Whole Chicken for Beginners

[Claire]

To get good seasoning into a chicken (or any other poultry) you are roasting whole, cut a lemon in half and stuff into the cavity, along with a head of garlic, broken up (don't need to peel), and whatever herbs you have on hand. You can throw a chile pepper in there as well, if you like. The seasonings will permeate the meat much more than anything your rub on the skin. Discard most of the seasonings when you carve the bird, unless you're a garlic lover. If the latter, put the cloves on a small bowl or platter, and smear on chunks of bread.

 

[pamspies]

Hi all,

We're on a tight budget the next couple weeks and our grocer has whole chickens on sale for .79/lb. I've never bought a whole chicken before and I'm a terrible butcher What do you think would be the easiest way for me to prepare it? My husband refuses to eat chicken off the bone so I'll need to address that... you all are so helpful, thanks in advance!!

Check out this great slide show of how to bone a chicken. It makes it really easy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jn2AsUWGows

Pamspies

 

[snickerdoodle]

Success!! I stuffed the cavity with what I had: onions, celery and garlic. I mixed up some honey butter and tossed in some dried thyme and rosemary and did my best to spread it under the skin. I followed Andy's roasting tips and I cut the skin at the legs and put the bird in feet first at 425 degrees. I don't even have a thermometer and the thing was cooked perfectly and very juicy. I covered it with foil and took it off for the last 15 mins of cooking... the skin got crispy fast so I'm glad I used the foil. Thanks to all!

 

[Kayelle]

Success!! I stuffed the cavity with what I had: onions, celery and garlic. I mixed up some honey butter and tossed in some dried thyme and rosemary and did my best to spread it under the skin. I followed Andy's roasting tips and I cut the skin at the legs and put the bird in feet first at 425 degrees. I don't even have a thermometer and the thing was cooked perfectly and very juicy. I covered it with foil and took it off for the last 15 mins of cooking... the skin got crispy fast so I'm glad I used the foil. Thanks to all!

Thanks so much for the report, snickerdoodle. We all love helping folks, and it means a lot to us to hear reports. Glad it worked out for you. Was your family impressed?

 

[Andy M.]

Success!! I stuffed the cavity with what I had: onions, celery and garlic. I mixed up some honey butter and tossed in some dried thyme and rosemary and did my best to spread it under the skin. I followed Andy's roasting tips and I cut the skin at the legs and put the bird in feet first at 425 degrees. I don't even have a thermometer and the thing was cooked perfectly and very juicy. I covered it with foil and took it off for the last 15 mins of cooking... the skin got crispy fast so I'm glad I used the foil. Thanks to all!

Glad it all worked out well. Now you're a pro!

 

[snickerdoodle]

Dh liked it! Although, he was thoroughly disgusted when I was bagging up the carcass for later use LOL

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Success!!

That's great Snickerdoodle!

 

[snickerdoodle]

OK since I'm still new at whole chickens I have another question...

Last time I roasted the chicken I bought a disposable foil roasting pan to do it, worked great. This time, I couldn't justify spending the $2.50 on the pan. I don't own a roasting pan. However, I have a large crock pot (the crockery insert part) that looks suitable but I'm not sure if it's a good idea... thoughts?? I'm only looking to cook the chicken, not dress it up and make it fancy. I'll just be picking the meat off the carcass for use in other dishes. Thanks in advance!

 

[Andy M.]

OK since I'm still new at whole chickens I have another question...

Last time I roasted the chicken I bought a disposable foil roasting pan to do it, worked great. This time, I couldn't justify spending the $2.50 on the pan. I don't own a roasting pan. However, I have a large crock pot (the crockery insert part) that looks suitable but I'm not sure if it's a good idea... thoughts?? I'm only looking to cook the chicken, not dress it up and make it fancy. I'll just be picking the meat off the carcass for use in other dishes. Thanks in advance!

I use a 13x9 baking pan to roast chickens. It has 1" high sides - basically a cookie sheet. Line it with foil for easy clean up and go for it.

 

[Claire]

For this purpose, your crock pot is perfect. It isn't a roasted chicken, and the skin is useless (to me). It is what when I was a kid was called a stewed chicken. Put as much onion, garlic, thyme, sage, celery, garlic as you can squeeze around the chicken, as well as in the cavity. If you have a large crock pot, fill the rest of the space with chunks of carrot and potato. Cover with water. Then cook according to your pot instructions. You don't want the water to boil, just simmer all day, below a boil. Pull out the bird, strain the liquid. When cool enough, remove the meat from the carcass et voila! You have the makings for hundreds of recipes, or just serve with the potatoes and carrots. This is such a great base for anything from comfort food (chicken pot pie, tetrazzini, chicken noodle soup) to the exotic (curries, stir fries) to sandwiches.

