SIMPLE ROAST CHICKEN W/ SCHMALTZY HERBY CARROTS & SHALLOTS & A VERY GARLICKY LEMONY SOUR CREAM

fancy yet simple and so so so good

This is a perfect meal IMO. It’s amazing with a simple and fresh salad or with some rice to soak up all the sauce and dressing from the carrots. It’s also great on its own if you can’t bring yourself to make an extra side. Adding the vinegar and herbs to the carrots and shallots in the pan with all the chicken fat will make a really lovely and simple dressing for all the vegetables. We love the simplicity of a one pan meal but we LOVE (in all caps) when it can be simple and still feel sophisticated af. Perfect for having guests over but just as perfect for a weeknight meal AND it makes the best leftovers. If you can, salt the chicken the night before and leave uncovered in the fridge. This will dry the skin out and help it get even crispier and more brown while it roasts. In a version of this (while I was creating the recipe) I spatchcocked the chicken but I actually feel like it’s best just left whole. Left whole it takes up less space in the pan which makes more room for the veggies. But hey take that backbone out if ya want, I’m not gonna stop ya!!

Happy cookin’!!

ingredients

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for the chicken and carrots

• 1 3-4 lb whole chicken

• 1 lb carrots (if you are using carrots with the tops go for 1.5 lbs or about 2 bunches) - tops removed and left whole, with the exception of cutting any much larger carrots in half so they are all roughly the same size.

• 1 lb shallots, skins removed and cut in half

• salt

• pepper

• olive oil

• 1/4 cup dill, chopped

• 1/4 cup chives, thinly sliced

• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar, plus more to taste

for the garlicky sour cream

• 1 cup sour cream

• 1/2 a lemon, juiced

• 2 garlic cloves, grated

• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste if needed

instructions

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1. At least 3 hours before (but preferably the night before) you plan to roast the chicken, pat the bird dry and generously salt it all over with about 3-4 teaspoons of salt. Leave it in the fridge uncovered and take it out 1 hour before you plan to put it in the oven.
   I eyeball the salt and just generously coat it but if you like to measure, you want 1 teaspoon per pound of meat. So if the chicken is 3.5 pounds then use 3.5 teaspoons of salt.

2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees

3. Place the chicken, breast side up, in a very large (12 inch minimum) cast iron or oven safe skillet/roasting pan. Drizzle all over with a bit of olive oil and crack black pepper all over the skin.

4. Toss the carrots and shallots in a bowl with 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt and lots of fresh cracked black pepper and add them to the pan arranged around the chicken.

5. Place the pan in the oven with the legs facing the back left side of the oven and roast for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes give the carrots and shallots a toss in the pan to ensure they cook evenly.

6. place back in the oven with the legs now facing the back right corner of the oven, until the juices run clear when the skin between the thigh and breast is pierced with a knife or the internal temperature reaches 155 degrees Fahrenheit. About another 25-35 minutes.

7. WHILE THE CHICKEN ROASTS MAKE THE GARLICKY SOUR CREAM: Mix the sour cream, lemon juice, grated garlic, and salt in a bowl and taste. add more lemon juice or salt if needed. The longer this sits the more the garlic will come through.

8. Take the chicken out of the pan when it is done and place on a cutting board to rest for at least 15 minutes before carving. The carrots and shallots should be done after the chicken is done roasting but check by piercing one of the larger carrots with a fork. If it does not pierce easily give everything a toss and put the pan back in the oven (without the chicken in it) to cook for another 5-10 minutes.

9. Once the carrots and shallots are done add the sherry vinegar, dill, and chives to the pan and toss it all together. Taste a carrot and if it needs a bit more salt or vinegar add more until it tastes perfect to you.

10. I like to serve the carrots and shallots piled in top of the garlicky sour cream and the chicken on the side. This is great with any kind of salad and also great with rice to mix into everything as well.

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