I am buying a chicken tomorrow to try this Keller recipe. The reviews and the recipe itself (and maybe this thread) have convinced me.
My foodie needs co-exist with my fuel conscious miserly self . The only time I roast whole birds is when they are stuffed.
Otherwise, chicken can be roasted in 45 minutes @350F when spatchcocked, with no loss of crispy skin for the indulgent.
The aforementioned Alton Brown has an episode that covers this.
The Julia Child method works for me. It involves turning the chicken.
No crusader here: I’m just trying to figure out why it’s done (in the interests of fighting ignorance, of course). I’m thinking that salting the inside of a bird is probably a holdover from the days before refrigeration, when salting was the preservation method. I’ve tried to find out why recipes commonly call for this to be done, when there seems to be no seasoning aspect to it, nor benefit derived. I’ve had no success with that, other than people saying that their mother always did it.
I would imagine that, in addition to the reasons you listed, some people believe that it permeates the meat in some way.
It may salt the juices that gather in the cavity, however, which can screw up any sauce or gravy you choose to make afterward if you aren’t careful.
FWIW (I realize the thread has moved on), the chicken came out pretty well. I did 425[sup]o[/sup] for 10 minutes and 350[sup]o[/sup] the rest of the way until my probe thermo beeped at 160[sup]o[/sup]. A 10 minute rest took it to exactly 165[sup]o[/sup], so that worked well.
It wasn’t as dark and rich a color as I was hoping for, and I must confess I probably should have had the probe in the thigh instead of the breast, because there were some pink spots deep in the hip joints. Next time, I think I’ll go with 450[sup]o[/sup] for 15 minutes, then 375[sup]o[/sup].
One thing I really think I need is one of those big v-shaped racks for my roasting pan, I think that would help some. Mine only came with a rack that stands up about 3/4 of an inch from the bottom, and the bird’s back wasn’t anything like crispy.
I ditched the roasting pan for chickens. I use a small baking pan (like a quarter cake sheet) or a 9X13 (brownie type) pan with a rack. The chicken sits above the rim and gets good and dark all over.
Yeah, IIRC, Alton’s turkey recipe actually just calls for a rack on a half sheet pan. I had already bought a disposable roasting pan then, so I didn’t go that route. I really do think it has to do with the sides of the pan shielding the backside of the bird, though.
I just made a great roast chicken in my new convection oven. The oven’s instructions said 350 degrees for 1 1/4 hours for a 3.5 to 4 pound bird. My bird was almost 5 pounds so I cooked it for 1 hour and 40 minutes and tested the temperature to make sure it was done. The instructions said 160 degrees at the breast and 170 at the thigh. I prepped the bird by sticking the ends on the wings back behind the body (this keeps them from drying out). I rubbed butter on the outside, put some in the cavity and even some under the skin of the breast. I also salted and peppered all over and then put a couple lemon slices and some rosemary under the skin of the breast and some lemon edges and rosemary in the cavity. It turned out perfect, very moist and flavorful and it falls off the bone.
Granted this was for a convection oven so the temp and times may not translate to a conventional oven. I have roasted chickens in my conventional oven and always tend to prep them the same way, most kinds of citrus fruits work well in the cavity for added moisture, lemon, orange or grapefruit are best.