Lunar New Year - An Easy Way to Roast a Chook

For some, roasting a whole chicken can be a tad daunting, but we’re here to guide you through some simple steps so that you can cook a succulent and golden roast chook every time. There's a thousand and one ways to roast a chicken and everyone has their method, but this is a simple and foolproof method that you can alter to suit whatever your preferences may be!

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken
• 80g butter, cut into slices
• salt
• olive oil
• thyme or herbs of your choice
• 1 small lemon, quartered
• 3 cloves garlic, bruised

Method

1. Pat dry your chicken with paper towel to remove any excess moisture. If you have time season with salt and leave in your fridge overnight uncovered to guarantee crispy skin. Your roast chook should still be crispy and golden if you don't have time to dry out overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 220 degrees celsius and take chicken out of the fridge to bring it back to room temperature.
3. Carefully separate the skin from the beast meat using your hands to allow you to place butter in between. Place butter in between, creating an even layer of butter underneath the skin.
4. Take the elastic off the legs of the chicken so that you can place the lemon pieces, garlic and herbs of your choice inside the cavity of the chicken. Use the elastic band to tie the legs back together.
5. Place the chicken onto a tray or preheated skillet and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt.
6. Cook in preheated oven for approximately 1 hour 15 mins but to test if it's done, use a meat thermometer. Once the thickest part of the chicken, usually the breast reaches 75 degrees celsius your chicken will be cooked. 
7. Allow your chicken to rest for 20 mins before you carve it, so that the juices remain in the meat and not all over the board.

Notes:

One thing that's great about cooking the chicken on a skillet is that the bottom gets a more golden colour. It also means that you can remove the chicken and cook the gravy straight in the pan that its been cooking in! Simply add in a clove of garlic finely chopped, some white wine, a spoon of apricot jam or sugar and some water mixed with a tsp of cornflour. Cook until nicely thickened.

The general rule of thumb is around 30 mins per 500g but it really depends on your oven, so it's best to use a thermometer and check it regularly. When you're checking, use a spoon to baste the chicken skin with the melted butter and juices that have formed in the pan.