ROAST CHICKEN WITH LEMON-BUTTER SAUCE

Years ago, I would have never dreamed of ordering chicken at a restaurant. My excuse was that it’s chicken, and you can get chicken anywhere, especially at home. But then one day, a client convinced me to order free-range roast chicken at a restaurant on the Upper East Side. It was amazing. Since that lunch, I have been determined to make any preparation of chicken anything but ordinary. This chicken is special because it’s seriously simple and so delicious. Well, maybe a big part of its deliciousness is the sauce it makes for itself. Butter makes everything better, doesn’t it?

Free-range chickens really do taste better. I have to admit that I was a naysayer for quite some time until that fateful day on the UES. If you have a local farm or specialty butcher, check to see if they sell them. Fresh, free-range chickens that aren’t pumped with hormones and fed a vegetarian diet tend to be on the smaller side, usually between 3.5 to 4 pounds, and occasionally even smaller. But I promise, what you sacrifice in size will be made up for in taste.

For roasting, unless I have a ton of vegetables around the meat, I like to use a ceramic oval roasting dish that is slightly larger than the meat. If you don’t have one like the one pictured here, head to your local HomeGoods. I’ll almost guarantee you can find one inexpensively. With this chicken recipe, If the pan is too large, the sauce won’t collect and the lemons and sauce will likely burn instead of charring.

If there are leftovers, pull the meat off of the bone and store the sauce separately. The following day, the sauce will be solid. Not to worry, simply spoon some out and place around the chicken when reheating.

SERVES 4-6

1         3.5- to 4-pound roasting chicken (preferably free range)
2        lemons, quartered lengthwise
2        heads of garlic, cut in half horizontally
4        sprigs of fresh rosemary
12        sprigs of fresh thyme
2 tablespoons     butter
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Remove any giblets inside the chicken cavity. Pat the outside of the chicken dry with paper towels. Liberally salt and pepper inside the cavity. Insert 2 quarters of the lemon, 2 garlic halves, 2 sprigs of rosemary, and 8 sprigs of thyme into the cavity. Tie the legs together with kitchen string. (Don’t worry about counting the sprigs of rosemary and thyme—just grab some and throw in what fits. I added numbers simply because some people like exact measurements.)

Place the chicken in a small roasting dish (a little larger than the chicken) with sides, and tuck the wings under the body of the chicken. Liberally salt and pepper the outside of the chicken. Place the butter on top of the center of the chicken. In the roasting dish, place one half of the remaining garlic head, 4 lemon quarters, and remaining thyme and rosemary sprigs around the chicken. Place dish in the center of the oven. For roasting time, I use Julia Child’s formula of 45 minutes plus 7 minutes for each pound, and it has never failed me. So a larger or smaller chicken may be used, and roasting time should be calculated using this formula. 

When roasting is complete, remove dish from the oven and allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before slicing. It will have a crispy skin and a delicious sauce of…you guessed it, lemon, butter, garlic, and herbs around it. Slice the chicken and spoon sauce over each serving. Don’t worry--the ingredients around the chicken will be a little charred, and that’s ok. The slightly charred flavor adds a little depth.

Yes, I’m guilty. I tore off a little skin from that left leg before photographing.