Thomas Keller's Simple Roasted Chicken

This is one of our all-time favorite recipes. It also seems to be one of the entire internet’s favorite recipes, as it is the most viewed chicken recipe on Epicurious. What makes this recipe so amazing is that it is both incredibly easy and perfectly delicious. The meat, especially with OurHarvest’s Cascun Farm bird, is super juicy and tender and requires little more than salt and pepper. We love making this into a “one pot” meal by adding some vegetables underneath the bird, which are made even more delicious as they cook in the chicken’s drippings.

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  • Serves: 2
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
  • 3.75 pound Whole Chicken
  • Kosher Salt
  • Freshly Ground Black Pepper
  • 2 pound Carrots (peeled and cut into wedges, optional)
  • Potatoes (cut into wedges, optional)
  • 3 cloves Garlic (optional)
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 2 teaspoon Fresh Thyme (minced)
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Dry the chicken very well with paper towels, inside and out. The less it steams, the drier the heat, the better
  2. Salt and pepper the cavity, then truss the bird
  3. Salt the chicken so that it has a nice uniform coating that will result in a crisp, salty, flavorful skin (about 1 tablespoon). Season to taste with pepper
  4. If you choose to, add vegetables to the bottom of the roasting pan and season with salt and pepper. Very lightly coat the vegetables in olive oil before seasoning
  5. Place the chicken in a roasting pan and, when the oven is up to temperature, put the chicken in the oven
  6. Roast it until it’s done, about 50 - 60 minutes, though the cooking time will depend on the size of the bird
  7. Remove it from the oven and add the thyme, if using, to the pan
  8. Baste the chicken with the juices and thyme and let it rest for 15 minutes on a cutting board
  9. Cut the chicken into pieces and serve with mustard on the side