THE BEST Roast Chicken You Will EVER Have. Scouts Honour.
We used the Organic Chickens from COSTCO (come in a 2-pack for $25) and buttered them up with bacon and spices....It was the juiciest, most flavourful chicken you will EVER have - a total crowd pleaser! This recipe can also be used for Turkey!
Ingredients:
2 chickens (Organic chickens from Costco)
1 cup of Poultry Brine* (we use The Healthy Butcher's) - or 1 cup of kosher salt*
Water
Large Bag or Bucket
Ingredients for Rub:
2/3 Cup Salted Butter - melted or very soft
1 tsp dried sage
1 tsp dried thyme
Onion (halved)
12 cloves of fresh garlic
Handful of fresh herbs (we used fresh thyme, parsley, sage)
Kosher salt (to taste)
Fresh ground pepper)
Slices of good quality bacon (optional)
Directions:
Brine the chickens for 24-35 hours by placing them in an XXXL plastic brine bag (just a huge clear thick plastic bag) or bucket with enough water to cover the chickens and 1 cup of poultry brine or salt. Tie the bag
* Note if you are only making 1 3lb chicken then use half the amount of brine or salt
Once brined, thoroughly rinse chicken in cold water and place in the roasting pan.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mixed dried sage and thyme in with butter and thoroughly rub every single part of your chicken down, including the inside of the cavity, and even try and get your hands on under parts of the skin.... cover this chicken in BUTTER!! If you need to melt more butter, go for it, it will only make it more tasty. Then rub your chicken and cavity with your desired amount of kosher salt and pepper
Put 6 cloves of smashed garlic in each chickens cavity along with 1 half of an onion and the handful of fresh herbs.
If using bacon, weave it over chicken as pictured. NOTE: We noticed that the chicken covered in bacon needed approx 35 mins longer in the oven.
Put chickens in a roasting pan UNCOVERED for 1 hr - 1 hr + 15 mins. Skin will look nice and crispy. Remove from oven and tent with foil for 15 minutes before serving.
*** We cooked both chickens at the same time with this method. The chicken with NO bacon was PERFECT. The chicken covered in bacon needed about 30 minutes more in the oven ***
