Herb Roasted Chicken with Lemon

I have always been a bit intimidated by roasting a full chicken. However, armed with the poultry shears I got for Christmas, I decided to follow in my mother’s footsteps and make an awesome roast chicken. I purchased my chicken from Costco and I used a fryer. It only cost about $5, which is pretty inexpensive. The best part of making a chicken at home is that you save the bones and and leftover chicken to make chicken soup. You can turn one $5 chicken into 6-10 meals. 

Ingredients

(1) 3-4 pound chicken

(4) springs of rosemary, chopped

(12) sage leaves, chopped

(3) garlic cloves, minced

(1) Tbs of kosher salt

(1/2) tsp ground pepper

(1) Tbs of EVOO

(1) lemon, cut in half

(1) cup chicken broth

(1/2) cup dry white wine

1)      Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Pat the chicken dry, and with poultry shears, cut out the backbone of the chicken. This will help the bird cook more evenly and will also make carving easier. You can find the backbone by locating the tailbone, and then cutting along either side of it and then ripping the backbone out. Once the backbone is out, press down on the breastbone, flattening the bird into a roasting pan or casserole dish.

2)      Mix the rosemary, sage, garlic, sea salt and pepper in a small bowl. Separate the chicken skin, and stuff the herb mixture under the skin as evenly as possible. If you can, try to get the mixture in the drumsticks and wings too. If there is any of the herb mixture left over, you can spread it on top of the skin.

3)      Sprinkle a small amount of salt and pepper over the chicken, and drizzle the EVOO over the chicken, spreading it evenly. Then take a lemon half and squirt it over the chicken as evenly as possible. 

4)      Turn the chicken over, squeeze the other lemon half on the underside of the bird and then leave both lemon halves under the bird, turning the chicken, breast side up. Pour the chicken broth and wine in the casserole dish. The wine and broth will ensure the chicken stay moist.

5)      Place the chicken in the oven, turn the temperature down to 400 degrees (you start with a high temperature to make the skin crispy, but cooking at this temp for too long will make the chicken cook too fast, drying it out). Roast for 80 minutes or until a meat thermometer stuck in the thigh reads 180 degrees.