Roast Chicken with Fennel, Rosemary and Lemon
The classic roast chicken can't get any tastier than this juicy bird with uber crispy skin.
Ingredients
- 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp fennel seeds
- 1 tbsp fresh rosemary minced
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 @ 3 1/2 lb (1.6 kg) chicken patted dry with paper towel
Instructions
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Use a microplane to remove all the zest from the lemon and place it in a mortar. Set the lemon itself aside.
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Add the fennel seeds, the rosemary and salt to the lemon zest. Bash everything together with the pestle. Alternatively you can just stir everything very well in a small bowl.
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Rub the chicken with the salt mixture, inside and out, really massaging it into every nook and cranny. Let the chicken sit, uncovered, for 2 hours at room temperature.
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Preheat the oven to 425F (220C) a half hour before you are ready to roast the chicken.
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Place the chicken into a skillet or baking dish that will hold the chicken comfortably.
Cut the zested lemon in half and stuff into the cavity of the bird. Tie the legs together.
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Roast the chicken until the skin is browned and crispy, and the leg feels nice and loose when you wiggle it. The thigh joint area should register 170F (70C) on an instant read thermometer. This should take around 1 hour and 15 minutes.
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While many cookbooks will tell you to reduce the temperature at some point, but as Julia points out, often the chicken is undercooked this way. And that's just no fun. Maintain the oven temperature- it worked perfectly for me.
Let the chicken rest for 10 minute before carving. Squeeze the juice from the lemon halves over the chicken when serving.
Recipe Notes
This is a fabulous recipe for more than one meal. Leftover chicken can be used in stir fries, chicken soup, quesadillas, even good ole chicken salad!
Adapted from Small Victories by Julia Turshen