primitives discuss roasting chicken

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=236x76814

Oh my.

Duer 157099  Donating Member  (1000+ posts)  Sun Apr-18-10 12:38 AM
Original message

I have two chickens I want to roast tomorrow
   
And I've never been thoroughly satisfied when I do it at home, compared to, say, the rotisserie chickens at Costco.

I want something that's just awesome.

Warpy  Donating Member  (1000+ posts)  Sun Apr-18-10 01:29 AM
THE DEFROCKED WARPED PRIMITIVE, #09 TOP PRIMITIVE OF 2009
Response to Original message

1. Massage their skins with butter
   
then season them with salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, onion powder, and anything else you think will taste good. Stuff half an onion and a stalk of celery into the cavity. Tuck the wings underneath and wrap the whole thing in cheesecloth. Roast on a rack according to weight.

I've always had good success with this method and it's the easiest way I know of to get juicy, flavorful chicken with crisp skin. The cheesecloth comes right off when the bird is done. Do remember to rest the chicken for at least 10 minutes while you make the gravy out of the pan drippings.

The other way is to season the butter, itself, and put it under the breast skin, but I find this fussy and unnecessary.

marybourg  Donating Member  (787 posts) Apr-18-10 02:06 AM
Response to Reply #1

3. If you don't have cheese cloth, try cutting up a brown paper bag, butter one side, and cover chicken with buttered brown paper.

MajorChode  Donating Member  (1000+ posts)  Sun Apr-18-10 01:41 AM
Response to Original message

2. Here is the challenge to roasting fowl
   
A chicken has white meat and dark meat and they don't cook at the same rate nor are they done at the same temperature. If you roast a chicken to the point at which the white meat is just done and still moist, the dark meat will be undercooked. If you cook the chicken to the point at which the dark meat is done, the white meat will be overcooked and dry.

There's all sorts of methods you can use to overcome this problem. What Costco does is they brine their chicken before cooking it on the rotisserie. Brining allows you to saturate the chicken with liquid and seasonings which makes it more moist and flavorful. That moist cooking method also provides a bit of a buffer between doneness and dryness. So you can cook the chicken until the dark meat is done without drying out the white meat. If you google chicken+brine you'll get all sorts of instructions on how to brine a chicken. Just keep it simple at first. Water and salt are the two main ingredients. Everything else just adds dimension to your brine.

If you don't have a rotisserie at home, you can just roast the chicken in a roasting pan at home and it will be fine. Be careful not to overcook because even a brined chicken can dry out if overcooked. Cook to an internal temp of 165 degrees and let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes before serving. If you don't have a good meat thermometer, check for doneness by pulling one of the drumsticks out and check to see if the juices run clear.

If you want to get a little fancier, you can brine and then butterfly the chicken, then broil it in your oven. The butterfly and broiling method is described pretty well by Alton Brown, but it's hard to envision how to do it unless you've seen it done.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/broiled-...

grasswire  Donating Member  (1000+ posts) Apr-18-10 02:17 AM
THE FARMERETTE FROM UP OVER THERE IN WISCONSIN
Response to Original message

4. the rotisserie chickens are brined
   
So you could do that if you have time and want to do so.

Otherwise...

My guests have always raved over this method: Loosen the breast skin with a finger and underneath it tuck fresh herb leaves (basil is delish, rosemary also, sage too -- whatever you have) and ultra thin slices of lemon, and butter. You can also put slivers of garlic in there. Then pat your chicken dry and very liberally salt with kosher salt. Then squeeze fresh lemon juice drizzling over the top. Roast in a hot oven (I use 400 degrees) till the drumstick rotates loosely when grasped.

The aroma and flavor will be outstanding, the skin will be crisp and delicious.

You know, I'm greatly concerned.

I was away from Skins's island for some days, and supposed that by the time I got back, Mrs. Alfred Packer would be hanging around the cooking and baking forum, but alas no sign she's been there.

I wonder if Mrs. Alfred Packer had another food-fight with another primitive, and so went away in a huff.

It's bad, because I need fresh material for my new upcoming sex novel, "The Men In Mrs. Alfred Packer's Life."

[NHSparky]

Obviously, these idiots have never heard of beer can chicken?



Falls off the friggin bone.

[AprilRazz]

What ever happened to trussing it, throwing on some herbs and sticking it in the oven?

[NHSparky]

What ever happened to trussing it, throwing on some herbs and sticking it in the oven?

As you can see above, that's pretty much what I did.  But no need to truss it, and certainly no need to brine the damn thing.  You're making chicken, not jerky.

[GOBUCKS]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=236x76814

Oh my.

You know, I'm greatly concerned.

