Best Chicken

Another guest post by my sis Paula.  She's a fabulous cook

The Best Roasted Chicken

We eat lots of chicken it is so versatile and goes a long way; this roasted chicken recipe is great even for a fancy dinner.

The seasoning and vegetables can be changed to suit your family.

Sorry about no photo but I cooked this for a company dinner and we got so excited we didn’t remember to take a pic. Until it was a messy plate of bones, but trust me it was golden brown moist and juice and nice and hot.

Set oven to 425.

Wash your bird (4 to 6 lbs.) inside and out being careful not to splatter yucky chicken water all over.

Salt and pepper inside,

 Stuff the bird with

 1 lemon cut in ¼

 1 onion cut in ¼

  Fresh herbs I like parsley and thyme a small handful will do.

Prepare your pan with 3 or 4 ribs of celery lay in the center of the pan for the bird to sit on, place the bird on top.

Next pour 2 tbs. melted butter or olive oil over the top of the bird and salt and pepper generously

You can stop at this point or you can add vegetables I like to add

1 large onion cut in 1/8

2 or 3 lemons cut in ¼

2 or 3 stalks of celery cut in 3” pieces

3 or 4 carrots cut in 3” pieces

6 or so small potatoes Peeled or UN peeled whatever your family likes

Place the vegetables around the bird

Place the pan in the oven and bake uncovered for 1hour and 25 minutes

Remove from oven and let sit 15 to 20 minutes

Carve the bird and plate with the vegetables all around  squeeze the lemons over the chicken to add extra flavor.

  I have made this chicken with a distinct Italian flavor using Dry Italian salad dressing mix in place of the salt and pepper inside and out, and adding fennel  and roma tomatoes with the other vegetables, skip the potatoes and make a simple pasta side dish.

If you have any leftovers keep them we will need them for upcoming recipes