There were a few smattering doubts when a day or two of cool-ish weather rolled in, but we are in the thick of summer right now. Fans are blowing, afternoon getaways for gelato are required and a slow walk to the local beer palace in the evening as an escape from our hot apartment for something cold and lemony helps to quell the heat. I know, I wish this was a post for some hand-cranked ice cream or an icy tayberry limeade, but I’ve got roast chicken. But this roast chicken is amazing. And easy. Ideal to take to any lakeside picnic and oh so perfect with a chopped salad dressed with ranch.
This recipe comes from the dude who cooks at The French Laundry and while you think there might be a high snob factor with this meal, you couldn’t be further from the truth. Get yourself an organic chicken please, take out the salt and pepper and pull some fresh thyme from your garden. Got it? Good. Simple right? Well, there’s one more step…and it involves kitchen twine for a little chicken dance between you and the bird. It’s called trussing. I wish I could tell you it’s a quick one-two step, but for me it involved a YouTube video, a helping hand from my husband and maybe a cuss word or two. Between our 4 hands, we got the chicken trussed up and looking good enough for a night out on the town.
Once you’ve got the bird trussed, the living is easy, as they say. There’s no fussing or basting required. Just pop the thing in the oven and forget about it until the scent coming from your kitchen induces some heavy drooling. The skin will be crisp and flavourful and the meat will be moist. This is a seriously amazing meal and the standard that all other roast chickens will be judged by. There is no doubt that you’ll be licking your fingers and smiling the whole time.
bouchon’s simple roast chicken
1 2-3lb organic, farm-raised chicken
kosher salt & freshly ground pepper
1 T fresh thyme1. Preheat the oven to 450F. Rinse and dry the chicken very well, inside & out. You don’t want the chicken to steam, so patting down all the liquid is important, so you can have dry heat instead of steam.
2. Truss the chicken. Follow this YouTube video for instructions. Trussing makes for a beautiful presentation and keeps the bird moist.
3. Sprinkle the bird with salt. Thomas Keller recommends a tablespoon’s worth, but I did a tiny bit less. Season with pepper.
4. Place the chicken in a roasting dish or a cast iron pan and roast for 50-60 minutes or until done. No need to baste or fuss. Remove it from the oven and sprinkle the bird with the fresh thyme. Baste with the pan juices and let it rest for 15 minutes before serving. Remove the twine, dig in and smile.
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Thanks for the suggestion of the roast chicken…I was wondering baout what to serve for dinner tomorrow. It is such a simple recipe…perfect! I agree about the organic , free-range, whatever chicken, it makes all the difference!
BTW I love the blue toenails!
That is my favorite chicken recipe too! Here's mine: http://ow.ly/hxIs
I don't know, I think roast chicken is just as Summer-appropriate as hand-churned ice cream. Especially when gulped down with lemonade.
I haven't eaten chicken in ages but I might just be willing to forgo my aversion for this fowl recipe – pardon the pun!
Onto ice cream…I have been seriously tempted to get me a kick ass ice-cream machine this summer. The only thing holding me back is my dwindling bank balance and my growing derriere LOL!
Love the green toes ; )
ooooh i have always wanted a no fail roast chicken recipe… for some reason i always expect it to be harder than it is- this looks DELISH and easy!
I found your food blog going through a few links. Glad I ran into it. Didn’t know that the food blog/recipe community was so big online. I love your posts!
I was wondering if you would like to exchange links. I’ll drop yours on my site and you drop mine on yours. Email at [email protected] or stop by my site and drop a comment. Let me know if you would like to do a link exchange.
Cheers,
Caleb
http://www.ramendays.com
MmM roast chicken is always good, no matter the time of the year!
That chicken is so FAT! And luscious! I love how many meals a roast chicken makes, too–sandwiches, quesadillas, or chicken salad the next day, then soup the day after that.
I think I have that exact colour on too – a fav! I love your recipes and make a lot of them.
Roast chicken is my go recipe. Truss & bake. I marinade in lots of yummies the day before , drain, pat dry then oven dear oven does the rest!! Sounds perfect summertime to me!!!
Oh yum yum yum — there is nothing more comforting than a beautiful, perfect roast chicken! Dinner tonight!
Roast a chicken this way at least once a week, roast potatoes, mixed veggies on the side, thing of beauty!
Rich. 😉
this looks divine! Thanks for sharing!
Car Seat Blanket
Hag, I hope you made the chicken…it was super delicious & I'm still thinking about it!
Kristen, I can understand your passion. Yum.
EEJ, I agree! It's just the turning on the oven part that can be tricky.
Bijoux, this would be the chicken recipe to try! So easy and amazing. I have a churning old school ice cream maker…it takes work, so it's a good option!
Thanks Laura. They are now currently "punk pink"!
Tania, this is the one. So good!
Thanks Caleb. Sorry, I don't do link exchanges.
I agree, Karine.
Oh yes, it's perfect for leftovers, The Leftoverist!
Yay for teal toes, Dina! Thanks!
Mine too, Alicia. Sounds delish.
Definitely, CookiePie. Yum.
Rich, it should be a weekly ritual here too! I think I'll make it so.
Thanks Kristi!
That looks amazing! I'm planning to make a crunchy salad with homemade ranch dressing for my fried chicken party next week.
Thanks Lydia. Mmmm, fried chicken!
Simple is quite often best:D
This is absolutely my favorite way to fake a fancy feast (especially for visiting parents/in-laws). Thanks for sharing this great recipe! Now if I only had a garden and a chicken farm.
I agree, Bellini. This proves it.
Indeed, gabrielaskitchen. Fake fancy is better than real fancy 🙂
Wow, this looks scrumptious!
I'm over in Ireland and we're having a fairly good summer. Which translates as: it's not raining twice a day, but only once. So, perfect roast chicken weather!
The concept of 'summery foods' are unfortunately lost on us most of the time. It's comfort food all the way. And I maintain that that is why I, as an Irish lady, am a little tubby round the belly. Need to insulate.
The tubbiness probably isn't aided by the Guinness either…but Guinness counts as comfort food too so…hurrah!
Your blog is lovely, hope you have a nice time away this coming month.
Thanks for stopping by, aoife mc! I'm all for comfort foods and a pint, definitely.