Photo: Hannah Whitaker
Jamie Oliver tossed in milk and lemon zest with his roast chicken, and out came a succulent masterpiece: juicy meat in a rich, tart sauce that magically comes together while the bird cooks. Oliver roasts the chicken uncovered and bastes, but our version uses a lid for a supermoist result.
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 (4- to 5-pound) whole chicken
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2 cups milk
- Zest of 2 lemons
- 10 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly smashed
- ½ cinnamon stick
- 5 to 8 large sage leaves
- 2 (3") sprigs rosemary
Directions
Active time: 25 minutes
Total time: 2 hours
Preheat oven to 375°. Discard chicken neck and any included giblets. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season generously with kosher salt and black pepper, including inside the cavity.
Place a 4-quart (or larger) Dutch oven or heavy oven-safe pot or pan over high heat. Add butter; when it melts and foams, add chicken. Brown chicken over high heat 10 minutes, using tongs to turn over. When chicken is evenly golden brown, turn it breast side down in pot and pour in milk. Bring to a simmer, then turn off heat.
Add to milk the lemon zest, garlic cloves, cinnamon, sage, and rosemary. Cover pot with a lid or foil and roast 45 minutes. Remove lid and roast until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh registers 165°, 30 to 45 minutes more. Remove from oven and carve or shred chicken (it should pull off the bone easily). If needed, add salt to sauce to taste. Serve, spooning sauce from pan over meat.
More Chicken Recipes
From the April 2012 issue of O, The Oprah Magazine
