Basic recipe for roasted chicken and veggies?

Cafe Society
1

Here’s the idea: I want to put a whole chicken in a pan and fill the sides of the pan with (quartered) potatoes, carrots, celery, summer squash, and onions. I want the juices to mingle a bit, and I want to veggies to be just the right doneness when the bird is done.

Any good recipes? Can I add the veggies right off, or do I have to wait until 40 minutes before the bird is done?

For the bird, I’m thinking of buttering the outside and stuffing it with lemon slices, garlic, and rosemary.

2

That’s pretty much how I do it. Stick everything in the same pan, cut the veggies into 1-inch thickness (potatoes I cut a bit thinner), throw in a whole head of garlic in whole cloves, and liberally toss in extra virgin olive oil.

Next, stuff half a lemon and some rosemary in the bird. Dust the outside with salt and a little paprika (for browning), stick it in a preheated 400-degree oven for 10-12 minutes, reduce to 325 and cook until juices run clear.

If you’re feeling fancy, take some butter, chop up some garlic and herbs (rosemary and thyme will work fine), mix it all together with salt (if you’re using unsalted butter like I always do) and stuff it in various places under the chicken’s skin.

3

So I can cook the veggies right from the beginning?

4

That’s what I do. If for some reason your vegetables aren’t done when the chicken is (for example, maybe you cut your veggies too thickly), just take the chicken out, tent it under aluminum foil (you want it to rest about 10-15 minutes, anyway, before carving and serving) and crank up the oven to 400 or so and roast it a bit longer. Now that I think about it, I may use 425 and 350 as my two roasting temps, not 400 and 325.

5

I put a whole roaster in a roasting pan, add a few chix bouillions and two or three cups of water, then fill the sides with carrots, pototoes, what have you. Add salt and pepper and rosemary and you’re done. If you cover the pot, the steam from the water will cook the veggies and create a nice broth. A 4 pound bird takes an hour and a half or so to cook – less than you’d imagine.