Classic Crispy Roasted Chicken & Roasted Smashed Potatoes

Denise and I flipped a coin...I lost, so I get to post the first of many blogs.

Crispy Roasted Chicken

A few weeks ago, we made one of my favorite meals of all time. Not much of a story behind this one folks. I've been eating roasted chicken, like most of us, forever. But, there are a few things that make a good chicken truly great.

• Crispy Skin - Yup! Probably the best part of the chicken is it's epidermis. You can deny, fuss and fight, but it will do no good.
• Fall off the bone goodness - notice the picture...doesn't this chicken look relaxed?
• Juicy - ....'nuff said.
• Really good side dish - We'll get to this later.

My favorite chicken is simple.

Start with a good 4-5lb roasting chicken. Wash it well and, please, please, please dry this thing thoroughly.       This is the only way the skin will crisp up.

Rub with olive oil (yes this means getting your hands oily). 

Grind some course salt semi-liberally all over the top. Regular salt will work, but just not as well.

Place in a shallow metal pan. This is important too. This gives the heat a chance to get all around the bird.

Get all Hansel and Gretel on this pale piece of poultry and shove it into a preheated 450 degree oven.

Leave it in there until the legs relax, the skin is golden and the meat is 165 degrees. Get her out of the pan and on a board to rest for at least 10 minutes. Don't worry you have more to do while you wait.

Now if you want to get fancy, you can make a REALLY good gravy out of the drippings.

Here's how I do it:

Good Chicken Gravy 

Put the roasting pan right on a burner or two. Be careful! Seriously.

Pour a cup or two of milk in the pan. 

Sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of AP flour into the milk. Carefully whisk the lumps out and scrape all the good bits into the gravy and bring to a boil.

That's it. I do it all the time. SOOOO good!

The Side Dish:

Smashed Potatoes

Smashed Potatoes

While the chicken is roasting, bring a potful of good medium Yukon Gold potatoes to a boil. When soft, drain and lay out and dry on a bed of paper towels.

Dump the potatoes onto a sheet pan or two and smash with the heal of your hand, a pan, or anything that keeps you from burning yourself.

Drizzle liberally with olive oil and a good grind of course salt. Heave into the 450 degree oven and let it roast for 15 minutes. By now the bottoms should have a nice brown crust. Flip them over and bake again for another 10 or 15 minutes. You'll know when they're done.

That's it. My favorite meal. Simple and delicious.

Try it and enjoy.

Thanks for reading,

Danny