Roast Chicken

In July of 2008 I published an article on chickens, their rearing, and where to find a good one. (Click on the July tab). The gist of that article focused on a discussion of factory farm raised chicken vs. local, grass fed, organic poultry, and why I favor the latter. Now let’s review how to take that fine, local bird and turn it into the quintessential chicken dish, roast chicken.

To quote Julia Child from her classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking, “The most important aspect of chicken cooking is that you procure a good and flavorsome bird…A chicken should taste like chicken and be so good in itself that it is an absolute delight to eat as a perfectly plain, buttery roast…” Every cook is judged by the quality of their roast chicken, so let’s look at how we accomplish perfection.

Chickens are available in a variety of sizes from “broilers,” weighing 1 ½ to 2 ½ lbs, “fryers” 2 ½ to 3 ½ lbs and “roasters “ 4 to 6 ½ lbs. The roaster is the preferred size for our application, although a fryer can be used.

If your chicken is purchased fresh, meaning never frozen, great. However most locally raised poultry is only available frozen, except during selected times in the summer. Do not take a frozen chicken and leave it to thaw out on the kitchen counter. You risk disease from bacteria that will grow on the bird during the thawing process, and many of the bird’s juices will leak out, resulting in a dry bird when cooked. Better to wrap your frozen bird in a towel and place it in a container in your refrigerator. It will take two days or more to thaw out, but little, if any, of its juices will escape. Need it sooner than day after tomorrow, place the frozen bird under slow running cold water, and it will be thawed out in 4 to 5 hours or so.

In recent years, many chefs have recommended brining your bird prior to cooking. The brine includes salt and sugar with various herbs and aromatics to flavor the bird. The benefit is that the breast meat, which always cooks faster than the legs and thighs, will not dry out before the bird is thoroughly cooked. While I have tried this method on many occasions, I think the brine alters the taste of the flesh giving it a slightly cured flavor, and the drippings, the bird emits, are diluted by the extra moisture that was absorbed during the brining process. I am cooking my roast chicken without brining.

Step one is to wash your bird under cold running water, both inside and out. Dry the bird thoroughly with paper towels and allow it to air dry for up to half an hour while the oven preheats. A wet bird will not get that gorgeous crispy skin we all enjoy so much.

It is desirable to truss you bird, meaning to tie it up into a compact bundle so it will cook evenly. Many cookbooks describe the various trussing methods, so I refer you to them.

I like to put butter, salt and pepper, and some squeezed lemon, garlic and fresh herbs in the cavity of my roast chicken. Lemon and chicken have a particular affinity, so put the squeezed lemon inside, too.

You can roast your chicken on a rack, however, I scatter some diced onions and carrots over the bottom of my roasting pan to sit the chicken on, and they add taste to the drippings that are the basis for a light sauce. I take a lot of room temperature butter and smear it all over the bird, and baste the bird every 20 minutes or so.

I put the chicken in a hot oven, 450 degrees, for 15 minutes or so before turning the oven down to 375 degrees to finish it. Cook the chicken to 160-165 degrees recorded in the deep part of the thigh. Allow the bird to rest in the oven with the door ajar for 15 minutes or more before carving to allow its juices to settle, and carry over cooking to take it’s internal temperature up to 170 degrees. During this resting, you can make a light sauce from the renderings in the bottom of the pan.

Roast Chicken

½ Cup good local butter, room temperature
4 lb local free range organic chicken
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lemon
Several sprigs fresh thyme or tarragon or a mixture of both
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
A mixture of ¼ cup each chopped onion, carrot and celery, brunoise

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Wash the bird thoroughly and pat dry. Season the bird liberally with salt and pepper, inside and out. With your hands, smear the butter all over the chicken. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze its juices over and into the chicken. Place the herbs, garlic clove and squeezed lemon halves inside the bird. Truss, if needed.

Brunoise the onion, celery and carrot by cutting into 1/4 “ dice and sautéing in butter for 3-4 minutes. Place chicken on top of the vegetables and place in the preheated oven. Cook for 15 minutes, and then reduce the heat to 375. Baste with the pan juices every 15 to 20 minutes. Cook 40 to 50 minutes more, or until an instant read thermometer reads 160 to 165 degrees when inserted into the deepest area of the thigh, or all juices run clear when deeply pricked with a fork.

