Perfect Roast Chicken

I've been remiss. Ina's Perfect Roast Chicken has been my go-to recipe for roasting a chicken for years, but I recently realized I never blogged it. Craziness. I've made dozens of roast chickens during this blog's lifetime, I can't believe I never thought to photograph a single one.

I love to roast a chicken a couple times a month when it's super cold. And man has it been a cold winter so far. This recipe is fantastic - I love that the lemon and garlic flavor infuses into the chicken as it cooks. I started squeezing some of the lemon juice over the chicken before putting the pieces into the cavity and that imparts even more flavor.

This also makes an awesome gravy, which, of course, I didn't photograph. I love that my new stove has a continuous grate so the roasting pan sits evenly on top while I'm making the gravy. Note: the online recipe includes carrots and fennel, but they aren't in the cookbook version so I don't use them.

Perfect Roast Chicken with Gravy
Recipe from Ina Garten

1 (5 to 6 pound) roasting chicken
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large bunch fresh thyme, plus 20 sprigs
1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise
1 lemon, halved
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large yellow onion, thickly sliced
1 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons flour

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Remove the chicken giblets. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the bunch of thyme and the garlic. Squeeze the lemon all over the chicken, then add the halves to the cavity. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper.

Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Place the onions in a roasting pan. Place the chicken on top.

Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove the chicken to a platter and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes while you make the gravy.

Pour the liquid from the bottom of the roasting pan into a fat separator. Leave the onions in the pan. Put the pan on the stove top and heat over medium-high heat, stirring the onions. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Pour the liquid from the fat separator into the pan, leaving the fat behind. Mix the flour with the fat and stir into the chicken broth. This will thicken the gravy. Taste and add salt and pepper, as needed.

Slice the chicken and serve with the gravy,