Ingredients
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1½ teaspoons Salt
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⅛ teaspoon Vegetable Oil
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1 teaspoon Baking Powder
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½ teaspoon Black Pepper
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1 (3½-to 4-pound) whole Chicken
Directions
A well-seasoned, juicy roast chicken with crispy, flavorful skin is as good as it gets, but for all its simplicity, really good roast chicken is tough to get right. Brining can help guarantee moist and flavorful meat, but it’s usually at the expense of crispy skin. To overcome this challenge, we turned to a combination of salt and baking powder. A salt rub makes meat juicy in a process similar to brining, but unlike brining, it doesn’t prevent the skin from crisping. And the lengthy rest that salting requires made it the perfect method for make-ahead roast chicken. Adding baking powder to the rub not only sped up the dehydration process that salting encourages (which is the cornerstone of crispy skin), it also accelerated browning during roasting, making for even crisper, more flavorful skin. Separating the skin from the meat and poking the fat deposits with a skewer allowed the rendered fat to flow freely from the roasting chicken and prevented the skin from becoming soggy. In search of the best roasting method, we found that placing the chicken breast side up in a preheated skillet gave the thighs a jump start on cooking, and turning the oven off while the chicken finished cooking slowed the evaporation of juices, ensuring moist, tender meat.
Steps
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1
Done
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Combine salt and oil in small bowl and stir until salt is evenly coated with oil. Stir in baking powder and pepper until thoroughly combined. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Using your fingers, gently loosen skin covering breast and thighs. Using metal skewer or tip of paring knife, poke 15 to 20 holes in fat deposits on top of breasts and thighs. |
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2
Done
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Rub salt–baking powder mixture evenly over surface of chicken. Tie legs together with twine and tuck wingtips behind back. Set chicken breast side up on wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet. Refrigerate chicken, uncovered, for at least 12 hours. |
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3
Done
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Adjust oven rack to middle position, place 12-inch skillet on rack, and heat oven to 450 degrees. Carefully transfer chicken breast side up to preheated skillet in oven (skillet handle will be hot). Roast chicken until breasts register 120 degrees and thighs register 135 degrees, 25 to 35 minutes. Turn off oven and leave chicken in oven until breasts register 160 degrees and thighs register 175 degrees, 25 to 35 minutes. |
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4
Done
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Transfer chicken to carving board and let rest, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Carve chicken and serve. |
