Ingredients
Scale
- 1 whole chicken
- olive oil
- salt, pepper, and paprika* to taste
- *The paprika serves to color the skin without overcooking it.
- Gravy
- 2 Tablespoons butter or lard (The lard is really, really good!)
- 3–4 Tablespoons flour
- roasting pan liquid
- salt, pepper, onion powder, paprika
- Toast
- whole wheat bread, sliced
- butter, softened
- poultry seasoning
Instructions
- To prepare the chicken, preheat the oven to 475 degrees.
- Place the chicken in the pan, breast side up.
- Drizzle the skin with olive oil and season to taste.
- Rub the oil & seasonings into the skin.
- Salt & pepper the cavity.
- Roast the chicken until the skin in well-colored, about half an hour.
- Remove the pan from the oven and put in a glass or two of water, cover the chicken and return to the oven.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
- After about an hour to an hour and a half depending on the size of the bird, begin checking the internal temperature. I aim for 170 degrees in the thigh before removing the meat. The final 10 degrees are usually reached while the juices are settling back into the meat on the counter for 10 minutes after the bird comes out. But the government says your poultry needs to be at 180 degrees or you’re not safe.
- While those juices are settling, prepare the toast.
- Increase the oven temperature to 375 degrees.
- Arrange your desired number of slices on a cookie sheet.
- Butter the bread and sprinkle with your desired amount of poultry seasoning.
- Toast in the oven for about 8-10 minutes. This is a great way to cheat getting that stuffing flavor without all the work.
- After the juices have settled in the chicken, transfer them to a plate for carving and prepare the gravy.
- To do so, make a roux by melting the lard (or butter) in a skillet.
- Sprinkle in the flour slowly, whisking it into the fat until it just goes past the point of being smooth and starts to clump up with the ratio of flour to fat tipping in favor of the flour.
- Slowly begin to ladle the chicken drippings from the roasting pan into the roux over medium-high heat, whisking vigorously all the time, until your gravy is simmering and the desired thickness. Season. I don’t measure out my seasonings, but if I was guessing I’d say 1/2 t. salt, and 1/4 t. of the pepper, onion powder, and paprika. I literally just dust the surface of the gravy with the last three seasonings.
- Whisk in and taste test, adjusting with more seasonings if necessary.
- Carve the chicken, arrange the slices over the toast, and ladle the gravy on top to finish the dish.