Roasted chicken

[kamp]

I love roasted whole chicken!

I but a special type here in norway that have a very good taste. They are between 3,5-4,5lbs each.

I normally roast it for about 30 minutes per kg (I think that will be about 25min per lbs). To check when its done I dry to twist the drumstick and if it twist easy its done. I have also tries putting a knife in the thigh but then all the juice runs out..

Yesterday I bought a thermometer but I wonder where should I put it? In the breast or the thigh? In the "drumstick" on the leg?

Sometimes the chicken breast gets very dry. So I guess its overcooked but when the breast is "ready" then the thigh is not twisting (and the liquid is pink). Anyone have a tip?

When I but small chicken 2-3,5 pound I don't have the problem with dry breast, its only when its above 3,5 lbs..

Would it help to brine it?

 

[GB]

Yes, brining would absolutely help. I am a huge fan of brining.

What kind of thermometer did you get? Is it a probe that you put in and leave in while the bird cooks or is it one that you take the temp when you check the bird? For the later, you would want to take readings in multiple spots.

 

[kamp]

Itd a weber so it can be in the oven.

how to you brine?
is it possible to brine without sugar? I can't have sugar.

 

[GB]

Yes you can brine without sugar. I actually prefer it that way myself.

I do it to taste. I mix up a batch of saltwater that tastes "pleasantly salty" meaning when I taste it I do not have to spit it out right away. Submerge the bird in the water completely and put in the fridge. Let it brine for about 4-5 hours or so for a whole chicken. For just breasts I go 2 hours. Then take it out of the brine and rinse off if you like and then dry and use however you like.

 

[ChefJune]

I love roasted whole chicken!

I but a special type here in norway that have a very good taste. They are between 3,5-4,5lbs each.

I normally roast it for about 30 minutes per kg (I think that will be about 25min per lbs). To check when its done I dry to twist the drumstick and if it twist easy its done. I have also tries putting a knife in the thigh but then all the juice runs out..

Yesterday I bought a thermometer but I wonder where should I put it? In the breast or the thigh? In the "drumstick" on the leg?

Sometimes the chicken breast gets very dry. So I guess its overcooked but when the breast is "ready" then the thigh is not twisting (and the liquid is pink). Anyone have a tip?

When I but small chicken 2-3,5 pound I don't have the problem with dry breast, its only when its above 3,5 lbs..

Would it help to brine it?

Where to put the thermometer? In the same place you were putting the knife. You need the thickest part of the meat, and that is the junction between thigh and drumstick.

I find it really easy to keep the breast moist without brining (don't want the extra salt) by roasting for the first half of the time on the bird's stomach (tail in the air). I also often put a lemon, poked 20 times, inside the chicken. That adds both moisture and flavor.

 

[Nicholas Mosher]

I've never had a perfect whole roasted chicken or turkey. After going through dozens of birds with various recipes, and ordering Poulet Roti all around the country in corner-shacks to shirt and tie establishments, I've concluded that no one else can make one either! (At least not to my taste anyways).

My solution is to break down the chicken into three pieces... two leg "quarters" and a "hotel" style breast. Everything gets rubbed with a bit of butter, sprinkled with kosher salt, and roasted in a 400ºF oven. Start the legs early, and they will be done when the collagen and connective tissues have broken down into luscious finger-coating gelatin. The breast will be done when the thickest part reaches 160º-165ºF. Around 170ºF the breast begins to dry out.

I've had good birds cooked this way anywhere from 350ºF-425ºF - although I find that the best ratio of browned skin and evenly cooked meat occurs (in my oven) around 400ºF.

 

[Kayelle]

I've never had a perfect whole roasted chicken or turkey. After going through dozens of birds with various recipes, and ordering Poulet Roti all around the country in corner-shacks to shirt and tie establishments, I've concluded that no one else can make one either! (At least not to my taste anyways).

My solution is to break down the chicken into three pieces... two leg "quarters" and a "hotel" style breast. Everything gets rubbed with a bit of butter, sprinkled with kosher salt, and roasted in a 400ºF oven. Start the legs early, and they will be done when the collagen and connective tissues have broken down into luscious finger-coating gelatin. The breast will be done when the thickest part reaches 160º-165ºF. Around 170ºF the breast begins to dry out.

I've had good birds cooked this way anywhere from 350ºF-425ºF - although I find that the best ratio of browned skin and evenly cooked meat occurs (in my oven) around 400ºF.

Hi Nicholas.... Have you done this with a turkey? I've been cooking longer than you've been alive, and your method just never occurred to me before now. Thank you!! I've never tasted a perfectly cooked turkey before come to think of it. I will DEFINITELY give this a try. Throwing kisses......lol

 

[Andy M.]

I have also struggled to get whole roast chicken right. I get my best results by cutting into the joint between the thigh and the body and spreading the leg/thigh away from the body so that joint will cook before the breasts dry out. I usually brine when roasting chickens.

On the other hand, since I started using the Good Eats roast turkey recipe, I get great results every time.

 

[amanda143]

<3 Alton Brown for introducing me to the brining method! My chicken never tastes salty and it's practically perfect every time. I also started elevating it on a little roast rack too because I was getting soggy and not so crispy chicken when I let it sit in its own juice.

 

[DaveSoMD]

Good Eats ROCKS!

 

[forty_caliber]

Good Eats ROCKS!

+ infinity Easily in the top 10 best shows on TV.

.40

 

[Nicholas Mosher]

I have the Alton Brown DVD with the "Romancing the Bird" episode on it, and tried it a couple times with chickens. While the foil triangle method was an improvement over roasting whole on it's own, I still found that the legs/thighs required more time (or the breast meat would overcook if it was given that time).

Can't speak to it's effectiveness on a larger bird.
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Andy - Roasting with the legs/thighs open as far as possible was one of the better techniques I found. I find it funny that so many of the world's "Great" chefs such as Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, and Thomas Keller swear by trussing birds to the point where they are like a bowling ball. It's exactly what you don't want to do!
-----
Of course much of this is a matter of personal taste. At Thomas Keller's restaurant Bouchon I had a roasted chicken as one of our dishes, and it was served with thigh meat that rode the fence between pink and clear. This is how I like my chicken breast - but personally I see thighs/legs as cuts that taste best when all of the delicious connective tissue has been allowed to soften and melt. Most of the higher-end restaurants I visited cooked their chicken with underdone (in my opinion) leg quarters.

The exact opposite tends to happen in smaller places with rotisseries. Usually you end up with amazing leg quarters and back meat, but breast meat that is only edible by including bits of juicy skin and mopping up what comes from the leg quarters.

 

[Andy M.]

Nick, I agree the dark meat is better when cooked to a higher temp (180F) for the improvement in texture while maintaining the moisture.

I stopped trussing chickens when I didn't see an improvement in the evenness of cooking and got really tired of the whole trussing routine - under this part, over that part, cross the string here then over, under around and through, pull it tight and tie a special chicken trussing knot.

 

[DaveSoMD]

I actually if you roast the bird upside down on a rack for the 1st half of the cooking time then flip it over and finish it comes out quite moist.