Roast Chicken and Frites!

By Karena:

Dave and I are in grilling withdrawal.  Every time we think of a good idea for dinner, we stare longingly at our cold, sheathed grill on the balcony, banished by the Apartment-Complex Gods for being a fire hazard.  On April 1st the ban will be no more as we move to our new East Bay alcove of an apartment, complete with a place to grill and eat outside just in time for Spring and Summer. Until then, we've turned to roasting, and this recipe adapted from Thomas Keller's Poulet Roti is no disappointment.  Quick to make and pairs well with so much.  We fried our own hand-cut frites, made a simple arugula and radish salad, finished a bottle of Beaujolais between us, and truly enjoyed one of our last evenings in our soon to be vacated apartment.

 

Roast Chicken:

• 1 2-3 lb farm-raised chicken
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 t of minced thyme
• 2 t of minced rosemary
• Unsalted butter
• Dijon mustard (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F
2. Rinse the chicken, then dry it very well with paper towels, inside and out
3. Salt and Pepper the cavity, then truss the bird
4. Salt the chicken.
5. Place the chicken in a saute pan (we did this and it worked great!) or roasting pan and place in the oven.
6. Roast until its done (50-60 min), then take it out and add the thyme and rosemary to the drippings in the pan.  Baste the chicken with the juices and herbs and let it rest for 15 minutes on a cutting board.
7. Slather with butter and carve and serve with Dijon mustard (optional)

Home-made Frites: (or chips - adapted from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's "The River Cottage Meat Book"

• 2 large, floury potatoes, such as Russet (serves 2-4)
• A quart of vegetable oil or peanut oil for frying
• Sea salt
• Old Bay

1. Cut the potatoes into fairly thin frites and put in a large bowl of cold water and swish them around to remove some of the starch
2. Drain well on a kitchen towel
3. Heat plenty of oil to 285 degrees F in a deep-fat fryer or deep saucepan (We used our large Le Creuset pot)
4. Put a batch of the frites into the basket or oil and fry for about 5 minutes, until they are soft and flabby, but not colored.  (This takes some practice, some of ours colored too quickly and tasted burnt)
5. Drain on paper towels and do the same with the other batches. (All of the above steps can be completed several hours ahead of time)
6. Just before you want to serve the frites, heat the oil to 375 degrees F and fry the frites in batches again, until crisp and brown (Only about 2 minutes)
7. Drain on paper towels, and sprinkle with sea salt and Old Bay, if desired

We served with homemade Aioli (third time's the charm!) and they were delicious!

Comments

[Susan]

It is said that the test of a good cook is the ability to roast a chicken properly. You passed with flying colors. Looks scrumptious. Looking forward to posts from your new digs.