 

[tinlizzie]

I've cooked a lot of chicken over the years and should probably know this already, but when cooking it in a crock pot as Claire describes, does it matter whether the chicken you buy is a roaster, stewer, or even a young fryer? I generally buy the one that's on sale....

 

[Andy M.]

It shouldn't matter. The difference in those you listed is basically just size.

 

[snickerdoodle]

Hmmm... I'm thinking about using the 13 x 9 now instead. Had I gotten an earlier start to it, I would have gone the crock pot route but here it is almost 3:00 and this chicken needs to be ready for dinner. Just to clarify, I was originally asking if putting my crock pot insert in the oven would be a good idea or not. Only thing with using the 13 x 9 is I'll have to make more of an aluminum foil tent to cover the chicken. Last time the skin browned and almost burned during the last 20 mins of cooking when I removed the foil from the roasting pan. Thank you all for your input!!!

 

[tinlizzie]

Thanks, Andy. One less thing to wonder about at the meat counter.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Hmmm... I'm thinking about using the 13 x 9 now instead. Had I gotten an earlier start to it, I would have gone the crock pot route but here it is almost 3:00 and this chicken needs to be ready for dinner. Just to clarify, I was originally asking if putting my crock pot insert in the oven would be a good idea or not. Only thing with using the 13 x 9 is I'll have to make more of an aluminum foil tent to cover the chicken. Last time the skin browned and almost burned during the last 20 mins of cooking when I removed the foil from the roasting pan. Thank you all for your input!!!

Sorry, Snickerdoodle, I'm don't know if you can put the crock in the oven. Not sure it could handle the heat without cracking.

 

[jengen]

if you are just picking the meat off I suggest you boil the chicken with seasonings. that way you get stock plus the chicken meat. Oven roasting bags are awesome and keeps chicken tender, and that hard to do.

 

[Zhizara]

if you are just picking the meat off I suggest you boil the chicken with seasonings. that way you get stock plus the chicken meat. Oven roasting bags are awesome and keeps chicken tender, and that hard to do.

I agree. This is the easiest way to get the meat off, plus you get all that lovely stock to use. I do it this way with frozen chicken thighs or drumsticks. An hour will get 'er done.

 

[snickerdoodle]

if you are just picking the meat off I suggest you boil the chicken with seasonings. that way you get stock plus the chicken meat. Oven roasting bags are awesome and keeps chicken tender, and that hard to do.

Are you saying to boil the chicken while in a roasting bag? Forgive my ignorance I had forgotten all about roasting bags. When I did the chicken last night, the juices were boiling and spitting out of the pan resulting in smoke and a stinky home I had it slightly covered by foil but the foil was more of a shield, not offering full coverage of the chicken. Next time I'll make sure I either use a roasting bag or a deeper roasting pan so I can cover it completely with foil.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

I can not bring myself to boil a chicken. The flavor of the meat just goes into the broth. Tender, and supremely juicy, perfect chicken is so easy to do in the oven. Simply clean and dry the bird inside and out. Rub a bit of oil or butter on the skin. Preheat the oven to 400' F. to 425' F. Put the chicken on a rack, and into a shallow roasting pan. Place a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the breast so that the tip is near the leg joint, but not touching the bone. Lightly salt the bird inside and out and place into the oven. Cook for about 12 minutes per pound. Check the meat thermometer and remove the bird to a platter when the thermometer reads 155' F. Let sit for 15 minutes. Carve by removing the whole breasts from the carcass and slice against the meat grain. Remove the legs and wings. You can carve the meat from the back if you desire, or leave it on the carcass for soups.

You will be amazed at how good the chicken is. Also, there is a difference between a roasting, stewing, and fryer chicken. The roaster is a young but full sized bird, while a stewing chicken is an older bird with more flavor, but fairly tough meat. A fryer is younger and slightly smaller than a roaster so that the meat will cook all the way through when frying before the outside is badly overcooked.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[tinlizzie]

Thanks for the interesting post, Goodweed. That sure sounds good. Hmmm. Mayhap I should rethink my TG turkey and instead roast two chickens. Then I could snitch the four 'oysters' and who would know.