PHOTO CREDIT: KENDRA ARONSON.
“If there was ever a single ingredient that I felt deserved a consistent spot on our menu, it was local chicken. Chicken is cheap, underappreciated, and underutilized by most Americans. People assume it can’t be spectacular. Game on!”—Chef Jensen Lorenzen of the Larder Meat Co.
CHICKEN
whole chicken
salt
buttermilk
water
8 oz. unsalted butter
8 oz. canola
RECIPE CONTRIBUTED BY
Jensen Lorenzen
Formerly: the Chef of The Cass House
Currently: the Owner of the Larder Meat Co.
CHICKEN
Make a brine based on the weight of the whole chicken with the following ratios: 2% kosher salt, 2% buttermilk, 96% water. Submerge the whole chicken in the brine; refrigerate for 24 hours. Once brined, allow chicken to air-dry in the refrigerator for 1-2 days on a wire rack.
Preheat oven to 475°F.
Place the chicken on a wire rack in a roasting pan. Roast for 40 minutes, basting and rotating every 20 minutes. Tip from Chef Jensen: “The quantity of the baste is pretty arbitrary. You just need enough to baste the chicken a few times, the drippings from the chicken will also add to the amount, use approximately 8 ounces of melted butter and 8 ounces of canola. Basically you are just making a butter based baste with the heat resilience of canola. This keeps the butter solids from burning too quickly, without having to clarify the butter, plus the little bits of caramelized fat solids from the butter are tasty!”
Reduce oven temperature to 350°F and finish roasting, approximately 20–30 minutes. The probe thermometer should read 145–150°F at the thickest part of the breast. Allow chicken to rest in a warm area for at least a half hour prior to portioning.
WANT MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES?