Leave chicken in turned off oven with the door ajar for 15 minutes to allow to rest. The chicken should be golden brown with a crisp skin, and the juices in the bottom of the pan will be a nut brown, buttery, lemony mix that when strained and boiled down a little and whisked will make a light sauce to accompany the bird.

Lentils

Winter is upon us and local farm products are limited to stored root vegetables, frozen meats, eggs, cheeses and canned or pickled produce from last summer. This is the season when we turn to beans and other dried legumes for some of our dietary needs, and the variety is pretty broad. I made a chili with Bob’s Red Mill 13 Bean Soup Mix the other day, although it included a number of beans unavailable in New England, it was hardy and delicious.

A legume that is less used in New England than the Jacob Cattle Bean, the soldier bean, the pea bean, the yellow-eye or others that we use in Boston Baked Beans, Maine Baked Beans, or whatever you name your baked beans, is the lentil. Lens culinaris originated in the Near East where it grows with other native grasses like barley. It takes its name from the lens-shaped seeds it produces. As an annual, each plant bears pods that include several seeds, which are rich in vegetable protein. As a legume, its fixes nitrogen in the soil, where bacteria that lives in its roots takes nitrogen directly from the air, making it an important plant that enriches the ground on which it grows, and is ideal for crop rotation.

Lentils, grown primarily in India and throughout Asia, although some of the most famous lentils, like Lentilles Verte du Puy come from the alluvial soils in France, come in two sizes; the larger ones, which have had their husks removed, are light colored or yellow, and the small ones which are brown, pink, grey or green. The most common variety in India is the red or salmon colored lentil, which, when cooked, produces a soft, powdery texture that is popular in pureed dishes and soups. The smaller lentils become tender when cooked, retaining their shape, making them useful in main dishes, salads and casseroles, where they are often pared with pork products like sausages and bacon. Lentils are eaten by mourners at Jewish funerals, along with boiled eggs, as their round shape symbolizes the life cycle from birth to death.

Unlike other dried legumes, lentils do not need to be soaked before cooking, and will be tender in 30 minutes or so of simmering. They readily absorb the flavors of ingredients with which they are cooked or dressed, although their mild, earthy flavor when served alone is appreciated by many.

When cooking, it is desirable to rinse them thoroughly until the water runs clear before simmering. Inspect them carefully as foreign matter like small stones or twigs are sometimes packaged with them. Besides being about 26% protein, lentils, also rich is iron, make a complete protein when paired with other grains like rice. They are rich is animo acids, folic acid, vitamin B1 and minerals, besides supplying dietary fiber. Health Magazine has named lentils as one of the 5 healthiest foods on the planet.

Spinach & Lentil Salad with Bayley Hazen Blue Cheese & Tart Cherry Vinaigrette

yield: Serves 6 as a first course

3/4 cup green lentils
7 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
8 bacon slices (about 6 ounces)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup finely chopped shallot
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup dried unsweetened tart cherries (about 3 ounces)
2 tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 cups baby or regular spinach leaves
1/3 cup blue cheese (about 2 ounces), preferably Bayley Hazen Blue from Jasper Hill Farm in Greensboro, Vermont.

In a heavy saucepan cover lentils with water by 2 inches and simmer until just tender but not falling apart, about 15 minutes. Drain lentils well in a sieve. Rinse lentils under cold running water to stop cooking and drain well. In a bowl toss lentils with 2 tablespoons vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. (Lentils may be made 2 days ahead and chilled, covered. Bring lentils to room temperature before proceeding.)

In a skillet cook bacon over moderate heat until crisp and with tongs transfer to paper towels to drain. Crumble bacon.

In cleaned saucepan heat 2 tablespoons oil over moderate heat until hot but not smoking and cook shallot, stirring, until golden brown. Stir in water, cherries, sugar, and remaining 5 tablespoons vinegar and simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced by about half, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a slow stream until emulsified. Season vinaigrette with salt and pepper.

