From chicken breast dryer than the Sahara, to turning your kitchen sink into a water park for
bacteria, a lot can go wrong when preparing roast chicken. Don't let these mistakes happen to you!
Even at the grocery store, the kind of chicken you purchase plays a big role in how it comes
out when roasted. While you can go with frozen chicken, the freezing process does take some of
the moisture out of the chicken — moisture that you won't get back. If possible, try to go for
an unfrozen chicken. As always, the fewer steps it takes to get from the farm to your grocer,
the better quality it will be. When selecting the right chicken, you should approach it as
you would when looking for good produce. Look at how much meat is on the chicken,
try to check if the skin feels smooth, and even give it a whiff to see if it's fresh.
If it smells funky or looks to be a color that chicken shouldn't be, steer clear.
If there is one type of chicken that is made for roasting, it would be the Cornish game
hen. It's not too big — about 1 to 2 pounds each — and they're younger chickens, meaning the meat
is fresher. If you've never made roast chicken before, this would be the best place to start.
Trying to roast your chicken before it's had a chance to
thaw is a fast way to end up ordering a pizza for dinner.
"Can we just start?"
"No! We can't just start! Okay, preparation is the key to victory!"
That's right! Because instead of a beautiful roast, you'll end up with dry,
possibly burned skin covering meat that's still very raw. Before you even set your oven,
make sure that your chicken has thawed and brought itself to room temperature.
If your chicken is frozen, leaving it in the fridge overnight will
begin the defrosting process. After defrosting,
leave it out in the open for around three hours to bring it to room temperature.
It turns out that washing chicken in the sink doesn't remove the bacteria. Sounds
totally counterintuitive, doesn't it? Believe it or not, it might make the situation worse,
as it could turn your kitchen sink into a petri dish. In the end,
it could take some serious sanitation to remove bacteria before it spreads. While it does seem
to go against our natural inclination to sanitize our food before cooking,
the best thing you can do for your chicken is leave it alone until it's ready for the oven.
If it makes you feel better, you'll still be fully sanitizing your chicken,
as you'll quite literally be cooking germs right off the meat. If you need further evidence,
a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture states that washing
raw chicken in your sink has a 60% chance of transferring bacteria from the meat to other
surfaces. And a 26% chance of transferring from contaminated surfaces to other foods.
Now we said don't wash your chicken, but we didn't say not to dry it. If you're
really shooting for that classic crisp skin on your roast chicken,
make sure you've allowed the moisture on the bird's skin to dry out. You can also
use paper towels to further pat the chicken dry ensuring there's as little water as possible on
the skin before cooking. Removing the excess water off of your chicken gives the skin a
better shot at crisping up once most of its moisture has steamed off in the oven.
Too much water on the skin means more moisture will be turned into steam while it's cooking.
In turn, that may mean your chicken's skin won't effectively caramelize the
way you want. If you've decided to marinate your chicken, there's no issue to be had,
as it's more about reducing the marinade while the chicken cooks. If you really
want that golden-brown color, though, make sure it's as dry as it can be.
A generous application
of olive or vegetable oil to make a roast chicken might seem like it makes sense,
but it's possible to have too much of a good thing. That's because your chicken has all of
the fat it will ever need, right inside. A drizzle of oil on the top can help bring a
little extra flavor to the roast, especially the skin. However, much like having too much moisture,
adding too much oil can create a similar problem, causing your roast to come out too
oily and greasy. So you'll only be making things worse if you're shooting for crispier skin.
If you're going to apply any oil to your roast chicken, do so sparingly. Remember,
the fat inside the chicken will render inside and outside of the bird. If you're really
shooting for that crisp skin, make sure you don't make this mistake, nor this next one.
Poultry is one of those versatile kinds of meats that absorbs other flavors like
a champ. While there is the inclination to just add some salt and pepper to your roast chicken,
consider developing a spice mix just for your roast to make your dish more aromatic and
all-around more delicious. Pepper and salt are a good start, but there is a wide assortment of
herbs and spices that can complement one another. Cayenne pepper can add just the right bit of heat,
whereas herbs like thyme, basil, sage, and rosemary can add a burst of aromatics as
well as depth of flavor. Parsley can brighten up chicken, giving it a cleaner taste, while garlic
and onion powder can add extra dimensions without overpowering the chicken itself.
A well seasoned roast chicken can have almost countless combinations of herbs and spices.
Thus making it the perfect culinary canvas to experiment with different combinations of
seasonings and see which one's tickle your tastebuds in all the right ways.
Unless you've already segmented what choice cuts of meat you want, traditionally,
a roast chicken is cooked whole. To make matters a bit more difficult, both white and dark meat cook
at different temperatures and finish at different times. A classic issue with roast chicken is that
trying to cook through one part often means sacrificing another. If you're interested in
a tender chicken breast, get ready for chewy, undercooked legs. If drumsticks and pinwheels
are your things, be prepared for a dried-out breast. However, there's a tried-and-true secret
to achieving nearly total roasting symmetry to get everything cooked through at the same time.
