There are few things I enjoy more than a Perfect Roast Chicken.  Sounds simple, right?  But I’ve only recently, after decades of roasting chickens, truly completed the evolution of my Perfect Roast Chicken recipe.

What are some lessons I’ve learned along the way?  I used to roast chicken at 350 degrees, but have recently discovered that a higher temperature yields a much crispier skin and juicier meat.  Live and learn, right?  Another handy tip I’ve picked up is to make sure that your chicken sits out at room temperature for at least half an hour before roasting it.  This makes it so your chicken roasts more evenly from inside to outside.

For this recipe, you’ll need

One whole plump roasting chicken:  I usually go for a 5 lb. chicken because there are five of us. A chicken that size feeds us all and leaves a little left over for chicken salad.
8 large cloves of garlic, chopped in half
2 tablespoons olive oil and 4-5 tablespoons REAL butter, melted together PLUS two more tablespoons of melted butter for basting
Two handfuls of fresh sage leaves
1 whole lemon
Salt
Fresh Ground Black Pepper

To prepare:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Line a shallow baking pan with aluminum foil. Place a cookie rack in the baking pan. This will keep the chicken elevated slightly — you don’t want the skin of the chicken resting on the bottom of the pan. You can also use a roasting pan that has its own rack.   Spray the whole surface of the pan with cooking spray.

Rinse the chicken thoroughly and pat completely dry. Reserve the heart, liver and gizzards, if there are any, and if you happen to like them. I do. I like to roast these alongside the chicken as an extra treat — just sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for about 20 minutes.

Place the chicken on the rack in the roasting pan. Using your fingers, loosen the skin over the breast meat and slide 4 pieces of the garlic, along with several sage leaves, under the skin over each breast. Turn the chicken over and loosen the skin on the back of the chicken, sliding 4 more slices of the garlic and several more sage leaves, under the skin on the back side and pushing them toward the thigh meat on either side. Place the rest of the garlic inside the chicken cavity. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of salt inside the cavity of the chicken, along with several grindings of fresh black pepper. Then toss a handful of sage leaves into the cavity.

Note:  If you can’t find fresh sage leaves, or don’t have any growing conveniently in your backyard garden pots like I do, you can enjoy this chicken without the sage.  Or you can substitute fresh rosemary.  All three options are equally delicious.

Next, rub the chicken skin thoroughly with the melted olive oil and butter. Cut the lemon in half and place the lemon rinds inside the chicken cavity. Sprinkle sea salt and fresh ground pepper all over the outside of the chicken.

You are now ready to roast the chicken. Your chicken should be breast side up in the roasting pan.

Roast for about an hour and 15 minutes.  After about 30 minutes, I baste the chicken with another two tablespoons of melted butter.  The chicken is done when you can pierce the skin between the thigh and breast and the juices run clear.  Or you can be paranoid like my husband and use a meat thermometer.  When done, the thigh meat will be 190 degrees and the breast meat will be 180 degrees.

When the chicken is done, take it out and let it sit for 15 minutes before carving.   Serve with your favorite green vegetable as a side dish, along with rice or couscous.