Roast Chicken
A whole bird rubbed with a paste of butter and flour, which browns into a crust and keeps the breast from drying. Basting every ten minutes is the whole trick — set a timer and forget the rest.
Ingredients
- whole chicken — 1.6 kg
- butter, softened — 45 g
- all-purpose flour — 2 tbsp
- salt — 2 tsp
- butter for basting — 60 g
- boiling water — 160 ml
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 220°C (425°F) and set the chicken breast-up on a rack in a roasting tin.
- Rub the bird all over with salt.
- Work the softened butter and flour into a smooth paste and spread it over the breast and legs; dust the base of the tin with a little flour too.
- Roast until the flour crust is well browned, about 20 minutes, then drop the heat to 180°C (350°F).
- Melt the basting butter into the boiling water and baste every ten minutes, using the pan juices once the mixture is gone.
- Roast for about another hour, until the juices from the thigh run clear, then rest for 15 minutes before carving.