Ya know, sometimes we are so busy thinking about how to make something spectacular, that we forget how really good simple food can be. That simple food was what we ate for supper tonight.
Ingredients:
4 lb. whole chicken
4 russet potatoes, boiled with skins on until done, but firm. Then peeled.
2 stalks celery, sliced
4 large eggs, hard boiled
mayo
Miracle Whip Salad Dressing
1 small onion, minced
2 zucchini, Sliced
black olives
bacon grease
salt
All-Purpose Flour
Preheat the oven to 430'F
Wash, then dry the chicken and place on a poultry rack over a foil lined cookie sheet. Rub with bacon grease. Sprinkle salt all over the bird. Lightly dust with flour. Pop it into the oven.
I used all but the zucchini and black olives to make potato salad earlier that day. After putting the chicken into the oven, i set the timer for 12 minutes per pound, or 48 minutes. After 20 minutes had elapsed, I then placed my steamer on the stove with 2 cups of water in the bottom and brought it to a boil. Whiled the water was heating, I washed and sliced the zucchini, then placed the thick slices into the steamer and covered them. The zucchini were steamed for about 15 minutes and came out perfectly.
Shen the timer went off, I checked the chicken temperature, and pulled it from the oven when the thermometer read 163 degrees F. I let it rest for 10 minutes before carving. Lightly seasoned, with just salt, and with the bacon grease helping to brown the light dusting of flour, the meat was so very juicy and tender, with an outstanding flavor that stood on its own. The skin was amazing. Put together with the hot zucchini, and cold potato salad, made simply, that was once of the best chicken dinners I've had in years. And, it was better than bacon wrapped, roasted chicken, and better than garlic stuffed chicken, and better that roasted chicken with an herb-compound butter stuffed under the skin. And I love all of those techniques as well. This chicken was simple and simply great. I'll be roasting chicken like this more often.
Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North