The end of Septemeber has arrived without my having posted any recipes. And while I have been cooking, mostly soups, nothing has seemed worthy of publishing here. In a moment of nostalgia I realized I neglected to post the first dish ever attempted in my dutch oven, roasted chicken. This simple French dish was a perfect first challenge and the results were nothing short of mouth-watering success. What better way to start a dish than bacon and butter? I remember this recipe taking some time to prepare, but the end result was well worth the effort. I'm glad I thought of this, I plan on making it again soon!
adapted from Julia Child’s recipe
serves 4-6
4 oz. bacon, chopped into large chunks
2 pads of butter
a small whole chicken, washed and drained (giblets and neck removed)
12 small potatoes, quartered
3 carrots, sliced
1 large onion, chopped into large pieces
handful of fresh rosemary
handful of fresh thyme
a bay leaf
2 cloves of garlic
to make the dish:
*preheat the oven to 325 degrees
*chop the bacon into large chunks
*add bacon to dutch oven on medium high heat and stir until mostly cooked
*set bacon aside and add a pad of butter
*place chicken in melted butter, brown the skin, flipping often (approximately 10-15 mins.)
*add cut potatoes to a pan of cold water, bring to a boil and remove immediately
*bring carrots and onion to a low boil for five minutes in a separate pan
*remove chicken to a plate and some of bacon fat from dutch oven
*add another pad of butter to dutch oven and stir in potatoes, coating well
*season the inside of the chicken with rosemary, thyme, bay leaf, and garlic tied in a washed cheesecloth
*season the chicken with salt and pepper
*set aside most of the potatoes from the dutch oven, and add the chicken
*add the remaining potatoes, carrots, onion, and bacon around and partly covering the chicken
*put the lid on the dutch oven and bake for 22 minutes per pound of bird
*let the bird rest 10 minutes before serving
