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Butterflied Roasted Chicken with Vegetables


This is a rustic meal with rough cut vegetables roasted in a pan that can go from your stove top to your oven. Butterflying the chicken gives you the option to cook the chicken breast down which results in breast meat that is not dried out while you wait on the dark meat to be cooked thoroughly.


Ingredients:
  • 1 -3-4lb. whole chicken
  • 4-5 white potatoes, quartered
  • 4-5 carrots rough cut
  • 1 large onion, quartered
  • 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed, optional
  • Seasoned salt
  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil and more Olive Oil to coat the vegetables.
  • 1 Tablespoon butter
  • Salt and fresh ground pepper.

Method:
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Rinse and pat the whole chicken dry.
  3. Using good kitchen shears cut out the backbone of the chicken and set aside to make chicken stock or discard.
  4. Flatten the whole chicken by pressing firmly on the breast bone. Remove any excess skin.
  5. Prepare vegetables placing them in large bowl and season them with salt and pepper (to taste). 
  6. Add the smashed garlic. 
  7. Sprinkle the vegetables generously with olive oil and toss together to coat all the vegetables evenly. 
  8. Set aside.
  9. Heat oil and butter in large oven proof pan or dutch oven.
  10. Season chicken well with seasoned salt of your choice. 
  11. If you don't have seasoned salt season with salt and fresh ground pepper.
  12. Place chicken breast side down in heated pan to brown and crisp up the skin. 
  13. Turn the chicken over carefully and brown the other side.
  14. Remove the chicken to a plate or platter while you go on to the next step.
  15. De-glaze the pan with a little chicken stock or white wine.
  16. Add all the seasoned and oiled vegetables to the pan.
  17. Place the chicken breast side down on top of the vegetables.
  18. Place pan with vegetables and chicken on the center rack of preheated oven.
  19. Roast for 60 minutes.
  20. Turn chicken over and roast for 10 more minutes or until meat thermometer registers 165 degrees at the thickest part of the dark meat. 
  21. Remove the chicken from the pan onto cutting board and cut the chicken into serving sizes. 
You can return the chicken to the roasting pan or onto a platter at this point adding the vegetables.


 Remove the chicken from the pan onto cutting board and cut the chicken into serving sizes. You can return the chicken to the roasting pan or onto a platter at this point adding the vegetables.


 Serve with your favorite additions or no additions. We chose some salad and sour dough bread.



8 comments:

  1. Love recipes like this. Quick, little clean up and so delicious. I have a question: to rinse or not to rinse. I see you do, but how do you keep the chicken from absorbing the water? I dry them well with paper towels but they still seem to release a lot of water when roasting, or braising.

    Sharon

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    Replies
    1. Sharon, I have cheated and not rinsed and no one suffered from it. Sometimes I just rinse the back to get the grit, etc. off from cutting through the backbone and don't rinse the chicken breast side.

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    2. I'm going to continue rinsing, but try to find a way to let the bird dry out a bit, maybe lightly covered with a dish towel in the fridge for a few hours.

      Delete
  2. Oh my goodness. This looks fantastic. It just might be dinner tonight.

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  3. Looks so good! I love chicken dinners and this one looks easy, too.

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  4. Mmmm - that looks hearty and delicious Ellen! I've never tried flattening a whole chicken like this. Thanks for the recipe!

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  5. I made this tonight for supper and it was easy, basic and delicious.

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  6. Woow!! it's so delicious and yummy!! Ellen. This makes my mouth water. All the images are delicious. I can't wait to make this tonight dinner. Thanks for sharing this an amazing dish.

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