Cindy S Roasted Chicken Recipes

PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pin feathers and pat the outside dry. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the bunch of thyme, both halves of lemon, and all the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Place the onions, carrots, and fennel in a roasting pan. Toss with salt, pepper, 20 sprigs of thyme, and olive oil. Spread around the bottom of the roasting pan and place the chicken on top.
• Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a platter and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes. Slice the chicken onto a platter and serve it with the vegetables.

QUICK ROASTED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (using foil makes for a faster clean up).
• Pat the chicken completely dry so that the butter will stick. Using a pair of kitchen shears, cut out the back bone by cutting down each side of it to remove. Turn the chicken over and lay it out flat on the cutting board. Using both hands, press down firmly on the chicken breast to break the breast bone and flatten the chicken as best you can. Tuck the wing tips behind the wings.
• Put the chicken on the prepared baking sheet. Rub the entire skin with the butter, then sprinkle on the smoked paprika, salt and pepper and rub it in.
• Roast until a meat thermometer reads 160 degrees F, 35 to 45 minutes. Let rest before carving.

LAURIE COLWIN'S ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Rinse chicken and pat dry. Combine bread and mushrooms in a bowl and toss with broth. Season to taste. Stuff chicken and secure with poultry pin or toothpick. Place in roasting pan and sprinkle with salt, pepper and paprika. Baste with olive oil. (If desired, surround it with carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic and a red pepper.)
• Roast for about 2 hours, basting frequently with melted butter and pan juices. The chicken is done when the leg bone wiggles and the skin is the color of teak.

PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Let chicken and 1 tablespoon butter stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Remove and discard the plastic pop-up timer from chicken if there is one. Remove the giblets and excess fat from the chicken cavity. Rinse chicken inside and out under cold running water. Dry chicken thoroughly with paper towels. Tuck the wing tips under the body. Sprinkle the cavity of the chicken liberally with salt and pepper, and set aside.
• In the center of a heavy-duty roasting pan, place onion slices in two rows, touching. Place the palm of your hand on top of lemon and, pressing down, roll lemon back and forth several times. This softens the lemon and allows the juice to flow more freely. Pierce entire surface of lemon with a fork. Using the side of a large knife, gently press on garlic cloves to open slightly. Insert garlic cloves, thyme sprigs, and lemon into cavity. Place chicken in pan, on onion slices. Cut about 18 inches of kitchen twine, bring chicken legs forward, cross them, and tie together.
• Spread the softened butter over entire surface of chicken, and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Place in the oven, and roast until skin is deep golden brown and crisp and the juices run clear when pierced, about 1 1/2 hours. When chicken seems done, insert an instant-read thermometer into the breast, then the thigh. The breast temperature should read 180 degrees and the thigh 190 degrees.
• Remove chicken from oven, and transfer to a cutting board with a well. Let chicken stand 10 to 15 minutes so the juices settle. Meanwhile, pour the pan drippings into a shallow bowl or fat separator, and leave onions in the pan. Leave any brown baked-on bits in the bottom of the roasting pan, and remove and discard any blackened bits. Using a large spoon or fat separator, skim off and discard as much fat as possible. Pour the remaining drippings and the juices that have collected under the resting chicken back into the roasting pan. Place on the stove over medium-high heat to cook, about 1 minute. Add chicken stock, raise heat to high, and, using a wooden spoon, stir up and combine the brown bits with the stock until the liquid is reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Strain the gravy into a small bowl, pressing on onions to extract any liquid. Discard onions, and stir in the remaining tablespoon of cold butter until melted and incorporated. Untie the legs, and remove and discard garlic, thyme, and lemon. Carve, and serve gravy on the side.

CINDY'S SOUTHWEST CHICKEN DINNER SALAD

Steps:

• Grill your chicken breasts, and slice thin.
• Roast your corn kernals over high heat in a pan with a little oil (you can add a tsp or 2 of packaged Fahita mix to it as it roasts for a more spicy taste if you like).
• layer everything onto large plates. Place sliced chicken on top and crumble some nacho chips on top if you like. Drizzle dressing on top and enjoy -- .

CINDYD'S SOMEWHAT SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Beat the eggs thoroughly in a shallow bowl. Sift together the flour, sage, salt, black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder in a bowl to combine.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Oil should be about 2 inches deep. Dip chicken pieces into the beaten egg, then dredge in the seasoned flour to thoroughly coat.
• Fry chicken in the hot oil until golden brown on the first side, about 10 minutes; reduce heat to medium, and fry chicken on second side until golden brown and the meat is no longer pink inside, about 20 more minutes. An instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a thigh should read 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).

CINDY'S COPYCAT CHICKEN NUGGETS

Steps:

• Combine flour, seasoned salt, poultry seasoning, mustard powder, and pepper in a zip-top bag. Add chicken, a few pieces at a time, and shake until evenly coated. Remove chicken to a plate and continue to coat remaining chicken.
• Heat oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken in small batches and cook and stir in the hot oil until golden brown on all sides, about 6 minutes per batch. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate and repeat to cook remaining chicken. Serve warm.

CINDY'S LEMON-GARLIC CHICKEN

Steps:

• Prepare the vinaigrette: Pull the heads of garlic apart, peel the cloves, and remove any green sprouts. Place the garlic in a small saucepan. Using a paring knife, remove the peel from the lemons. Carefully remove the pith from the peels and add the peels to the saucepan; discard the pith. Hold each lemon over the saucepan and cut between the membranes into sections allowing sections and any juice to fall into the saucepan. Squeeze juice from the membranes into the saucepan. Discard membranes. Add enough water to just cover. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the garlic is very tender, about 20 minutes. Drain, then puree the lemons and garlic in a blender and measure out 1/2 cup for the vinaigrette. Reserve remaining lemon-garlic puree for another use.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the 1/2 cup of lemon-garlic puree with the vinegar, herbs, salt, and pepper, until the salt is dissolved. Slowly whisk in olive oil in a thin stream, and continue to whisk until fully emulsified; set aside.
• Prepare the chickens: In a small bowl, combine the salt, rosemary, thyme, garlic, marjoram, sage, peppercorns, and shallots; mix well. Place chickens in a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle herb mixture over, and rub until well coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours and up to 12 hours.
• Cook the chickens: Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in each of two large ovenproof saute pans over medium-high heat. Add 2 chicken halves to each saute pan, skin-side down, and cook until brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn the chickens, and cook 3 minutes more. Turn the chickens again, so that they are skin-side down, and weigh each of them down with an ovenproof saute pan. Transfer to oven, and roast until the skin is crisp and the juices run clear, 8 to 12 minutes.
• Prepare the vegetables: Slice the spring onions thinly on the diagonal, and rinse well. Snap off ends of the asparagus. Slice on the diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices up to the tips. Set the tips aside.
• While the chickens are roasting, cook vegetables. Heat olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add spring onions and the asparagus stalks, and cook until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add 2 tablespoons water, cover, and cook until crisp-tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Add asparagus tips, tarragon, and butter. Cook until the tips are heated through.
• To serve, place the potatoes and vegetables on either side of the plate, the chicken in the center, and drizzle all over with the vinaigrette.