Roast chicken!

I've been told that this is THE dish to know how to make, if you're ever going to have a life of any value. ;) Judging from my 'fellas complete cleaning, down to the bones, I did a pretty good job.

Sorry, no pictures this time! I was too tired and a little lazy.

Ingredients and supplies:

1 whole chicken
Salt & pepper, to taste
1/2 cup salt (for brine, this dramatically improves your chicken!)
Garlic power (optional)
2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary
1-3 tbsp. butter

Stuffing:

You don't have to stuff your bird at all, or you can stuff it with any variety of the following ingredients. You can also make up your own stuffing, and infuse the chicken with all kinds of new and interesting flavors. I've heard oranges are tasty, and I've also used apples before.

Onions
Carrots
Celery
Vegetable scraps left over from side dishes (this is what I used -- scraps of scallions, turnips, and brussels sprouts)

Roasting pan
Aluminum foil
Meat thermometer

First, remove anything from the cavity of the chicken (if there is anything in there). There are all kinds of uses for these innards, which I might write about another time, so set them aside for another use, or toss them -- your choice.

There are a variety of brines for chicken, but I went with the easiest -- salt and water. Rinse the chicken in cold water, and then submerge in a pot of more cold water combined with about 1/2 cup salt. Allow the chicken to sit fully covered by the liquid in the fridge for about one hour. Rotate after 1/2 hour if the chicken isn't fully covered by the brine. Then, take the chicken out of the brine, rinse again with cold water, and allow to sit for another hour or so.

Preheat your oven to 350-degrees, and get ready to get your hands dirty! Take the salt, pepper, and garlic powder (if you're using it) and rub it inside the cavity of the chicken. You want to use about 2 tbsp. each. It's not going to make your chicken too salty or peppery unless you really go overboard. If you're stuffing the chicken, do so now. Take another 2-3 tbsp. of salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and rub all over the outside of the chicken. Take small sprigs of the fresh rosemary, and place them under the chickens skin. This prevents them from browning in the oven, and gives a great flavor to the bird.

Place the bird in the roasting pan, cover with aluminum foil (allowing some holes or open areas for steam to escape), and start roasting. After about an hour has passed, take the chicken out of the oven and rub down with a tbsp. of butter. Roast for another hour, and then rub it down with more butter. Repeat this process until your chicken is done. Mine took about 3.5 hours to get to 190-degrees F. The weight of the chicken decides how long it will take to be ready, but I generally give myself at least 4 hours of roasting time.

Depending on the size of the chicken, you can feel 2-4 hearty eaters, at about $2-3 per serving!

Yum! Mine was served with more brussels sprouts (for me), and turnip puff (for both me and my 'fella, who surprisingly LOVES turnip puff!?).

If you don't have a ravenous boyfriend/husband/friend/family member, you can reserve what's left of the chicken for making any variety of dishes the next day -- chicken soup, enchiladas, pot pies... whatever chicken dishes you like! I didn't have a left over problem!