Cooking adventures: roast chicken

For several years, I have tried to successfully roast a chicken with little luck - the end result would be too dry or even underdone.  I was at the point of giving up trying to roast a chicken until I found the recipe titled "Prefect Roast Chicken."  The name alone gave me some hope.

The local grocery stores typically have great sales on whole chickens and it is easy to pick up several for the freezer.  The best thing about roasting a chicken for one meal is that there are usually leftovers for another meal - chicken noodle soup, chicken enchiladas, chicken tortilla soup, and on and on.

I have now tried the "Perfect Roast Chicken" recipe several times and it is fool-proof!


Perfect Roast Chicken

1 whole chicken, 4 to 5 pounds, rinsed and patted dry
Freshly ground black pepper
Salt

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
2. Grind fresh pepper over all sides of the chicken. Next, salt the bird on all sides and in between the joints, where the wings and legs lie.
3. If you have time, set the chicken aside for 20 to 30 minutes before baking.
4. Fit the bird snugly in a deep-sided baking pan and put in the hot oven. Leave it untouched for 30 minutes and without opening the oven, reduce the temperature to 375 degrees and cook for another 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 15 minutes before carving and serving.