I throw it in the crockpot with onions, carrots, and taters, plus whatever herbs and spices sounds good.
We do have one of those clay chickens and it works quite well. We always used it until we recently got a crockpot big enough to hold a whole chicken plus veggies. (It was a gift so I don’t know how much, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t expensive. Probably NOT Williams-Sonoma.)
I have used baking bags in the past - that works pretty well, also. Back then, I usually tossed in some onions and garlic, and drenched the chicken in bottled Italian dressing.
No basting needed with any of these methods; the chicken always turns out juicy and tender. The only downside is that you don’t get any browning and the fat doesn’t have anywhere to go. That works for me because I skin and defat my chickens before I roast them. (Then make stock from all the bits.)
I use whatever chicken is in the freezer from the last sale. Remove the giblets and wash it. No stuffing (other than some of the onion).
The clay things work really well, but I also prefer chicken roasted on a vertical roaster. They cost about $5 at a kitchen store, and really make a big difference.
I have a clay roaster and I have to say I have never had a problem with a chicken being dry when done in it. I usually fill the bottom of the roaster with cut up carrots, onions, potatos and celery and use that as a ‘rack’ for the chicken to sit on. I stuff the cavity of the chicken with onions, herbs, and a halved lemon. I make a rub of chopped herbs, butter and lemon or lime juice to rub under the skin. We don’t usually eat the skin so this way the flavor gets into the meat. I stick a temp into the breast of the chicken, cover it with the lid and roast it until the internal temp is 180 (I think).
You could also try doing the beer can chicken thing on the grill. I tried it last summer and the chicken was very good, although I used chicken broth in the can instead of beer.
Brining is also a good way to add flavor and keep the chicken moist.
No, basting actually *slows **down *browning. Browning is basically frying in air - fat on the bird’s skin heats up to the temperature of the oven and fries the skin. That’s why we rub a little butter or oil on the surface of the chicken. But pan drippings have not only fat but lots of water - which can only ever get up to 212 degrees (unless under pressure) 212 is not hot enough to fry and brown the skin. Sure, once the water evaporates, you’re left with fat, which can begin to get hot enough to brown, but then you come along again and dump more water on it!
Nope, best to avoid basting and just trust in the fat you put on at the start of the process.
(Honestly, am I the only AB worshipper in the thread?)
I get what you’re saying, and I always check the temp too, but how do you now when to put the chicken in the oven to have dinner ready on time? Or are you like my dad, and we eat whenever it’s ready, even if we’re eating in our pajamas?
This, and brining, are the keys, I’ve found. Brine the bird for several hours, using any of the mixes already posted. I’ve also had good results with just apple juice and salt, and nothing else; really it’s the salt that’s important. To roast, I get my oven up to a very, very high heat, even up to 500F. Pop in the bird for five to ten minutes, until the skin has just begun to brown. Then reduce and cook to internal temperature as D_Odds says. And don’t bother basting (I’m another AB disciple, WhyNot) — opening the oven (or grill, or whatever) lets out heat and causes slow and uneven roasting.
Once you get the hang of it, it’s actually pretty simple to get good results consistently.
Well, this isn’t something you can do all by yourself. You need a bunch of people to help out and give their own speeches. But we’ll let the other folks take responsibility for what they contribute.
First, you make a list of three or four salient characteristics, that everyone present is likely to agree apply to this individual chicken. Next, you make up some jokes that riff on these characteristics. Ideally, the jokes should be kind of mean. If your audience is likely to be okay with it, you can also make them dirty.
For example, say the chicken in question is notorious for being hard-drinking and promiscuous. You could make up a joke like:
Why did the chicken cross the road?
Because it was so drunk that it tried to screw a Colonel Sanders billboard. And when it was finished, it couldn’t remember where it had taken off its pants. So it was looking for its pants.
When you have enough jokes, you throw a big dinner party, with the chicken as the guest of honor (make sure there’s lots of booze). When everyone has finished eating, you all take turns getting up in the fromt of the room and telling your jokes.
And now, I’m going to read the thread and see how many people came up with this joke before I did.
Only one. Huh.
I guesstimate about an hour or less to roast the bird which is why I’m not obsessive about the timings. Maybe an hour and a half if it’s big.
Generally the only reason I would be roasting a chicken would be for a romantic dinner or some special occasion (like my parents requesting American food) so we eat whenever it’s ready but start early enough that we’re not eating at midnight.
I allow myself two hours for most roasters; three if I’m going for a slow roast. That will allow me to get the bird in, tend to the side dishes, pull the bird out and make the gravy. Experience gives me a rough guideline how long it takes to cook a particular cut and size of meat, although I have mistimed many times. Nothing worse than having a family at the table with sharp instruments in their hands and rumbly bellies when dinner is still raw :eek:
Oh, I should note the one pre-planning piece of advice I have about brining is that let it “dry” out for a while. That is, after you take it out of the brine, I usually towel it off (with paper towels) and then let it dry in the fridge. I’ve heard that otherwise it’s too soggy to brown properly otherwise. For a turkey I’ve heard that you should actually brine two nights prior and then the night before you roast should just be about allowing the bird to dry out. I just give it a few hours, myself, and have never had any browning problems.
But try not to plop out from water into oven without a dry-out period. Oh but if you do, report back to us because I’m curious to see if the traditional wisdom about not doing that is just crap.
I’ve not brined a chicken, but brined a turkey last year, (AB’s recipe, of course) and simply patted it dry with popar towels before coating it in oil. It turned out gorgeously brown.
How do you know that it’s time to check the thermometer? I presume you don’t scurry back and forth across the kitchen every five minutes. Me, I like to turn my attention to other matters while the roast is going, and I’m likely to get notified by the smoke alarm if I don’t have the timer set to at least something in the ballpark.
I use a probe thermometer…er, used, as mine recently broke. How about ‘will use’?
Anyway, stick the probe it in the center of a roast or thigh of a bird, set the desired temperature to th base unit, wait for the beep. I can eye current temperature at any time, which helps me decide when to prepare side dishes.