If you don’t make a roasted chicken at least a few times per month, you really need to take stock of your life. I hesitated to share something so simple, yet decided to post a recipe (if you can even call it that) when I realized how few people do this on a regular basis. Not only does it make a great meal when you add some veg, you’re almost sure to have leftovers or at least the carcass to make some collagen-rich stock. I used a roasting pan, as that’s what most people have handy, though it’s even better cooked in a cast iron pan without adding the water. Just remove the chicken and move the pan to a burner to make the pan sauce, using double the stock.
Time: 100 minutes
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
2.5Kg free-range chicken
6g kosher salt
1 lemon
250ml chicken stock
Few grinds black pepper
30g butter
Preparation:
Preheat your oven to 220C.
Rinse the chicken inside and out under cold, running water. Pat dry with paper towels and sprinkle with the salt.
Cut the lemon in half, placing one half in the chicken cavity, cut side in.
Truss the chicken and place on the rack of a roasting pan with one centimetre of water in the bottom.
Place in the oven for ninety minutes or until an instant-read thermometer placed in the thigh reads 71C.
Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and pour the pan jus into a pot.
Add the stock to the pot, juice the remaining half lemon into it and whisk in the pepper. Boil on high for ten minutes.
Remove from heat, whisk in the butter and season with additional salt if required.
Carve the chicken and serve with the pan sauce on the side.