Yes! It’s super Succulent and flavorful. The brine ensure that every part of the chicken is perfectly flavored. Brining also helps to introduce more juice into the chicken, making the chicken ultra juicy and tender, even the chicken breast. This recipe also requires you to air dry the chicken in the chiller section of your fridge to ensure that the skin of the roasted chicken is crispy
Although turkey is the usual bird that will be served on the Christmas table, personally, I’m not a fan of Turkey and I think chicken will be a perfect substitution.
What is Brining?
Brining is the process of marinating the meat in a salt infused water. This process bring maximum juiciness to the piece of meat by hydrating the muscle cells of the meat. The duration of brining ranges from hours to day depending on the size of the piece of meat. For more info, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brining
To make the most delicious bird you have ever tasted, 1st, prepare the brine and allow it to cool before use
Then, pat dry the chicken and stuff the chicken with garlic, rosemary & thyme.
The aroma from the herbs will be absorb by the chicken after roasting
Seal the chicken by holding the end of the drums together
And tie them together using kitchen twine
Transfer the chicken into a large ziplock bag or in a mixing bowl, large enough to hold the chicken and the brine
Ensure the whole chicken is submerged in the brine
Allow the chicken to brine for at least 8 hours or overnight, no exceeding 12 hours, in the chiller.
To have the crispiest skin, pat dry the chicken skin after brining and placed it on a wired rack with a baking try underneath.
Dry it in the chiller, uncovered, and allow it to dry in the chiller for 4 hrs to 24 hrs.
Best preparation plan, if you need the chicken un the evening, will be to brine the chicken the night before. Then dry in chiller in the morning and roast it in the oven an hour or an hour half before the Christmas dinner.
Preheat the oven to 200 degree Celsius (fan assisted) 30 minutes before roasting. For non fan-assisted oven, preheat the oven at 220 degree celsius and do rotate the chicken halfway during roasting for a more even roast.
Brush the chicken skin with oil and roast the chicken on a rack for 45 mins to 60 mins,
until skin turn golden brown and the internal temperature of the thickest part of the chicken becomes 65 degree Celsius.
Add in any vegetables into the oven, under the chicken, based on the cooking time of the vegetable. Example, if corn takes 15 mins to roast, add into the oven 15 mins before the chicken will be done.
Allow it to chicken to rest for 10 mins before serving
How to make the Chicken Pan Gravy
Melt the butter and stir in flour. Stir and cook until the flour mixture become slightly brown
Gradually add in the stock and stir until the gravy thicken to your desired consistency
Add in cream, salt, pepper and chicken dripping reserved in the baking tray from roasting the chicken into the gravy. Stir in and serve.
- 1.2 litres Water
- 3.5 tablespoons Salt (50g)
- 2 tablespoons Brown Sugar (25g)
- 6 sprigs Thyme
- 1 sprig Rosemary
- 2 tablespoon Chopped Garlic
- 1 Whole Chicken (About 1kg )
- 6 Sprigs Thyme
- 1 sprig Rosemary
- 1 Bulb Garlic (Skin intact and cut off the top of the garlic)
- 25g Butter
- 1 tablespoon Plain Flour
- 1 tablespoon Cream
- 150 ml chicken/ beef stock
- ½ teaspoon Sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Pepper to taste
- Oil (to brush the chicken before roasting)
- Vegetables (for roasting); depends on your preference
- Add all the ingredients for the brine in a pot and bring to boil.
- Allow it to cool down before use.
- Stuff all the herbs into the chicken
- Seal the opening by holding the end of the drumsticks together and tie it up with kitchen twine.
- Put it into a ziplock bag or a big pot/bowl that can hold the chicken and the brine.
- Set aside in chiller until the brine is completely cooled
- When the brine is cooled, pour it over the chicken
- Ensure that the whole chicken is submerged into the brine.
- Allow the chicken in brine to the chiller and allow it to brine for at least 8 hours or overnight, no exceeding 12 hours.
- Remove the chicken from the brine and pat dry
- Placed it on a wired rack with a baking try underneath to ensure that the bottom of the chicken will also be dried out.
- Dry it in the chiller, uncovered, and allow it to dry in the chiller for 4 hrs to 24 hrs.
- Preheat the oven to 200 degree Celsius (fan assisted) 30 minutes before roasting. For non fan-assisted oven, preheat the oven at 220 degree celsius and do rotate the chicken halfway during roasting for a more even roast.
- Brush the chicken skin with oil
- Roast the chicken on a rack for 45 mins to 60 mins, or until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the chicken becomes 65 degree celsius and the skin turns golden brown.
- Add in any vegetables into the oven, under the chicken, based on the cooking time of the vegetable. Example, if corn takes 15 mins to roast, add into the oven 15 mins before the chicken will be done.
- Allow it to chicken to rest for 10 mins before serving; Reserve the chicken dripping on the baking tray for the gravy
- Melt the butter and stir in flour. Stir and cook until the flour mixture become slightly brown
- Gradually add in the stock and stir until the gravy thicken.
- Add in cream, salt, pepper and chicken dripping reserved in the baking tray from roasting the chicken into the gravy. Stir in and serve.