Crispy Herbed and Brined Easter Roast Chicken

sshakorah

2 years ago

Easter

There use to be a time when I would pull out all the stops for any and all holidays. The five course meal and its fixings where a must. Everything had to be extravagant and most importantly home made from scratch. But between practices, games, and homeschooling, I have to manage my time and energy wisely. Easter comes at one of the more busy times in our family schedule. Hubby works in finance, and tax season is smack dab in the middle of the month. Not to mention my birthday, my father in law’s, nephew and my daughter’s birthday all come in the same month as well. Easter seems to either fall on a birthday or as close as possible to a birthday. Celebrating Jesus and the day he rose is significant and deserves admiration. Still, I like to celebrate and make the days that made me a mother and the special people in my life significant as well.

Special Occasions

We don’t go all out for birthdays like some. Huge parties and massive amounts of wasted money are really not our thing, but celebrating a momentous day like bringing life into the world is something that I will never pass up. I always make a big cake with requested flavors, hamburgers made with homemade buns and chicken Parmesan for dinner all made from scratch. I love to say I love you with the food that I make so obviously the time that it takes to make everything home made accumulates.

Easter dinner vastly varies between families and their traditions but for me and my family growing up as a child we always had a honey ham, turkey, mash potato and gravy, rolls, collard greens, dads famous ribs, and a cheesecake among other things. With all the aforementioned birthdays, I don’t think I can manage a traditional family meal this year. Cooking the meats alone takes up a lot of time that I must put elsewhere. So this year we will have a more scaled down version of turkey and ham with a simple roast chicken, lasagna, salad, and dessert.

Elevated

Roast chicken can be more elegant than just a standard evening meal. You can( or not) add a few extra steps to elevate the flavors another level. Brining and air drying in the refrigerator can give a delectable crunchy skin and a moist juicy inside that will be remembered for many years to come. It may also become your new Easter tradition. One that can save you hours and give you more time with your family.

Crispy Herbed Brined Easter Roast Chicken

Roast chicken is the perfect substitute for the long day of cooking on a holiday.Easter roasts and/or turkey can be an all day endeavor. Why not give yourself some more time to spend with family by roasting a chicken or two.

Course Dinner,, Lunch

Cuisine American, Canadian, French

Keyword Butter,, chicken, Crispy, Hearty, Instant Pot

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 1 30

Equipment

1 Roasting Pan
1 Instant Pot

Ingredients

5-6 Pound Chicken
1 Lemon
1 Garlic Halved
5 Sprigs Rosemary
4 Carrots Chopped
2 Sticks Celery Cut in half
1/4 Cup Ghee Melted
1/2 Cup Olive Oil Virgin
Salt
Pepper
1 Tsp Smoked Paprika
1 Jalapeno Whole, Optional
1 Bell Pepper

Basic Sweet Brine

1 Gallon Filtered Water
1 Cup Salt
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Cup Chicken Broth Instant pot recipe

Instructions

Basic Sweet Brine

On Medium High Heat Combine all brining ingredients (half Jalapeno optional) until sugar and salt have dissolved. Let cool to room temperature.
Once brine has cooled, submerge cleaned chicken and let chicken sit for 8 hours or overnight.

Herbed Roast Chicken

Preheat oven to 425°. Remove chicken from brine and pat dry. Season inside chicken cavity with salt and pepper to desired liking.
Massage chicken with olive oil and ghee. Season outside with salt and pepper.Fill cavity with halved lemon & garlic, chopped carrots, celery, onion and the optional jalapeno. Tie legs with kitchen string and place breast side up in roasting pan.
Cook chicken for 1 1/2 hours or until temperature reaches 165°. Place chicken under broiler for 5 minutes to crisp skin. Let rest under foil for 20 minutes and serve warm. Enjoy!

Instant Pot Roast Chicken

Place roasting trivet in bottom of pan. Pour in chicken broth Baste chicken with ghee and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper inside the cavity, under the skin, and the outer layer. Add vegetables to the cavity.
Place chicken breast side up and cover with lid. Select high pressure manually and place vent to seal. Cook for 35 minutes. Add 6 minutes for every extra pound. Once time has expired let steam naturally release. Typically 10 to 15 minutes.
Optional: Brown the Chicken for 5 minutes under the broil for crispy skin.