Crispy Skin Cast Iron Pan Roasted Chicken

Video Description

Cooking a chicken whole is always a matter of trade-offs. If you want perfectly cooked thighs, you might need to overcook the breast slightly. If you want juicy meat, you might not get crispy skin. That’s because the breasts and legs require different temperatures. You want to cook the breasts to somewhere between 61-67°C (141.8-152.6°F), but in order for the legs to cook and their connective tissues to break down into collagen, you want to bring them to at least 71°C (159.8°F) and maintain that for a while. This is what makes chicken my favourite thing to cook. It’s a different puzzle every time. 0:00 - The Trade-Offs of Roasting Chicken 0:13 - How to Achieve Truly Crispy Skin 1:50 - Tightening the Skin by Blanching 3:37 - Preparing the Chicken For the Cast Iron Pan 3:46 - Removing Moisture with Bread 4:31 - Using a Meat Probe 4:46 - Heating Up the Cast Iron Pan 5:14 - Time-Lapse of Chicken Roasting in the Oven 5:22 - Taking the Chicken Out of the Oven 5:38 - Why I Do Not Rest the Chicken In This Particular Recipe In this recipe, we are solving for crispy skin while doing all we can to not overcook the breasts by too much. To achieve crispy skin, you need to eliminate moisture as much as possible, both before and during cooking. (That’s why deep frying is conducive to crispiness. Hot oil evaporates water.) To eliminate moisture before cooking, if time permits, one of the best things to do is to dry brine (salt it and leave it uncovered in the fridge) the chicken for up to 3 days. During cooking, the chicken flesh releases its moisture, which is a huge hindrance to the skin crisping up. To avoid that, we borrow the Peking duck method by separating the skin from the flesh, thus creating a channel for the moisture to escape. We then quickly blanch the chicken with boiling water to tighten the skin. This reduces the likelihood of pockets of steam forming during cooking. To further reduce moisture, we stuff the inside of the bird with bread so that the bread soaks up whatever liquid is released by the inside of the chicken. We also add bread to the cast iron pan to soak up moisture from the outside. (These are the tasty ones.) To avoid overcooking the breasts (it came to 68°C) by too much, we are using a cast iron pan and an (optional) pizza stone. This will ensure the chicken cooks more from the bottom, giving the thigh meat a head start. That’s why we are not trussing the bird because we want the legs to be as close to the pan as possible. Because we are prioritising the skin, the resting period should be kept to a minimum. You don’t want to give the flesh time to steam the skin. *Ingredients* Chicken - whole, preferably corn-fed Salt Soy sauce (optional) Mirin (optional) Vegetable oil Water *Directions* 1. If time permits, salt the chicken with 0.6% of salt to the chicken’s weight and leave it uncovered in the fridge for up to 3 days before cooking. 2. At least 30 minutes before cooking, put the pizza stone (if using) to the bottom of the oven and set the oven to the highest setting. 3. Using your fingers and the back of a spoon or a chopstick, carefully separate the chicken skin from the flesh. Using a paring knife, remove the Parson's nose (or butt) and cut around the knuckles on both legs to release the skin. 4. Bring a pot of water to boil and season with salt, soy sauce, and mirin (optional). Very quickly, blanch the chicken to tighten the skin, then leave it on a rack until most of the liquid has evaporated. You can use a fan to speed up the process. 5. Add the chicken to a cast iron pan with some vegetable oil (or any high smoke point oil). Stuff the inside of the chicken with bread and add the remainder to the pan. 6. Bring heat to the pan at high heat (induction 8.5) until the pan’s handle gets too hot to touch. 7. Transfer the pan carefully directly on the pizza stone in the oven and cook until the thickest part of the thigh meat registers 70°C (158°F). (The short resting period will bring it to about 74°C (165.2°F). 8. Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, carve and serve immediately with the crispy bread. (Don’t serve the ones inside the bird.) ______________ Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/w2kitchn/ #W2Kitchen #roastedchicken #crispychicken