An overnight salt water brine before cooking is a great way to season your
chicken thoroughly and make sure everything cooks evenly. The salt water helps trap the
moisture inside the chicken, making sure the water stays inside and
keeps the breast from drying out while helping the dark meat cook thoroughly.
A beloved method of cooking chicken is the classic rotisserie method. The slow
rotation of the chicken over steady heat allows the rendered fat from the chicken
to self-baste while it cooks evenly. However, not many of us have the time, the equipment,
or the oven space to watch a chicken rotate for hours and hours. But, there's an easy work-around!
"Rack-em up!"
Yep, a proper roasting pan with a rack creates similar results as a rotisserie
and is a simple yet wonderfully useful cooking vessel. That's because it makes
sure your roast chicken is basting — not drowning — in its own juices.
The wire rack, in particular, creates a bit of space between the chicken and roasting pan to
capture drippings. This helps make sure that when it's ready, you'll be tasting more of that clean,
roast chicken flavor that's been lightly basted in rendered fat,
as opposed to being boiled in a stagnant coagulating pool. Also,
for the health-conscious, all of the fat dripping off of the chicken means you'll consume less fat.
Perhaps the greatest enemy of all good cooking is impatience.
"Kathy I can't wait! I have to take a bite of this panini!"
"Alright, well be real careful because it's hot!"
In addition to burnt tongues, impatience can result in a less than desirable outcome in
terms of the quality of your meal. Properly preparing a roast chicken requires a healthy
amount of patience. It demands a slow and considered approach to cooking, and nowhere
in the process is this better reflected then by setting the right time and temperature.
Even "faster" roast chicken recipes that recommend higher heat with less time rarely if ever set the
timer for under an hour. As a rule, the more time you give a chicken in the oven with less heat,
the better the final product will be. There's only a 125-degree ballpark between low and high heat
for the ideal roasting temp. As slow-roasted chicken cooks at 350 degrees Fahrenheit,
and a roast with a more succulent flavor runs as high as 475 degrees Fahrenheit.
Timing is everything when it comes to making the perfect roast chicken. And even the best recipes
can't take into account just how much time it will take to finish cooking your chicken.
Roast chicken, in particular, sits on that knife's edge between underdone or overdone.
The most effective method for determining just how long your chicken should cook is
to measure the time by weight. Smaller chickens can take less time and can quickly cook through
at a higher heat. In contrast, larger birds will take more time with a lower temp. Also,
be sure to check your chicken when it gets close to the time it's supposed to be done.
Chances are it can be taken out early and can finish cooking outside of the oven.
Remember, a roast chicken recipe can give you an estimation as to
how long it will take. By knowing the exact weight of your bird,
you can add or subtract time as needed to achieve the right amount of "doneness."
Aside from measuring the time and heat inside of the oven, the single most important factor
to measure in a roast chicken is its internal temperature. This isn't just a factor of flavor
or doneness — when cooked at too low of a temperature or for a limited amount of time,
any bacteria nesting in the chicken meat won't die off during cooking. The absolute best way
to measure true, safe doneness is with a meat thermometer. After the allotted time has passed,
insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken without touching the bone. This
will provide you with the most accurate reading as you'll see if your roast is really cooked through.
Keep in mind that different parts of the chicken are done at different temperatures. For instance,
the white meat of the chicken breast is typically ready to eat after reaching
165 degrees Fahrenheit. On the other hand, the dark meat found in the drumsticks needs to be
between 175 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit before it's safe and ready to eat.
This mistake might not ruin your roast chicken, but it does leave you with an
oven that's in desperate need of a cleaning. While it's cooking, not only does all of that
chicken fat render, but moisture inside of the poultry turns into steam. Naturally,
hot oil and water don't mix well, which leads to some sizzling and splattering in your oven.
This can also become a more serious problem if the hot fat hits the bottom of your oven,
causing it to burn and smoke. If left uncleaned, a greasy oven can become a major fire hazard.
To save yourself some future headaches there are a lot of different tools and
tips to prevent oven splatter. While aluminum foil is a popular go-to,
also consider a roaster with high sides or a Dutch oven with a cover. One great
trick involves heavily lining the bottom of your roasting pan with vegetables,
which will absorb all of the chicken fat and can be served as a side dish that's bound to impress.
If you've done everything right and you've avoided every possible mistake, you may now
be pulling out a beautiful golden brown roast chicken suitable for a magazine cover. However,
you can still totally botch the endgame with one simple misstep, so watch out!
"Oh my god! It's so juicy!"
Putting the carving knife into the chicken when it's fresh from the oven will be like
popping a water balloon. All of the moisture will quickly leak out and pool in the pan,
ultimately leaving you with a dried-out chicken floating in a sea of its own juices. After all
that hard work, this is certainly a mistake that nobody wants to make.
Once out of the oven, give your roast chicken at least 10 to 15 minutes sitting out in the open.
Yes, its aroma might be very tempting. However, that little bit of extra time allows the moisture
inside to cool and settle in the meat, only coming out when you give it that first bite.