Split Roast Chicken

 This recipe is one of my favorites. It is an incredible way to roast a chicken for a Sunday dinner. Best of all the meat, veg and potatos are all done with one pan so there is minimal clean up.

I found this recipe reading through a back issue of Cook's Illustrated while I was looking for a new way to make vegetables. Boiled veggies are good but you lose a lot of flavour to the water. If you are using the water for gravy or stock then you can save it but otherwise the flavour is gone. Roast vegetables keep all the flavour and get some extra sweetness from the roasting and caramelization as they cook. This recipe has the added bonus that the chicken bastes the vegetables as they cook so you get a hint of the chicken flavour in the vegetables.

The meat comes out moist with really crispy skin. I made a couple of changes to the recipe reducing the amount of butter and vegetable oil. You don't need as much as they suggested because the chicken gives off a lot of its fat and if you use the full amount of butter then the vegetables are drowned in fat. I also usually add some other veggies to the pan. In the past I have added broccoli, parsnips, pearl onions, and whole garlic cloves in their skins. I always add the whole garlic cloves. As they cook they get really sweet and the result is incredible. The harsh taste is gone and you can eat them whole and it tastes like garlic candy. (I know it sounds weird but give it a try.)

The recipe quickly entered my top recipes and we have made it pretty much every month since I found the recipe. Once the summer comes around likely we are going to go to my beer can chicken on the BBQ, (see future post) because running a 475 degree oven for the better part of an hour is insane when it is 32C out with 100% humidity and blasting the AC.

Courtesy Cook's Illustrated February March 2012:

Pan Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables

Adjust oven Rack to the upper middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees.

6 garlic cloves peeled and minced

2 teaspoons fresh thyme

1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I use 1 1/2 teaspoon)

2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon sugar

3/4 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon of pepper

3/4 pound of Brussels sprouts trimmed and halved

3/4 pound of red potatoes cut into 1-inch pieces (I use the mixed mini potatoes)

1/2 pound shallots peeled and halved

4 carrots peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces, thick ends halved lenghtwise

My Additions

8 cloves of whole garlic in their skins

1 parsnip peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces, thick ends halved or quartered lengthwise

2 onions peeled and quartered leaving the root to keep the quarters together.

Toss the veggies with oil and herbs in a bowl to cover them in the oil and spice.

1 full chicken

Split the chicken into its parts, 2 legs, 2 thighs, and split the breasts in half width wise leaving the skin and bones on. It should give you 8 pieces in total. The skin and bones are important to keep the moisture in because the oven is going to run really hot and unprotected meat will dry out very quickly. If you want to reduce the fat pull the skin off after cooking.

Spread vegetables over a large rimmed baking sheet. I use a thick aluminum baking sheet but non stick will work. (Best to use metal because cheap glass and expensive stoneware will break because the bottom of the pan isn't evenly covered.) Place the meat on top of the vegetables making sure the Brussels sprouts or any other soft vegetables are under the meat and in the middle. The Brussels sprouts or onions will cook faster so they need the protection of the meat. Also they get basted by the fat of the chicken making them delicious.

2 tablespoons melted butter (I use just 1 tablespoon)

2 teaspoons Thyme

1 teaspoon rosemary

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Combine the five ingredients in a bowl and using a basting brush spread over the skin of the chicken.

Place in the oven and roast until the drumsticks or thighs reach 175 degrees and the breast reach 160 degrees, usually about 35-40 minutes turning the pan halfway through cooking.

Remove chicken from the pan and loosely tent for 5 to 10 minutes.