TabyanInn

This roast chicken is full of flavor, and so tender it falls off the bone.

This recipe comes from Traci’s dad, Ed Thomas. He uses this method for both chickens and turkeys, and it always turns out spectacular.

I have experimented with different herbs and spices, and the chicken still turns out great. The key is to make sure that the foil wrapping covers the chicken like a bathtub so the juice that it generates stays inside the foil, and no outside water leaks in from the outside.

And remember: keep the broth! Use it for other dishes or for gravies—it is delicious. Best yet, you control the seasonings that go into it.

Ingredients:

• 1 large roasting chicken, whole
• 1 yellow onion, quartered
• 1 cup celery pieces, stalks and leaves
• McCormick’s Montreal Seasoning
• 1 teaspoon salt

How To Make:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Clean and wash the chicken well, and remove any neck or giblets.

Liberally sprinkle salt and the Montreal seasoning in the chicken cavity. Place some onion, then some celery in the cavity. Alternate until cavity is full. Do not tie the legs.

Sprinkle the Montreal seasoning on the outside of the chicken breast, then place breast-down on a wide piece of aluminum foil. Sprinkle more seasoning on the back and legs of the chicken.

Bring the foil up over the chicken and seal completely. Be careful to make sure the foil comes up and forms a tub to keep the chicken juices inside the foil, and does not let water from the roasting pan in.

Place the wrapped chicken breast down in a roasting pan or Dutch oven. Place water up to 2-3” in the pan, being careful to not go over any edges in the foil.

Cover pan/Dutch oven, and cook in the oven at 350F for 3 ½-4 hours. Check occasionally to make sure there is water in the pan.

Discard the water in the pan, but keep the broth in the foil with the chicken.

Let the chicken rest for 10-15 minutes, then carefully open the foil. Drain the broth and reserve for other uses. Place the chicken on a cutting board and carve. Warning—the chicken will fall apart!

Prep time: 15 min. Cook time: 4 hours. Serves: 4.

Notes

Source: Edward Thomas.

One thing to know about this recipe: the chicken is very tender, and falls apart. I want to experiment with the cooking time to see if I can scale it back to keep the chicken done and tender, but so that it does not fall apart so much. I’ll let everyone know how that goes…

#recipes