Thomas Keller's Poulet Rôti
Yield
2-4
This delectable Chef Thomas Keller roast chicken recipe is excerpted from his Bouchon cookbook (Artisan Books). Copyright ©2004. He notes that the preparation is not meant to be super elegant. “You’ll start by using a knife and fork, but you’ll finish with your fingers because it’s so good.”
“I like to take off the backbone and eat one of the oysters—the two succulent morsels of meat embedded here, and give the other to the person I’m cooking with. But I take the chicken butt for myself. I could never understand why my brothers always fought over that triangular tip—until one day, I got the crispy, juicy fat myself. These are the cook’s rewards.”
– Chef Thomas Keller
Ingredients
INGREDIENTS
One 2-3 pound farm-raised chicken
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp minced thyme (optional)
Unsalted butter
Preparation Method
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Rinse the chicken and dry it very well with paper towels, inside and out. The less it steams, the drier the heat, and the better.
- Salt and pepper the cavity, then truss the bird. To truss a bird, be sure the wings and legs stay close to the body, and the ends of the drumsticks cover the top of the breast and keep it from drying out. Trussing helps the chicken cook evenly, making for a more beautiful roasted bird.
- Salt the chicken—rain the salt over the bird so that it has a nice uniform coating that will result in a crisp, salty, flavorful skin (about one tablespoon). When it’s cooked, you should still be able to make out the salt baked onto the crisp skin.
- Season to taste with pepper.
- Place the chicken in a sauté pan or roasting pan, and when the oven is up to temperature, put the chicken in the oven. Leave undisturbed, don’t baste or add butter as this creates steam.
- Roast until done, 50 to 60 minutes.
- Remove it from the oven and add the thyme, if using, to the pan. Baste the chicken with the juices and thyme and let it rest for 15 minutes on a cutting board.
- Remove the twine. Separate the middle wing joint (eat immediately if you like!) and remove the legs and thighs.
- Cut the breast down the middle and serve it on the bone, with one wing joint still attached to each.
- Slather the chicken meat with fresh butter.
- Serve with mustard on the side and, if you wish, a simple green salad.
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