Recipes Roast Chicken 5.0 (4,747) Add your rating & review More roast chicken recipes have made their way through the F&W Test Kitchen over the years than we can count, but this one from chef-owner Jerry Traunfeld of The Herbfarm near Seattle, which was first published in F&W in July 1999, is memorable because of its garlicky-herb flavor and delicious pan juices. Bruising fresh bay leaves by holding both ends and twisting in opposite directions makes them more potent. If fresh bay leaves are unavailable, use fresh sprigs of thyme or marjoram. Amazing Chicken Recipes By Jerry Traunfeld Jerry Traunfeld F&W Star Chef » See All F&W Chef Superstars Restaurant: Poppy, Seattle Experience: The Herbfarm, Woodinville, WA; Alexis Hotel, Seattle; Stars, San Francisco Education: California Culinary Academy What is your signature dish? The recipe I’m most famous for is slow-roast salmon with spring herb sauce. You roast it at a low temperature, between 225 and 250 degrees, which is a simple and a foolproof way to cook salmon, but you have to use wonderful, fresh wild salmon. My tip for the sauce, which is a very light butter sauce, is at the end you throw in tons of fresh herbs. Be exuberant with the herbs and chop them coarsely. My top choices are chervil, chives, lemon thyme and lovage, but there’s a huge variety and you can use basil, tarragon and parsley. What is the first dish you ever cooked? Julia Child’s potato leek soup. I was 11 or 12 years old; I was watching a lot of Julia Child on television, she was making this soup and it looked like fun. My mom was all for my making it, and the soup came out great, or at least they said it did. For a neophyte cook, soup is great, because it’s all about balancing flavor and you can learn about that and about chopping. What is your favorite cookbook of all time? I have many favorite cookbooks of all time, including Julia Child’s The French Chef; The Vegetarian Epicure, by Anna Thomas; From a Breton Garden, by Josephine Araldo and Robert Reynolds; Jane Grigson’s Vegetable Book; The Wisdom of the Chinese Kitchen, by Grace Young; Classic Indian Cooking, by Julie Sahni; and Paula Wolfert’s books. It’s too hard to choose just one. What is the most important skill you need as a chef? The most important skill you need to be a great cook is timing. Everything is based on timing. How long to keep the fish in the pan, when to start the peas if you’re adding them to the pasta, and on and on. Timing’s something you really have to have a sense of to be a good cook. What is the best bang-for-the-buck ingredient? Dried beans. In the winter I’ll cook a big batch of heirloom beans with some aromatics and then I’ll eat them all week. I’ll prepare them with some nice sausage, as bean cakes, in a soup or with a pasta dish. They’re really versatile, and cost almost nothing. What are you obsessed with cooking right now? I’ve been obsessed lately with Chinese cooking, and I use tons of recipes from Fuchsia Dunlop’s new book Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking. I’m going on a tour of China with her in October. Grace Young’s books are also hugely inspiring. I am really interested in Sichuan cooking. The thing that I’m really learning is the simplicity of Chinese cooking, and that you can always taste the ingredient, it’s not hidden. What do you snack on from the refrigerator? I always have kimchi in the refrigerator. My favorite snack is Kettle Brand Krinkle Cut Cheddar & Sour Cream potato chips. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on July 18, 2022 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: © Jonelle Weaver Active Time: 15 mins Total Time: 1 hrs 20 mins Yield: 4 to 6 Ingredients Two 3-pound chickens, preferably free range 24 fresh bay leaves, bruised, plus bay branches, for garnish 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 3 tablespoons olive oil Salt and freshly ground pepper Directions Preheat the oven to 450°. Bend back the chicken wing tips and tuck them under their first joints. Using your fingertips, carefully loosen the chicken skin without tearing it, working your hand under the skin all the way up the breast and down into the thighs. Tuck 2 bay leaves in the cavity of each bird. Tuck the remaining leaves under the loosened skin: 2 on each thigh and 3 on each side of each breast. Distribute the garlic evenly under the skin. Tie the legs together with string. Set the chickens in a large, shallow roasting pan. Rub them all over with the olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Roast the chickens for 55 to 65 minutes, or until the chickens are browned and the juices run clear; rotate the pan halfway through. Remove the chickens from the oven and let stand in a warm place for 10 minutes. Transfer to a platter and garnish with the bay branches. Remove and discard the bay leaves from under the skin before carving the chickens. Suggested Pairing A medium-bodied red, like Chianti, is the best match for this aromatic chicken. Rate it Print