What’s easier than roasted chicken?
Roasted chicken and steamed asparagus go well on a January night.
What could be simpler than roasting a chicken?
After the chicken enchiladas the other night, I needed to get something on Small Plates that was a little more complex. My taste buds aren’t fully up and running from the flu, but I thought I’d roast a chicken — so many variations and so easy.
I chose a free-range chicken from New Seasons. I coated it in olive oil and sprinkled on the special olive salt my friends brought back from Ashland last summer.
My friends stopped in an Ashland foodie shop and brought back these special salts last summer when I couldn’t join them for the annual OSF trip.
(I missed my usual trip to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and they tried to make me feel better by bringing me gourmet salt, which was good, but no substitute for the plays, the shopping, the eating and the drinking. But then, my nephew doesn’t get married every day, and he wasn’t obliged to consult me before choosing the date. And the wedding was spectacular.)
So I had a good roasting chicken, special olive salt, olive oil and a couple of lemons to rub onto the skin of said chicken. That’s it. Put the bird in a roasting pan and let it bake for about an hour. I started it breast-side down, contrary to popular opinion. After 10 minutes at 400, I flipped it to its back-side and turned down the heat to 350. I cooked it about 45 more minutes. The result was a golden chicken, just perfect for a couple of meals. It was moist and flavorful. We’ll have sandwich meat, and I might even get the Intrepid One to make chicken and dumplings. (See my Small Plates post of Sept. 27, “Chicken and dumplings kick off fall.”)
We mashed Yukon gold potatoes and steamed some asparagus. For dessert? Strawberries. Not a bad meal for a weekday January night.
Dinner is served.
Janet Cleaveland
What happens when a retired journalist spends a lot more time in the kitchen than in past years? She tries new dishes and jumps at the chance to write a blog about food, family and good times. My kids are grown now, but I'll be looking back at how they learned to cook, what recipes my husband (the Intrepid One) and I are experimenting with, and how food and conversation make for happy times in the kitchen. I worked for The Columbian for 15 years as a copy editor and another 10 elsewhere, though I didn't start out as a journalist. I thought I wanted to teach English literature. My husband grew up in Clark County, and I've lived here since 1983. My kids have grown and left home. Like my husband of 52 years, our adopted chocolate Lab would never pass up a chance for a tasty meal.