One day, get an organic bird. The little extra money pays for cleaner water in your pipes, fewer antibiotics in your blood, better lives for your farmers, and better flavor.
Preheat oven to 415º F. Rinse, salt and season all around, in and out. Maybe stick some onion, garlic and lemons in the cavity. Maybe not. Maybe add to the roasting pan some more garlic (in its paper), coarsely chopped onions, carrots, beets, green beans, brussels sprouts, potatoes, squash, mushrooms, and drizzled olive oil and spices around the chicken. Maybe just the chicken and one or two of those.
Put in the oven for 15 minutes or so, then lower temperature to 400º. Cook for about one hour total. As long as the heat is high and the salt is generous, it doesn’t seem to make a difference give or take 15 minutes or 15º. At least as far as I can tell. Maybe stir vegetables with a long wooden spoon once or twice, and maybe drizzle with some more oil.
Let rest, carve and eat. A full lovely meal for not much money nor effort.
The next day pull off leftover meat for sandwiches, chicken salad, chicken pot pie, chicken empanadas..
The next day or the next week, pull off the rest of the meat and put aside in fridge. Cover the carcass, bones from your first night’s plates, fat, skin, everything, with water and add a bunch of salt. Maybe leave in onions and garlic from carcass but lemons might be risky in broth, which is the destination. Bring to boil then simmer for 1, 2, 3 hours. Let cool then pour broth over colander into bowl or pan to catch the productive but now fully yucky bits to be disposed of. Sautee some more chopped red onions (always more onions, always red if you have them) in pan with olive oil for 5-10 minutes, then add some more spices to toast for a couple more (coriander, cumin, garam masala, turmeric, tarragon, herbes de provence I dunno, whatever)
Salt is present, broth is flavorful, all is well. Add sautéed onions, garlic, cooked or raw vegetables, spices, lentils, cooked chicken, parsley, cilantro to broth. You have a soup.
Express yourself. It will be good.
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