Add half of vinaigrette to lentils and toss well. In another bowl toss spinach with half of lentil mixture, half of bacon, half of cheese, remaining vinaigrette, and salt and pepper to taste.
Divide remaining lentil mixture among 6 plates and top with spinach mixture. Sprinkle salads with remaining bacon and cheese.

Lard

It’s the New Year, 2009, and while we’re all signing up for gym memberships and contemplating our diet and weight loss goals, I’m thinking about a subject that considered out-of-date, bad for our health, and prohibited by dietary canons in some religions. Yes, folks, I’m thinking about lard, a pork product that, despite its reputation as being an unhealthy fat, has applications in today’s cooking that should not be ignored. If you’ve never used lard in pastry baking, you are missing the boat. It is also used as a spread, a preservative, and a cooking medium as well as a shortener.

Lard is rendered pig fat. The pig has various fat deposits within its carcass. The most prized is the leaf lard, which is located within the body cavity surrounding the kidneys. Also known as flare, this fat, when properly rendered, produces the finest lard as it is both white in color and has very little pork flavor, making it ideal to use in pastry baking as it produces flaky, moist pie crusts. I also use this fat when I make blood sausages as it renders almost completely, leaving very little cracklings.

The fat back is found between the pig’s skin and the flesh along the loin. It is a hard fat producing good quality lard. Fat back is cured in Italy into lardo, which is consumed in small quantities as an appetizer. I purchased a small amount of lardo di Colonnata the last time we were in Tuscany and found it absolutely delicious. Fat back is also the preferred fat for inclusion is sausages, and it is used in France to “lard” meats, where long strips of fat are inserted into a lean roast with a special larding needle, keeping the roast moist inside while cooking. Salt pork is produced from pork bellies, which are also the source for bacon.

Caul fat, the thin membrane of connective tissue with deposits of fat throughout is the peritoneum of the pig, covering the organs of the abdominal cavity. This soft fat, used to wrap little sausages and other items, which, when cooked, virtually disappears, is difficult to find unless you know someone who raises their own pigs.

Commercially produced lard is a combination of the leaf lard and fat back, usually rendered either by the wet rendering method, or the dry rendering method. The best lard is produced by wet rendering, where the fat is exposed to hot water and steam. As the fat is insoluble in water it is skimmed off or separated in a centrifuge. Thereafter it is treated with bleaching and deodorizing agents, hydrogenated (which produces trans fats), and emulsifiers and antioxidants are added to make it shelf stable. Due to all this industrial manipulation and adulteration of supermarket lard, I recommend seeking artisan produced lard from a local farmer, or rendering your own.

Lard, like all fats, is composed of large crystals, which make it difficult to cream, but effective as shortening in pastry baking, which is its primary use in this country. Many chefs use a combination of lard and butter in making pastries to benefit from the flakiness produced by the lard with the taste of butter.

In Europe, wet rendered lard is used for deep-frying, and the real English “fish and chips” is made using lard. It has a relatively high smoke point, making it desirable for this application. Dry rendered lard, with is brown color and more porky in flavor is still used as a spread on bread, where it is sometimes mixed with paprika, as in Spain.

If you do come across some local pig fat, chop it up into smaller pieces and place it in a saucepan with a cup of water. Bring to the boil and cook slowly for the fat to render and the water to boil off. Skim out any cracklings and strain the liquid fat into a container, allow to cool and keep covered in the refrigerator.

One note, lard, by weight, has less saturated fat and less cholesterol than butter, and non-hydrogenated lard, has no trans fat, so while artisan produced lard is better for you than the commercial product, it should be used in moderation, just like everything else.

Pie Crust with Butter & Lard

yield: Makes 2 pie crusts (enough dough for 1 double-crust pie, 1 lattice-topped pie, or 2 single-crust pies)

2 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup chilled lard, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
5 tablespoons (or more) ice water


Blend flour, sugar, and salt in processor. Add butter and lard; using on/off turns, blend until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. Add 5 tablespoons ice water and mix with fork until dough begins to clump together, adding more water by teaspoonfuls if dry. Gather dough together. Divide dough in half; flatten each half into disk. Wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

DO AHEAD Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep refrigerated. If necessary, soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.