Cook A Whole Chicken In Half The Time With This Easy Cooking Method

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Chicken: it's (often) what's for dinner. A whole roasted chicken is a singular delight with its crackly skin and moist, tender meat, but, too often, this gorgeous meal is relegated to Sunday nights as a "special occasion" entree due to the long time it takes to roast. What if we told you, however, that it was possible to have a whole cooked chicken in a little over one hour from start to finish? Furthermore, you already have everything you need to get the job done, and there's no compromise on flavor or texture? The answer, friend, is your oven's broiler.

Broiling a whole chicken takes around an hour, assuming you properly prep it for the blast of high overhead heat. We've discussed what it means to butterfly a chicken breast, and in this case you'll be butterflying the whole chicken, which reduces the cooking time. What you're going to do is start the chicken in a hot skillet, skin-side up, so that the dark meat of the thighs has some time to get a head-start on cooking — one difference between white and dark meat chicken is that the latter needs longer to cook. Mere minutes later, you can transfer your oven-safe skillet to the broiler, leaving seven to 12 inches between the pan and the heating element overhead. You don't want it so close that the precious skin burns! A short time later (the exact time will depend on the weight of your chicken), you'll have a gorgeous, golden, succulent bird ready for an exceptional weeknight dinner. It looks and tastes like a special occasion, but it's perfect for any day ending in "-y."

Cooking chicken can be a lot more simple than it seems to intimidated home cooking beginners. All you need is a good meat thermometer. Foodie got some expert advice from chef Russell Kook, who informed us that a meat thermometer is the kitchen tool that helps one avoid the common mistake of overcooking roast chicken. A good meat thermometer need not even be expensive: customer ratings indicate a lot of love for the TempPro Digital Instant Read Meat Thermometer, which can often be found on sale for less than the price of a fast food combo meal. The USDA recommends a minimum temp of 165 degrees for chicken, and that's a good goal to ensure juiciness and safety all at once.

Another helpful hint for broiling whole chickens is to watch the seasonings you sprinkle on the skin of the bird, because too much exposure under the broiler could lead to them charring, which would impart an unpleasant taste to your dinner. Consider saving any herbs, for instance, for later in the cooking process. This doesn't mean you shouldn't season your chicken! Undersalting chicken is a common kitchen crime, and there are plenty of foolproof flavor enhancers that impart worry-free taste boosts, like citrus juice, pepper, and clarified butter. Follow a promising recipe, or riff on the seasonings you think would go well together ... when you broil your chicken, your dinner will be quick, forgiving, and darn-near worry-free.