Roast Chicken

Name: Roast Chicken
Cook time: P0Y0M0DT0H30M0.000S
Total time: P0Y0M1DT0H30M0.000S
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 whole chicken, deboned except for the wings; Kosher salt; 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) neutral oil; 1 cup roasted chicken demi-glace, such as More Than Gourmet, for basting; 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives; Fine sea salt

Getting reviews...

Level: Easy

Total: 1 day 30 min (includes air-drying time)
Active: 30 min

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

I love roast chicken and have worked for years to develop the perfect roasting technique. It isn’t hard, but like so many of my favorite recipes, the key is the attention to detail while you cook. Here, one of the most important steps is making sure that the pan you are cooking in is really hot, so that the liquid that the chicken releases evaporates as soon as it hits the surface, which really helps to tenderize the chicken. You could certainly serve this with plain polenta, but I like to go the extra step and pair the chicken with gnocchi alla romana, which are very different from regular potato gnocchi—they’re more like a semolina gratin. The smooth, decadent baked semolina combined with tender, juicy meat and a really deep caramelization on the chicken skin makes for a real textural powerhouse of a meal.

Level: Easy

Total: 1 day 30 min (includes air-drying time)
Active: 30 min

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

Deselect All

1 whole chicken, deboned except for the wings

Kosher salt

1/4 cup (60 milliliters) neutral oil

1 cup roasted chicken demi-glace, such as More Than Gourmet, for basting

1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

Fine sea salt

Directions

Special equipment:

an instant-read thermometer

Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel. Season lightly with kosher salt all around and inside the cavity as well. Place on a wire rack set over a baking sheet and allow to air-dry for 24 hours in the refrigerator.
When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 525 degrees F.
Cut the chicken in half and season the skin and flesh sides of the chicken halves lightly with kosher salt. Coat the bottom of a large cast-iron skillet or another ovenproof pan with the oil and heat over medium-high heat until almost smoking. Sear the chicken skin-side down until the skin is a nice golden brown, about 3 minutes. Place the pan in the oven and cook the chicken skin side down about 15 minutes (or until an instant-read thermometer stuck into the center of a breast or where the leg and thigh meet reaches 145 degrees F).
Meanwhile, heat the demi-glace gently in a saucepan with 1/3 cup water to loosen.
Remove the pan from the oven and flip so the chicken halves are skin-side up. While the chicken is resting in the still-sizzling skillet, glaze the top with the demi-glace for a couple of minutes until the instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees F. Sprinkle the chives and sea salt over the top. Slice and serve with the vegetable of your choice.