April 11, 2010

Why did the chicken cross the road?




Oh to be 5 again!  *S* is in the silly joke stage.  You know the stage; made up jokes that put kids into to a fit of giggles while parents stand there and *blink* or *stare*.  

S: Why did the chicken cross the car?
Mama: I don't know, why did the chicken cross the car?
S: APRIL FOOLS!!
S: *fits of giggles*

Why did the chicken cross the road?  So I could learn how to roast it. 

That's all I got. 

Forget Boston Market or the 5 buck cluck, this is ridiculously easy. Buy a chicken - preferably free-range - rub olive oil all over it, sprinkle salt and pepper and thyme inside and out. Stuff with a lemon, and fresh veggies. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour, hour and fifteen minutes. But really, invest in meat thermometer if you don't already have one. Stick it in the side and cook until it gets to 160 degrees.

And when I say invest in a meat thermometer, I mean fork 3 bucks for one.  Nothing fancy.

I love roast chicken with roast veggies. And I love the leftovers. And I love making chicken soup or broth with the remaining carcass. All those lovely little bits of meat just fall right off the bone. Why waste anything?

Here is my tip on chicken broth - If you have one of those big stock pots with the pasta insert, use that for the carcass, that way you don't have to try to precariously strain the broth/chicken mix over the sink or burn your fingers trying to fish out all the bones.  

Alas. I have done both. Burnt fingers and spilled broth is just no fun.

Oh, and on the giblets and such, freeze the giblets in a bag until you have 3 sets, then make some chicken stock with the stored giblets. 

3 comments:

Delane said...

I love roasted chicken. Or Beer Can Chicken on the grill...YUM!

Christy Z. said...

Ah yes, when the open end of a chicken meets the business end of a beer can (as the hungover gourmet calls it). Can wait to try my first evah!

MissJean said...

That is my new favorite joke! I can't help it, the misunderstood stand-up stylings of 5 year olds crack me up!