Roasted Lemon Chicken

Yes, I know. Roasted chicken--there are a million and three recipes out there. Still, I'm giving you mine, because I'm terribly vain and think it's just really, really good.


Roasted Lemon Chicken

1 5-6 lb. roasting chicken
2 lemons, quartered
1 large yellow onion, peeled and coursely sliced
olive oil
sea salt
herbed butter*

*Whenever I have extra fresh herbs on hand, I chop them up and mix them into a stick of butter. This butter can then be frozen and utlized in a multitude of culinary endeavors. Very good stuff.

Pull all of the nasty inner bits out of your chicken and dispose of them. Rinse the bird inside and out with cold water, pat dry with paper towels. Place on a rack over a pan and refrigerate uncovered for several hours--this will ensure you the crackling golden skin that we all know we shouldn't eat, but can't resist when it's this good.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Once the chicken has had it's rest in the fridge (you can even do this overnight), toss the onions in some oilve oil in a medium baking dish. Salt and pepper the cavity of the chicken, stuff with the lemon quarters, and place on top of the onions. Tie the legs shut with butcher's string or a bit of cheesecloth, as I've done. Melt the herbed butter in the microwave and brush generously on the outside of the bird. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.


Roaste for approximately 1.25 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and thigh. Baste once with remaining melted herbed butter. Remove chicken from oven, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let sit for 15 minutes. Carve it up and dig in!

Remove leftover meat from the carcass and drizzle some of the pan juices over (this will be wonderful with tomorrow's bread salad). Save the carcass, lemons, and onions for the stock recipe I'll be serving up in the morning.