A friend from high school is now a sous chef in a well-known Las Vegas restaurant. He used to whip up shrimp scampi and the like as a "quick meal" when hanging out as teenagers. Early in college, when everyone was home during a break, we hung out again. At that time, I remember him saying that the one thing everyone needs to learn to cook is a roast chicken. All you need is salt, pepper, oil, and a few vegetables. You'll be set for life, he claimed.
That stuck with me. I've been working on my roast chicken ever since and have found the perfect recipe, thanks to America's Test Kitchen. The chicken has crispy skin and moist meat. There are a few secrets to this: (1) really dry out the chicken beforehand - as in, let it sit in the refrigerator overnight covered in salt to remove moisture from the skin, (2) turn off the oven halfway through cooking, and (3) let the chicken rest for at least 20 minutes before cutting to avoid juices from spilling out.
Turn the oven off? Yes. Don't open the oven or else you'll lose all of the heat. The story goes that ATK chefs accidentally discovered this recipe when they had a power outage at the office. The chicken was halfway done when the power went out, so they decided to keep it in the oven to try to salvage the bird. The rest is history.
I generously cover the pyrex dish in olive oil, cut up onions or potatoes to cover the bottom, then set the chicken on top to roast. In a separate pan I roast more vegetables. Voilà, a complete meal. This lasts me a whole week and it's incredibly budget-friendly!
I know what we are having for our first meal once we get to Oakland! This looks amazing Fish!
ReplyDelete