Several weeks ago, I read that there might be a shortage of chickens coming down the pike. So I decided to be proactive and order a “couple” whole chickens, some boneless skinless breasts, and some boneless skinless thighs from a local custom meat packer. Great, no problem. I ordered, Mr. C. picked up the order, and we tucked our newly purchased provisions safely into our freezer. Feeling terribly smug for being so on top of things, I conveniently forgot about the whole chickens until the day before yesterday. (I hardly ever bake a whole chicken, so I don’t usually buy whole chickens. But for some unknown reason, I must have felt that in so doing so, I was being especially well organized pre-planning for every eventuality.) And I was right! However, the eventuality turned out to be that I would completely forget about these whole birds until my memory was jogged by looking at a piece of paper.

You see, Mr. C., being the well-organized person that he is, actually keeps a list of the contents of our freezer. And there on the list under the heading “Chicken” appeared the words Whole Chickens – 4. Four?!?! What in the heck had I been thinking when I placed my order? A mini Armageddon was imminent? Chickens everywhere would be escaping their confines and running amuck in the suburbs? What?? I could understand me ordering 1 whole chicken. Maybe even two. But four? Crazy! Anyway, I decided after checking the list that perhaps I’d better get on the stick and actually use one of the chickens I had so zealously ordered. So that’s just what I did.

Now I am a great fan of brining or salt (dry) brining whole turkeys. And I had read that brining chickens also insured succulent meat. So off I went to research recipes. And this brining recipe that I found on the dinneratthezoo.com site is absolutely perfect. The chicken skin browned beautifully and was super delicious, and the meat was tender, juicy, and flavorful. Everything anyone could ask for in a baked chicken. (Tonight some of the chicken breast meat is going to be featured in a chicken Caesar salad. Yum. I can hardly wait!)

So next time you want to bake a whole chicken, give this recipe a try. It does require that you start the process the day before you plan to eat the bird. But it’s worth the effort. And because we enjoyed the chicken so much last evening, I am truly glad I have 3 more whole birdies in my freezer. So maybe I wasn’t so crazy after all. Only time will tell.

So as always, stay safe, stay sane, and make a difference. I leave you with this quote from Maya Angelou:

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.

There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.

Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and renders the present inaccessible.

My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.

I know why the caged bird sings.

Nothing will work unless you do.

Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.

You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.

You may write me down in history with your bitter, twisted lines. You may trod me in the very dirt, but still, like dust, I’ll rise.”

Brining the Chicken:

8 c. water

½ c. kosher salt (do not use table salt)

¼ c. honey

3 dried bay leaves

5 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped   

1 T. whole black or multi-colored peppercorns

3 sprigs fresh rosemary or 2 tsp. dried rosemary

1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves or ½ tsp. dried thyme leaves

1 T. chopped fresh parsley or 1 tsp. dried

2 lemons sliced

3-4 lb. whole chicken (as much fat removed as possible)

Place the water, salt, honey, bay leaves, garlic, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme, parsley, and lemon slices in a large nonreactive pot. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer for 3-4 minutes or until the salt has completely dissolved. Remove from heat and cool completely.

Add the chicken to the cooled brine. Make sure the chicken is completely submerged. Cover the pot and refrigerate for 8-24 hours.

Baking the Chicken:

2 T. unsalted butter, melted

freshly ground black pepper

Four hours before roasting, remove the chicken from the brine and rinse with cool water; pat dry with paper towels inside and out. Place the brined bird on a small rimmed baking sheet and return to the refrigerator to air-dry, uncovered, for about 3 hours. Remove from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees at this time.

Slather the chicken with the melted butter and generously season inside and out with pepper. Place the chicken on a rack set inside a low sided roasting pan. Tie the legs together with kitchen twine.  Roast on the middle rack for about 70-80 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh meat (away from the bone) registers 170 degrees. Note: After about 30 minutes, check to see if the skin is getting too brown. If so, loosely cover with aluminum foil.

When the chicken is done, remove from oven and let chicken sit, loosely tented with aluminum foil, for at least 15 minutes before carving.