Roast Chicken w/ Sage Butter & Garlic



I make a roast chicken most Friday nights for dinner (just call me Ina!).
I love to have leftovers for Saturday's lunch, and I make the same tried and true recipe for years.

This recipe from Olives and Oranges cookbook was one of Saveur Magazine's favorite ways to roast a bird.

You make a sage and garlic butter and rub it underneath the skin of the bird.
I usually use olive oil and stuff the bird with herbs, but this method was delicious!

I always buy a kosher chicken, which I have found to be so much tastier than a regular chicken. I think they are saltier too. The bed of roasted carrots and onions didn't hurt either. Loved it all.



The only thing I changed was the cooking temperature.
The authors want you to roast the bird at 475F then turn the oven down to 400F.
I kept my oven at an even 425F, and the bird came out perfect.

Roast Chicken w/ Sage Butter & Garlic (adapted from Saveur):

4-lb. chicken
zest of a lemon (save the lemon for the inside of the chicken)
20 fresh sage leaves
3 cloves garlic
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper, to taste
8 sprigs parsley
olive oil
2 small onions quartered
2 carrots, cut into 2" pieces

Make the butter:

Rinse chicken under cold water; pat dry with paper towels. Add the lemon zest, sage, and garlic together; place in a bowl. Add butter and 1 tsp. salt. Stir to combine. Quarter the peeled lemon; set aside.

Using your fingers or a small, sharp knife, loosen skin of chicken from breasts and thighs. (Make sure your chicken skin has been blotted and dried w/ paper towels or the butter will slip off the skin).



Slip butter mixture between skin and flesh, spreading it evenly. Rub skin with olive oil; season skin with kosher salt and pepper to taste. Stuff with quartered lemon, parsley, and 1 quartered onion. Tie legs together with kitchen twine, if you like.

Put remaining quartered onion and carrots into center of roasting pan and place chicken on top of them.




Roast chicken about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165°.
Transfer chicken to a platter; let rest for 10 minutes before carving.



Enjoy!

Comments

Well Ina (smile), what did Jeffrey think of dinner?

Great looking bird Stacey and I love the carrots and sage. I think lemon makes a big difference too. I wish I could find Kosher chickens in our supermarket. One of the downsides of living in a small town in the country.
Sam
The JR said…
That is one seriously good looking chicken!
So simple, and a thing of beauty! I'll take a slice right now!
Dewi said…
Roast to perfection. Love the sage and butter combo.

You are right about kosher chicken tastes better.
Looks beautiful! I need to roast more chicken.
Anonymous said…
HUBBA HUBBA!
Kathy Walker said…
Roast chicken is comfort food at its best to me! Ahhhh....contentment!
kat said…
Oh man do I love a roast chicken & that one sounds fantastic!
Karen said…
That chick is done to perfection - just look at that skin! I love roasted chickens, too and love to make a chicken-pasta salad with leftovers.
Ann Steinbach said…
That chicken looks beautiful. I'm inspired to make that for Sunday dinner.
Niki said…
I just brought a chicken tonight at Shoprite, i am so gonna make this for Sunday dinner :)
Oooh, I want to rip that skin right off girl!
I am not a huge roast chicken fan, but you've captured me with this one! Can't wait to try it out for sunday dinner!
Lisa Faley said…
Could someone explain to me exactly what a kosher chicken is? I understand the Jewish only eat Kosher meat and it can't touch certain things, etc... but how does this effect the way the chickens are raised? I can't seem to find any information on this.
thanks!!
Lisa
Again, a beautiful recipe Stacey
Jen_from_NJ said…
I really like Empire ground turkey - I think that it is saltier! I will need to try the chicken - it looks amazing!
stacey snacks said…
Lisa,

Here is some information on what makes a chicken "kosher".
It has to do w/ cleaner chickens and a more humane way of slaughtering, as well as some other aspects....read on.
http://www.alljewishlinks.com/kosher-chicken-what-makes-a-chicken-kosher-or-not/
Sharon said…
Yum, just made roasted chicken last night!! I agree about the Empire chicken, so good, I actually get a Empire Turkey for Thanksgiving too, it makes a much juicer turkey!!
Oui, Chef said…
I'm with you in roasting a bird every week, though with 7 mouths to feed, I roast them 2 at a time! Love your herb-butter twist on a classic, and will definitely give it a whirl on my next batch of birds. - S
Lyss said…
I am making this tonight! I didn't have parsley but did have basil that needed to be used. I'm hoping that works! Yum.