Roast chicken

Ingredients

• 1whole chicken, about 2 kg, free-range if you can
• 2 tspsea salt
• 1 tspblack pepper, freshly ground
• 2 tbspolive oil
• 1lemon, halved
• 1 bulbgarlic, halved across the middle
• 1/4 ozfresh thyme, a small bunch
• 2onions, cut into thick rounds

Method

1. 1

   Take the chicken out of the fridge, pat it completely dry with paper towels, and rub the salt and pepper all over the skin. Leave it uncovered at room temperature while the oven heats.

2. 2

   Heat the oven to 425°F. Lay the onion rounds in the middle of a roasting pan to make a raft, sit the chicken on top, and push the lemon halves, the garlic and the thyme into the cavity. Rub the olive oil over the skin.

3. 3

   Roast at 425°F for fifteen minutes to set the skin, then turn the oven down to 375°F and roast until the juices from the thickest part of the thigh run clear with no pink.

4. 4

   Lift the chicken onto a warm board or plate, tent it loosely with foil, and leave it alone. Do not skip this and do not cover it tightly, which softens the skin you just spent an hour crisping.

5. 5

   Tip most of the fat out of the pan, set it over a low heat, and squash the roasted onions and garlic into the sticky brown bits with a spoon. Add a splash of water, scrape everything loose, and strain it over the carved chicken.