There are about a million ways to roast a chicken. I looked. For my first chicken roasting attempt, I was dismayed to find the grocery store shopper picked out a monster, 6.5 lb. bird. Was it going to be raw? Was it going to overcook? I had no idea, but you gotta' start somewhere and apparently this beast would be my first roast chicken. I needed a base recipe and could improvise from there. I found a two step process that I will cherish.
Step 1: Brine that bird.
I dry brined the bird. This means salting the hell out of the whole chicken, and seasoning with additional flavors. On the skin. Under the skin. In the cavity. Do not fear the seasoning. The bird's mighty girth made maneuvering a bit difficult, but I got the job done. Have it sit in the fridge between 24-72 hours. I did 48 hours. I did not truss the fatty, but this did not seem to be a problem.
Step 2: Cook that bird.
The bird cooked at 350°F in a roast pan on the second from bottom rack (had to take one out). The regular heat method called for 20 minutes for each pound, plus an extra 15 minutes. My final cook time would be 2 hours and 25 minutes 😳. That seemed...excessive. I seriously thought I was going to pull a lump of coal out of the oven. I pulled it out and let it sit for about 20 minutes as I prepared the sides.
It was perfect. Juicy. Crispy skin, flavorful meat fell off the bone. I also learned I need some better kitchen shears, but the struggle was worth it. I really should have taken a picture, but it really didn't look that amazing. It appears looks can be deceiving.
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