On Wed, 12 Sep 2007 00:30:11 GMT, "Paul M. Cook"
> wrote:


>If you want roast chicken, you simply do not need a gadget. Just get a nice
>roasting pan with an easy clean surface, a roasting rack and have at it.
>The world's best roast chicken, also known as my roast chicken recipe, is to
>take a whole chicken, wash it, dry it, slather with a lot of corn oil, then
>sprinkle it liberally, very liberally, with seasoned salt. Into the oven in
>a roasting pan for 1 hours at 375. You will get incredibly juicy chicken,
>the fat will be in the pan not the bird, and the skin will be delightfully
>crispy. You can also tuck a quartered sweet onion into the body cavity and
>serve it with the chicken.
>
>You simply do not need gadgets and gimmicks.

Exactly.

I use the Marcella Hazan method, which is on the signature dishes page
of the rfc website. I did this last night in fact. Easy, and
incredibly delicious.

http://www.recfoodcooking.com/sigs/C...%20Lemons.html

In the description of this method, it is actually simpler to do it
than to describe it. I don't truss the bird, but Hazan suggests it.
I wash the bird and dry it off thoroughly. I salt and pepper it all
over and inside the cavity. I remove extra bits of fat before doing
this.
Then I stuff two lemons (which have been pierced all over) into the
cavity if they are smallish. If not enough room for them I sometimes
cut them up first. I learned this method from eGullet.

Then start the bird breast side down in an unoiled pan, in a 350
degree oven. Roast for about 20-30 minutes. Turn bird over, with
breast side up. Roast another 30 or so minutes. Then turn up the
heat to 400 for another 30 or so minutes.

Sometimes the skin over the breast tears when you are trying to turn
the bird over. One suggestion I read was to put a small amount of oil
on the breast. This usually does the trick. I just do it over the
breast, and not very much at all.

Serve with the pan juices and enjoy.

Christine