Lemon-Pepper Roast Chicken
- 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
- Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 4 -to-5-pound chickens, rinsed and patted dry
- 1 cup dry white wine
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Pulse the butter, lemon zest and juice, garlic, thyme, paprika, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 tablespoon pepper in a food processor until smooth.
- Put the chickens on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Loosen the skin on the breasts and legs with your fingers.
- Rub about three-quarters of the lemon-pepper butter under the skin, then rub the rest all over the chickens.
- Refrigerate, uncovered, 2 hours or up to 8 hours before roasting.
- Tie the chicken legs together with twine and tuck the wings under the body; place breast-side up on a rack in a large roasting pan.
- Pour the wine into the pan and transfer to the oven; roast until the chickens are golden and crisp and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 170 degrees F, about 1 hour, 50 minutes.
- (Tent with foil if the skin browns too quickly.)
- Let the chickens rest 10 minutes before portioning (see below).
- Season with salt.
- Grab one of the legs with tongs and pull it away from the body; cut through the skin with kitchen shears.
- Pull the leg out and back to pop the joint; remove the leg with the shears.
- Repeat on the other side.
- Separate the drumsticks from the thighs with the shears.
- Cut off the wings as close to the body as possible.
- Insert the shears into the tail end of the chicken and cut along the breastbone.
- Pull back one of the breasts and cut it off the backbone.
- Repeat on the other side.
- Photograph by David Malosh
unsalted butter, lemon, garlic, thyme, paprika, kosher salt, chickens, white wine
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/lemon-pepper-roast-chicken-recipe.html (may not work)