The Juiciest Oven Roasted Chicken Ever!

Roasted Chicken is a favorite for this family of 6. I like to roast 2 birds at a time so I can have enough cooked chicken for 2 meals AND make a big batch of homemade chicken stock, which I value like gold! Stay tuned for a separate post on how to make
the most wonderful chicken stock.

I'd love to be able to tell you that I purchase free-range or kosher birds, but in my small town, there is no such thing so I have to rely on what's available at the grocery store or wholesale price club (Hey Costco, if you're reading this... I love you). Okay, so I purchased 2 birds from Costco, a total of 11 pounds, for only $9.58 (.87 lb). Compare that to the price of the wonderful rotisserie chickens they sell; 2 birds, a total of 6 pounds, for $10 (1.68 lb) - oh don't get me wrong, those tasty little rotisserie birds are too good to pass up when I'm pressed for time, but today I'll roast my own.

Okay, first let me say that I grew up eating roasted chicken... we had it all the time and I loved it. Didn't think it could get any better... that is, until I discovered the wonderful world of brining. If you've never brined before, you MUST MUST MUST give it a try. I promise you will not be disappointed! Brining adds soooooo much moisture and flavor. You'll truly be amazed!

Here's how I brined my two 5.5 pound chickens. I do everything in a huge 16qt stockpot, but you can use a 5 gallon bucket, a large plastic storage container, a cooler... basically whatever you have that will hold 2 gallons of brine and 2 chickens. By the way, this stockpot is one of those cheap-o flimsy ones that is so light weight and thin that anything you try to cook in it burns instantly (even boiled pasta - seriously). Not good for cooking, but great for boiling water or brining.

Recipe can easily be halved, but here's what you'll
need to make two chickens like I do:

2 gallons water (divided)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup kosher salt (I use Morton's)
(or 1/4 cup non-iodized table salt)
2 teaspoons of ground black pepper

Start by bringing 1 quart of water to a boil (4 cups). Add salt and sugar; stir to dissolve; cool. Add enough cold water to equal 2 gallons (that's an additional 28 cups - yikes). Be sure your finished brine is COLD. Stir in the black pepper (my arms would fall off if I tried to grind all that pepper by hand, so I either grind peppercorns in a coffee mill that I reserve for spices, or I use a good quality pre-ground pepper from Costco); stir. Remove giblets/neck from the chickens (good for stock), and submerge them in the brine - get that brine inside too! Cover the stockpot and refrigerate for 8-12 hours (I've even forgotten about them for 24 hours and they still turned out fine). If you're brining in a cooler, keep brine temp below 40F using ice packs.

After the chickens are done lounging in their luxurious salt bath, remove them from the brine and pat them dry. I don't rinse, but you could if you wanted to. Discard the used brine. Let the birds sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes, but you can skip this step if you're in a hurry. Pat birds dry again, and rub each with 1-2 tablespoons of softened butter. Yuck Warning - if the chickens aren't completely dry, the butter will stick to you instead of them!

Sprinkle liberally with ground black pepper, but DO NOT sprinkle with salt at this point. Remember, these guys were swimming in the dead sea for like 12 hours.

Oops, I forgot to tell you that I stuffed each chicken with half of a large onion and
some whole garlic cloves into my brined birds. I added some cut potatoes to the roasting pan.
Click here for super crunchy oven roasted potatoes

I like to tie the legs together for a nicer finished presentation. Believe me, they turn out much better looking this way, but you don't have to.

These babies are going to exude a lot of juice, so be sure to use a deep sided roasting pan. Roast the birds at 350F for about 20 minutes per pound (5.5 pounds x 20 minutes = 1 hour and 50 minutes), or until the internal temperature taken in the thickest part of the thigh registers 165F. Remove the chickens from the oven and let them rest for 10-15 minutes before carving. Oops, you can see that I set the alarm on my roasting thermometer to go off at the wrong temp, but I'm not worried... I know these guys are still going to be super juicy and tender.

Mmmm - you are going to LOVE LOVE LOVE this chicken. Your family is going to Love Love Love this chicken... and your mother-in-law is going to hate hate hate you and be so jealous (err, uhh, just kidding... Hi Carol! Thank you for all the great kitchen toys you've given me over the years... your son sends his love... so do your grandkids... me too... ).

Can you see the puddle of juice this chicken breast is oozing? Yes, its even juicier than a rotisserie chicken... sooooo succulent. Be prepared to hear even your pickiest eater grunt and groan with sounds of praise while devouring it.
You're going to thank me - Enjoy!

:)

Happy-Happy. I found whole chickens on sale for .69 per pound... even cheaper than Costco - Yippie!