“好烤鸡永远不会​​让你失望，”我的祖母说，露西亚和我绝对同意她。整个烤鸡搭配酥脆，咸的皮肤，湿润的胸肉和浓密的深色肉，从精致的食客到一个挑剔的孩子，都吸引了所有人。这就是为什么它使完美的周日晚餐。

但是，让任何两个好厨师就如何真正烤鸡肉达成共识是另一个故事。您是否使用高温，快速烘烤？还是您应该将其慢慢放慢？桁架紧紧还是放松？绷？是的？不？

我们尝试了几种方法来真正探索什么最有效的方法，虽然我们承认确实有很多方法可以制作好烤鸡（单击链接以获取数十个烤鸡肉食谱），我们开发了一种我们认为很简单的方法，但可以为我们带来美味的结果。

We start with an initial blast of heat, followed by roasting at a moderate temperature; we don’t truss, and we don’t baste (except for small birds). We do pay careful attention to the first and last steps of the process—we season the bird to make it even more flavorful, and we always like to go one step further than just plain roast chicken by transforming the flavorful pan juices into a simple but delicious sauce.

Web Extra：Get ourfive quick tips for perfect roast chicken。

如何选择最好的鸡肉烤

Chickens labeled “roasters” are generally older and larger (up to 5 pounds) than “broilers” or “fryers.” We think roasters make the best choice because they’ve developed more muscle tissue and they carry a thicker layer of fat (which cooks off). Put simply, they’re more flavorful.

We usually choose organic, free-range chicken when we can, and while making generalizations about them is tricky, we’ve noticed that the free-range chickens tend to have bigger thighs and slightly smaller breasts than regular mass-produced chickens. They also tend to be slaughtered later and so they’ve developed a fine layer of fat and muscle tone, all of which enrich flavor when roasting. We’ve found that free-range chickens tend to have a firm, not mushy, texture, and they taste more like, well, chicken.

将黄油用于褐变，调味料以提高风味

烤鸡的简单性是其吸引力的一部分，因此我们不喜欢用很多成分和挑剔的步骤将其弄乱，但我们确实希望在烤前给鸟增添良好的味道。亚搏手机版官方通常，我们只会使用黄油和调味料，但是为了改变，我们可能会腌制整只鸟。

对于一种基本方法，我们用软化的无盐黄油擦拭鸟的外部，这鼓励了褐色，我们在乳房的皮肤下进行一些黄油和其他调味料，以帮助保持湿润，并在温和的肉中添加一些风味。在鸟腔内外，大量的盐和胡椒粉都很重要，因此在烘烤过程中，调味料可以吸收到肉中，比以后尝试调味表面更有效。

我们通常还将其他味道添加到腔体中 - herbs，柠檬，大蒜丁香，可以帮助使肉，尤其是锅汁从鸟流到烤盘中。

不要束缚，但要尝试一个架子

桁架似乎很耗时，有点适得其反。桁架将鼓棒和翅膀保持在身体附近，以使乳房内部的皮肤以及鼓槌和翅膀内部的皮肤都不错。而且，要以相同的速度使细腻的胸肉和浓密的深色肉烹饪已经是一个问题，并且桁架可以使黑肉需要更长的时间来烹饪。

We do like to use a V-shaped rack when possible, which cradles the bird and holds it up higher off the pan than a flat rack (or no rack at all). This lets the hot air circulate under the bird so that it browns entirely — no more flabby chicken skin on the back side. By lifting the chicken up, the juices hit the pan and evaporate into a rich, caramelized layer (the intensely flavorful base for your sauce), leaving the fat as a layer that can simply be poured off. We’ve found that when setting the chicken on a flat rack or directly in the roasting pan, the juices that collect around the chicken never have the chance to reduce. Though flavorful, they aren’t caramelized so they’re not as rich tasting, and they’re mixed with the fat, which makes degreasing difficult.

使用初始的热量来酥脆而不弄乱

爆破热酥脆的皮肤，使鸡肉具有鲜味的鲜味，，，，but we recommend just an initial 15 to 20 minutes at 450°F, followed by a more moderate 375°F for the remaining cooking time. High heat throughout cooking works, but the fat spatters a lot, making a needless mess. If the heat is too low, however, the skin never really develops that lovely crispy brown and the meat tastes too bland. As for basting, larger birds are fattier and don’t need to be basted; we only baste birds that are under three pounds.

Ovens vary and so do chickens, so cooking times in the recipes should be guidelines only.您还需要考虑的是edients in the pan; for example, our酸奶腌制鸡肉和蘑菇花费更长的时间，因为您有两磅的蘑菇与鸡肉共享锅。重要的是要学习煮熟的鸡肉的迹象。我们不喜欢过度的鸟类，但是与红肉不同，鸡肉的味道和质地并不能受益于未煮熟的。

Our tests for doneness start with color.皮肤应该是深金色的，当您将其刺入（以及倾斜整只鸟时的腔体）时，大腿的果汁应该是清晰的，而不是玫瑰色。鼓槌通常很容易在插座上摆动，尽管有时很难抓住热鸟。您应该使用的最终测试在您真正的经验之前要使用的是将温度计粘在大腿肉的中间，不太靠近骨头，也不会离皮肤太近。它应该读取170°F。

快点等待。The next step in roasting may seem counterintuitive: you pull your golden-brown bird hot from the oven and you want to rush it to the table. Don’t. The chicken will be much better if you let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes. This lets the juices redistribute themselves. We actually prop up the chicken, backside up, to let the juices run into the breast meat. The 10-minute rest also gives you time to degrease and deglaze the pan and to finish your sauce.

Capture all the flavor by making a sauce from the drippings

This is always our final step in roasting a chicken, and one that we think too many cooks overlook—making a sauce from the pan juices. The crusty bits that cling to the roasting pan are like gold: concentrated nubbins of roast chicken flavor. We pour or spoon off all the fat (don’t go crazy and try to get every drop: a little residual fat won’t make your sauce too greasy, and chicken fat tastes good) and then add some liquid to the pan to melt the caramelized juices, forming a thin, shiny veil that covers the pan. We add some stock, reduce it, add a little more, and then reduce that to a silky sauce, thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. If you like, you can reduce just once, but we like the double reduction technique because it seems to create layers of more complex flavors.