Italian Roasted Chicken
Picture, in your mind, the peak of domesticity. What do you see? I see a beautifully prepared bird, roasted, coming out of the oven. Until I made this Italian Roasted Chicken, I had actually never cooked a whole bird before! I simply hadn't had reason to. And really, I didn't need six pounds of chicken this time either. But this little fella was on sale, and I was in a mood to roast! Just call me Dean Martin.
If there are two ingredients Italians love to use – aside from olive oil, which isn't so much an ingredient as it is a lifestyle – they're 1) garlic and 2) lemons. This little bird had plenty of both to flavor him! With about 8 cloves of garlic and a lemon and a half, not to mention the Italian spice mix sprinkled all over, the flavor of this chicken is unmistakably Italian.
The biggest challenge of roasting a whole bird is being sure it's cooked through, but not too dry. This is why I would recommend using a meat thermometer, stuck into the bird right near where the thigh and leg meet the body of bird, but not touching bone! Otherwise, it's nearly impossible to know for sure if you're cooking it just the right amount of time. You'll want the bird to just reach 165 degrees, then you'll remove it from the oven and let it sit for a few more minutes to finish cooking through.
If you're really into using everything and making the most of what you have, you can also use the drippings from the pan to make a gravy (although this will be more lemony than typical gravy!), and the bones could be used to make a homemade chicken stock! The only things I refuse to use are the things that are removed from the chicken, then tucked back inside again in a little bag. Cringe. But for now, I'm just glad I've reached my own self-defined "peak" of domesticity! On to the next mountain.
ITALIAN ROASTED CHICKEN
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Bake Time: ~90 minutes
Ingredients
whole chicken (around 5-6 lb) 1 ½ lemon, sliced 8 cloves garlic 3 t salt
½ t pepper
1 T Italian spices
½ - 1 t paprika 1 - 2 T butter
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 F. You may need to move your oven rack down a little – do this while it's still cool. Take your cloves of garlic, and smash them with the side of a chef's knife to flatten them a little to open them up.
Set up your chicken on a cutting board or baking sheet so you have some room to work. Pat it dry with a paper towel to remove any extra liquid from the chicken. Stuff it with ½ lemon, as well as 3 cloves of garlic.
Salt and pepper the outside of the chicken, then place it in your dutch oven or roasting pan. Sprinkle the bird generously with the Italian spices and paprika. Then put the remaining three cloves of garlic in with the bird, as well as the lemon slices, adding some of those specifically on top of the chicken. Then, add a couple tablespoons of butter, cut into 2-4 pieces, on top of the chicken as well. Cover the dutch oven and place into the oven, cooking for about an hour and a half. If you have a poultry thermometer, I recommend using it to keep an eye on the internal temperature. For poultry, you want the temperature to reach 160 F, and then remove it from the oven. Leave the lid on when you remove it (unless you've let it go for a little too long in the oven).
After 10-15 minutes, remove the chicken from the dutch oven or roaster, and carve!
Happy Eating,
Natalie