels. Put a little vegetable oil in your palm and rub all over the chicken, making sure you cover the skin. Mix 1 tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp ground coriander, and 1/2 tsp black pepper together and rub over chicken.

Preheat oven to 400 with cast iron in it. Remove cast iron and put over med-high heat on stove and add a very small amount of vegetable oil (just enough to get it started, the chicken fat will render while cooking). Put chicken skin side down in pan and place another cast iron or heavy pot on top to weigh it down flat and cook for 5 minutes to char the skin. Flip it over to skin side up and move to oven for 45-50 minutes. Allow to rest for 10 minutes or so before quartering.

 Following that, I usually wipe out the majority of the rendered fat but leave a small amount and sauté sliced zucchini with a little garlic salt. 

Damn son.  That is badass setup

[LW Goatman 1125]

1 hour ago, captained said:

I used to use the Thomas Keller recipe all the time, great stuff. A couple of years ago today I changed it up and have a new whole chicken go-to recipe - essentially an indoor cast iron version of chicken under a brick.

Take a 4-5 lb chicken and butterfly it (shear out the backbone, trim wing tips, then really press it flat to break the joints). As an aside, I keep all of my chicken bones/parts in a freezer bag then run it through the pressure cooker with vegetable scraps to make stock. Pat the chicken completely dry with paper towels. Put a little vegetable oil in your palm and rub all over the chicken, making sure you cover the skin. Mix 1 tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp ground coriander, and 1/2 tsp black pepper together and rub over chicken.

Preheat oven to 400 with cast iron in it. Remove cast iron and put over med-high heat on stove and add a very small amount of vegetable oil (just enough to get it started, the chicken fat will render while cooking). Put chicken skin side down in pan and place another cast iron or heavy pot on top to weigh it down flat and cook for 5 minutes to char the skin. Flip it over to skin side up and move to oven for 45-50 minutes. Allow to rest for 10 minutes or so before quartering.

Following that, I usually wipe out the majority of the rendered fat but leave a small amount and sauté sliced zucchini with a little garlic salt. 

Nice humblebrag.

[captained 57]

Well, my wife got to decide on almost everything in the remodel, but the kitchen was mine. 

[gsoda3 3282]

Humblebrag on top of humblebrag

[captained 57]

Humblebrag thread is a few streets over in Hobbies titled “New Car Fanatic Thread”. 

Anyway, how bout them chickens?

[deft 6879]

It’s just spatchcock no?

Better show us more stove just to be sure

[HornOnTheBayou 8946]

On 6/21/2018 at 4:29 PM, Kringelbert Fishtybuns said:

I base it on the breast size. Do you know about the cup sizes and all?

You've got the A.  The B.  The C. And the D.  That's the biggest.  

 I know the D is the biggest. I've based my whole life on knowing that the D is the biggest.

[DougO 5256]

On 6/20/2018 at 5:58 PM, FartingMonk said:

i have found that I cannot beat HEB or Costco on their price point of their roteserrie chicken.  Trying to cook it is not worth the time or the effort when you can buy a better product cheaper so I quit trying.  

This is fact. You can get one already cooked for about the same price as a raw chicken.

[Stunns38 3558]

As we know, HEB is the best in the business but their rotisserie birds fall far(no pun) behind Costco, SAM’S, and even Walmart.

Costco doesn’t use old chickens, they sell their birds at a loss intentionally to get you in the store more frequently and you’ll notice promotions on the way to the back of the store where the birds are.

[elfenix 34332]

NPR on rotisserie chicken
https://www.marketplace.org/amp/2018/01/05/business/your-grocer-should-thank-you-having-chicken-tonight

[RPM 26354]

On 6/20/2018 at 6:14 PM, Incredulity said:

Rub with garlic and spices to taste.

then beercan that mf’er.

[Hank_Hill 18894]

11 hours ago, Stunns38 said:

As we know, HEB is the best in the business but their rotisserie birds fall far(no pun) behind Costco, SAM’S, and even Walmart.

Costco doesn’t use old chickens, they sell their birds at a loss intentionally to get you in the store more frequently and you’ll notice promotions on the way to the back of the store where the birds are.

I’ve said this before but HEB lost me when they discontinued the jalapeño honey one.