A Recipe for the Perfect Roast Chicken Every Time

When it came to roasting a chicken, I always found the prospect extremely intimidating. It sounded like a task better left for the Julia Childs and Martha Stewarts of the world — until I came across this Thomas Keller recipe. In case you know who Thomas Keller is, he’s the three Michelin-starred chef and the mastermind behind restaurants French Laundry in Napa Valley, California and Per Se in New York City.

Now, Keller’s recipe isn’t so much a recipe in the traditional sense as it is a simple set of principles (and a roasting time). His philosophy towards roast chicken is to keep the chicken as dry as possible and the seasoning simple: just salt and pepper. According to Keller, adding lemon or herbs just increases the amount of moisture in the oven, thereby preventing that nice, crisp browning of the chicken skin.

I’ve since made this roast chicken recipe about twenty times, and it’s been amazing 100% of the time. Ideally, you should roast your bird on a roasting rack, but in case you don’t have one, a bed of root vegetables is a great substitute (plus, the roasted vegetables make a delightful side — two birds, one stone ;)

Also, in case you don’t feel like carving a whole bird and love dark meat like my family, you can also replace the chicken with eight drumsticks, keeping all else the same.

Ingredients

For the bird:

1 small chicken (I used a Cornish hen, defrosted, cleaned, giblets removed) or 8 drumsticks
salt
pepper
twine for trussing (optional)

For the bed of vegetables:

1 large onion cut into big pieces
3 small roasting potatoes, cubed
3 medium sized carrots, cubed
3 medium sized parsnips, cubed
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. As your oven heats up, prep your vegetables.
Peel and cube your veggies into large pieces (the bigger pieces will hold up in the high heat of the oven), and place them on a baking sheet. Amply salt and pepper your root vegetables and toss with the olive oil till the vegetables are evenly seasoned. Don’t use more the one tablespoon of olive oil, you might affect the breast of your bird from browning. Set pan aside.
Clean your bird and dry it off really, really well with a paper towel. You want to make sure you dry off the cavity and under the wings as well. Having a bone-dry bird is what will help the skin brown deliciously.
Truss your bird if you have a medium-sized bird or up. My bird was a very small Cornish hen, so I skipped this step. Needless to say, if you’re using drumsticks, you can also skip this step.
Use salt and pepper to season the entire chicken, including the inside of the cavity. Since salt draws out moisture from the chicken, give the bird another light pat down with a paper towel. Then, set the bird on top of your bed of vegetables.
Put your tray on the middle rack of the oven at 400 degree Fahrenheit for one hour. After an hour, cut between the drumstick and body to check for doneness. If the juices run clear, your bird is ready.
Take the bird out of the over to rest for 20 minutes or so. Then, serve immediately and enjoy!

My six-year-old niece, who can be kind of picky, declared this the best chicken she’s tasted in her life. And if you won’t take her word for it, other members of my family who have tried this recipe have also felt similarly. If you use make this chicken, snap a pic and tag me on Instagram. I’d love to see all your creations!

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(Featured photo: Gabriel Garcia Marengo/Unsplash)