Okay, so I can’t take credit for this one, but I use it all the time. It is Ina’s basic recipe for roasted chicken. I’m not going to lie, but roasting a chicken used to intimidate me. I thought it would be some long, drawn out process like roasting a turkey on Thanksgiving kind of is. I thought all poultry was like this.
Seeing as I am also always looking to save a bucks, I was tired of buying a package of single chicken breasts for more then a whole chicken would cost me. So I bit the bullet, bought a whole chicken and followed Ina’s recipe. It is so easy! You will never buy chicken any other way.
I’ve now made this over a dozen times. What I love best about cooking a whole chicken is the leftovers. You can put the cooked chicken on salads, into soups, make chicken salad sandwiches, fajitas, etc. The possibilities are endless! A whole chicken usually lasts me just under a week in lunches and dinners. Now I know some people can’t stand leftovers, but I love it! I think Rachel Ray stole my idea of cooking on one day and having meals for the rest of the week (or from Robin Miller who also had a show on FN very similar called Quick Fix Meals). I’ve been doing this for years. Plan your meals, then cook & prep on Sunday afternoons and I usually don’t need to do much else the rest of the week.
This week I served it with roasted carrots and roasted cauliflower & parsnip puree. A total “Sunday” comfort meal, but it’s not bad for you.
I plan on serving my left over chicken with black beans and corn as a Mexican Taco Salad (minus the deep fried shell), shredded on a regular spinach salad, as a chicken salad sandwich (made with yogurt & mustard instead of mayo) and in a hearty vegetable & chicken soup.
Try a whole roasted chicken. You won’t regret it.
Ina’s Recipe found here.
