chicken

[joannerev]

how do you make really tender chicken

[lafrancaise]

Buy a free range chicken and cover it with foil and cook in hot oven until done then take off the foil to brown 10 mins. This works for me. I find electric ovens are better than gas.

Some people prefer to slow cook it but I don't find the meat as tasty as when roasted.

Hope this helps

[Dingoeater]

I make a herb butter stuffing and insert it between the breast and the skin and inside the cavity then roast it without foil as normal i.e. 20 min per lb + 20 min @ 190C. Tenderest. Chicken. Ever.

[boobesque]

i turn my chicken upside down for the final half an hour cooking and leave it to rest upside down for 20-30 mins after taking out of the oven

[nickmo]

Roasting? A lemon halved and placed in the cavity really helps.

[lynlockwood]

slow cooking for chicken casserole like coq ou vin makes it very tender. a lemon up the bum does wonders for a roast chicken too, I agree.

[nickmo]

Lynlockwood - must be specific - how does inserting a lemon in the manner suggested assist the cooking of chicken - I would just find it uncomfortable.......

[Xollob]

Nickmo, I think it's all a question of perception: I always find that if I slip coming out of the shower and land on a citrus fruit I don't always notice that my chicken is not as tender as it could be...

However, if I want a really tender chicken without damaging my rectal passage I find that a mixture of yoghurt, melted butter, lemon juice, garlic, herbs and spices inserted under the skin (of the chicken) works wonders.

And try and get hold of a chicken larger than most of the rubbish sold in the supermarkets. A local market of mine has chickens that weigh in at around 2.5 kilograms.

And cook them nice and slow. If you don't baste for the last hour or so you'll still get a crispy skin at 150� C.

[nickmo]

Xollob - those pesky citrus fruits, eh? always in the wrong place...a & e must have laugh sometimes...

joannerev - have a squint at the suggestions : http://www.astray.com/recipes/?search=roast+chicken 415 ideas with a lot of variations to keep you going. The astray.com site always seems to come up with a few good ideas to try and as aboe - get the best bird you can - cheapest rubbish from the s/market will not, no matter how you cook it, achieve the results of a quality roasting bird.

[Primular]

Place the chicken in an oven ware dish with a lid. Add salt and pepper and fill the dish halfway with water. Cook in the oven slowly at a low heat till all juices are nearly clear. Remove the lid to brown the chicken for the remainder of cooking time ( when all juices run clear).Use the water to make the gravy, should be delicous.

Hope this helps