I was away from Skins's island for some days, and supposed that by the time I got back, Mrs. Alfred Packer would be hanging around the cooking and baking forum, but alas no sign she's been there.

I wonder if Mrs. Alfred Packer had another food-fight with another primitive, and so went away in a huff.

It's bad, because I need fresh material for my new upcoming sex novel, "The Men In Mrs. Alfred Packer's Life."

She showed up in the DUmp Lounge a couple of days ago, complete with photos of the critter Wild Bill brought home for his Sunday dinner. As a bonus, there's a photo that includes a chunk of Wild Bill himself, the first time I recall seeing even a sliver of the cannibal.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x9334732

[crockspot]

Salt... tons of salt. That's why the cooked ones from the store taste so "good".

[kenth]

Warpy  Donating Member  (1000+ posts)  Sun Apr-18-10 01:29 AM
THE DEFROCKED WARPED PRIMITIVE, #09 TOP PRIMITIVE OF 2009
Response to Original message

1. Massage their skins with butter
   
then season them with salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, onion powder, and anything else you think will taste good. Stuff half an onion and a stalk of celery into the cavity. Tuck the wings underneath and wrap the whole thing in cheesecloth. Roast on a rack according to weight.

I've always had good success with this method and it's the easiest way I know of to get juicy, flavorful chicken with crisp skin. The cheesecloth comes right off when the bird is done. Do remember to rest the chicken for at least 10 minutes while you make the gravy out of the pan drippings.

The other way is to season the butter, itself, and put it under the breast skin, but I find this fussy and unnecessary.

All that and some butter seems fussy? I find warpy to be fussy and unnecessary. Yeah, chicken is easy. Just season and throw it in the oven. Enough time and it falls away tender. Dummies can't handle cooking a chicken, but want to rule the world.

[DefiantSix]

As you can see above, that's pretty much what I did.  But no need to truss it, and certainly no need to brine the damn thing.  You're making chicken, not jerky.

This is the DUmbasses we're talking about though.  All they know is jerky.

[BlueStateSaint]

Obviously, these idiots have never heard of beer can chicken?



Falls off the friggin bone.

C'mon, Sparky, they'd just drink the beer, and have to fill the can with bong water or something like that.

[The Village Idiot]

That thing didn't look cooked to me.

[PatriotGame]

Good God FORBID we should ever patronize a time honored symbol of American ingenuity and hard work, evil corporation that employs hundreds of thousands world wide:

I have made every kind of chicken - boiled, broiled, beer can, paper bag, slow smoked, grilled, even browned then slow cooked in a crock pot and my guests ALWAYS loved them.
However, the simplicity of picking up a bucket and sides was always attractive AND, my guests and family were ALWAYS over joyed at eating The Colonel's for dinner.

[The Village Idiot]

I like the cole slaw

[Chris]

I tried KFC's boneless chicken breast the other day.  It was awesome and it's only five bucks for a drink, two sides, and some of the Colonel's finest.

[GOBUCKS]

No one, including anyone's grandmother, can make chicken as good as original recipe Kentucky Fried Chicken. Ten secret herbs and spices would have been too few, and twelve would have been too many. Eleven is perfect.

[The Village Idiot]

No one, including anyone's grandmother, can make chicken as good as original recipe Kentucky Fried Chicken. Ten secret herbs and spices would have been too few, and twelve would have been too many. Eleven is perfect.

do they still pressure cook it?

[NHSparky]

That thing didn't look cooked to me.

3-4 hours at 300 degrees on a grill.  Yeah, it's cooked alright.  Internal temperature of 165-170F, and let it rest for 15 minutes covered in foil, then slice, or just pull it off the bones.

[NHSparky]

No one, including anyone's grandmother, can make chicken as good as original recipe Kentucky Fried Chicken. Ten secret herbs and spices would have been too few, and twelve would have been too many. Eleven is perfect.

And it costs 3X as much as doing it yourself.  I liked the Double Down, but it's not something I'll do very often.  The KFC we have here ain't the greatest.

[Karin]

Gobucks, that was one funny sick joke you quipped on Page 1. 

That MajorChode DUmmie brines everything.  That's his only advice.  I suppose he brines pancakes, apple pie, mashed potatoes, and the kitchen sink.  It all ends up tasting like corned beef.  Which is fine in its place, but come on.  Branch out a little.   

We had KFC for Saturday dinner, and I'm having leftovers of it for todays lunch.   

[The Village Idiot]

3-4 hours at 300 degrees on a grill.  Yeah, it's cooked alright.  Internal temperature of 165-170F, and let it rest for 15 minutes covered in foil, then slice, or just pull it off the bones.

That sounds great.

I like KFC but once in a while, at certain franchises, you'll get uncooked chicken, blech