Roasting Chicken 14 Ways - Cooks Illustrated

Published January 1, 1996.

After roasting 14 birds, we offer our two favorite methods.

The Problem

There is clearly more to chicken cookery than at first imagined, because most home-cooked chickens are either grossly overcooked or so underdone that they resemble an avian version of steak tartare.

The Goal

A perfectly roasted chicken--the white meat juicy and tender, but with a hint of chew, and the dark meat fully cooked, all the way to the bone.

The Solution

Continuous basting and trussing both proved unnecessary for this ideal chicken. We had also hoped that the bird wouldn't have to be turned while cooking, but even cooking is crucial to chicken cookery. We found that roasting the bird for 20 minutes on each side and then putting it on its back rendered perfectly cooked white and dark meat as well as golden, crunchy skin.

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