I picked up a whole organic chicken the other day at the supermarket... on sale of course. I was looking to make an easy and simple chicken that was as moist as it was delicious. I went back to a couple of my old recipes and modified one that I thought would work just fine. It was delicious and it made enough for two or three meals!
INGREDIENTS
One 2 to 3 pound organic chicken
3/4 to 1 Tablespoon of Pink Himalayan salt
1 Teaspoon of Ground Pepper
1 Tablespoon of Fresh Thyme (leaves only)
1 Tablespoon of Apricot Preserves (a good substitute would be fig or peach)
Kitchen Twine (for trussing)
One large pat of butter melted
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 375°F
Remove giblets (if the chicken has them)
Rinse the chicken under cold water and pat (very) dry inside and out with paper towels. Moisture will actually steam the chicken. A dry chicken produces a dry heat which is better.
Salt and Pepper the cavity of the chicken, then truss the chicken. Trussing a chicken is easy. This will help the wings and legs close to the body of the chicken and allowing the bird to cook more evenly. Watch how to truss a chicken!
Brush the underside with 1/2 the preserves, thyme salt and pepper. Turn bird over and repeat on the top side with remaining preserves, thyme salt and pepper. Reserve a generous pinch of thyme for when the chicken is done.
Place the chicken in a roasting pan and put into your preheated oven. Don't baste, don't add anything else, no butter, no chicken stock or water. Remember we are dry roasting the chicken and basting tends to create steam.
Roast until done, about 45-60 minutes. Use an instant read thermometer when the temperature reads 165°F. Take out of the oven and let the bird rest for 15 minutes. remove the legs and thighs then cut the breast down the middle.
Pour the melted butter over the bird and sprinkle the remaining fresh thyme as it rests.
Serve with your choice of vegetables. I served with sautéed kale and steamed broccoli
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