Garlic-Basil Roast Chicken

(Only cell phone camera was available)

We had a roast chicken feast last night. Roasting chicken is so foolproof that even if all you put on it is some salt and pepper, you end up with a delicious meal. But last night there was something more special...

You will need:
whole chicken (with skin)
~10 small garlic cloves
some olive oil
salt & pepper
dried basil
3 onions, devided
rosemary (fresh if available)
6 potatoes
1 cup chicken stock / or water
some butter (optional)


1. Preheat the oven to 200 C degrees.

2. Bring the chicken to a room temperature. Loosen the chicken skin from the meat in a few spots using a small knife and your fingers and place the garlic cloves between the breast and leg meat and the skin. Be careful not to tear the skin.

3. Next, rub the chicken skin with the olive oil, salt, pepper, and dried basil. Chop one onion and place it in the cavity of the chicken along with some fresh (or dried) rosemary.

4. Truss the chicken with a string securing its legs and wings. Place the chicken on a roasting pan breast-side down.

5. Peel and halve the potatoes, cut the remaining onions into quarters, and place them around the chicken on the roasting pan. Pour the chicken stock (or water) over them and sprinkle with some salt and pepper.

6. Roast the chicken in the oven for ~30-45 minutes basting it every ~10 minutes with its own juices from the pan. Roasting time will depend on the size of a chicken so you will have to keep an eye on it. It should be getting golden brown, but not burning. If it's not browning enough, put some butter on the skin. If it is burning, cover it with foil.

7. Turn it over and roast it for another ~15 minutes. Don't forget to baste it. Finally, you can turn it over again and set it on a grill setting (or max temperature) for another ~5 minutes to make the skin crispy and brown.

8. Once it is done, remove it from the oven and let the chicken stand for 10 minutes before cutting it to lock the juices in.

It was so juicy and delicious! I am looking forward to having leftovers for lunch today.

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