So fast forward to... recently. I don't have cable, which means I am missing out on all the cool new cable food shows. However, I stumbled across a show with Chef Michael Simon on it while browsing Hulu. He was talking about salt curing his roast chicken and cooking it at a high heat. DING! (or whatever sound a light bulb makes) Of COURSE! A salt cure vs. a brine...will essentially dry out the skin, making it crispy. Throw some butter UNDER the skin and you get juicy meat. So I tried it out. There it was...heavenly roast chicken. Crispy, juicy, flavorful and easy. It was cooking triumph for me.
The main tricks are these (I know it seems like a lot...but you know...they are short)
1. Make sure your chicken is fully defrosted...or use a fresh one
2. Rinse your chicken with cold water, then pat it dry with paper towels.
3. Liberally sprinkle kosher salt all over the chicken, including in the inside cavity. Don't pour it directly from the spout liberal, just grab a tablespoon and sprinkle salt all over.
4. Put your chicken in a big enough pot that it can be covered with a lid but dry out. If you don't have a pot big enough, find a safe spot in your fridge and leave the chicken un-covered. The key is it needs to dry out. Just remember though, chicken germs are mega beastly bad and don't let anything co-mingle with that uncovered bird.
5. Let it dry out aka cure...overnight.
6. Bring the bird out of the fridge about an HOUR before you are ready to roast her. She needs to come to temp before you put her in the hot oven.
7. DO NOT RINSE THE SALT OFF. I know...just don't okay. Thanks.
8. Create an amazing butter rub. Grab some soft, unsalted butter, crank in some pepper, zest some lemon if you want, throw in all the fresh herbs you can find...or keep it simple...butter, pepper...just use what you have. This is where you will be flavoring the bird, so get creative or keep it simple.
9. Spread the butter UNDER the skin. Don't be tempted to slather it all over the skin. Just stick to under the skin. I like to use a chopstick to loosen the skin up and my hands to get it up and under. Get personal with that bird.
10. Chop up some root veggies to use as a roasting rack. I use potatoes, carrots, onions and turnips. Toss them in salt, pepper and olive oil. Put them in the bottom of the pan and that is what your bird sits on to roast. Oh and take a couple of those onions and shove them in the bird's cavity.
11. Roast it at a high heat for 1 hour. 425 to be exact. Then let it rest for 20 minutes. Don't touch it. You know the rule. It needs the carryover cooking and you all watch the foodnetwork now...you know the rules about the juices and stuff.
Salt-Cured Roast Chicken
adapted from Michael Simon aka the Iron Chef guy
3 to 4 lb chicken
Kosher Salt
Fresh herbs
Softened Butter
Pepper
Root veggies
Onion
Olive oil
A day before cooking, rinse your chicken inside and out under cold water and pat dry. Salt it liberally and refrigerate it.
Take the chicken out about hour before you plan on roasting it. Preheat the oven to 425. Combine the butter and fresh herbs. Put the butter mix under the skin of the chicken.
Cut up the root veggies and the onion. Put an onion in the cavity of the chicken. Toss the rest of the veggies in some olive oil, salt and pepper and put them in the bottom of the roasting pan. Place the chicken, breast side up, on top of the veggies.
Roast the chicken for about an hour or until the juices run clear. (The thigh should register 160 degrees) Let the bird rest for 20 minutes.
