Light and Lemony Garlic Roasted Chicken

Light and Lemony Garlic Roasted Chicken: Submitted by: Kimmo Vallema | Date Added: 18 Dec 2020 Ingredients:

2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped

3 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

3 stalks celery, roughly chopped

1 roasting chicken (3 1/2 to 4 pounds, or 1.6 to 1.8 kg), giblets removed

2 large lemons

4 cloves garlic, minced or mashed

1 teaspoon butter, softened

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 teaspoons (12 g) salt

1 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper, or to taste

Cooking Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C, or gas mark 7).

Place the onions, carrots, and celery in a layer in the bottom of a roasting pan.

Rinse the chicken and pat well with paper towels to dry the skin as much as possible. Allow it to rest for about 20 minutes to get rid of some of the chill in the meat before roasting. Roll the lemons hard under the heel of your hand to break up the fibers (or heat for 10 seconds in the microwave). Slice them in half, squeeze them slightly over the skin and into the cavity of the chicken, and then pack all four halves inside.

In a small bowl, mash the garlic, butter, olive oil, and salt together into a paste and smear it evenly all over the chicken. Sprinkle to taste with fresh-ground pepper. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables, breast up (or use a clay pot as directed). Bake the chicken for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until cooked through (juice from a pierced thigh should run clear, not pink, and the temperature at the meaty part of the leg should reach about 160°F [71°C] on an instant-read thermometer). Remove from the oven and let rest under a tent of aluminum foil for 10 to 15 minutes to finish cooking. Slice the chicken and serve with the vegetables.