Skip to main content

If there’s one dish that takes the sternest measure of a restaurant kitchen it’s a roasted chicken.

It simply offers no place to hide. Pasty, flabby skin; dry or rubbery, undercooked flesh; too much seasoning or not enough; tasteless, watery-textured meat—it’s all right out in the open for everyone to see (and taste), immune to rescue by ornate sauces, elaborate garnishes or other culinary sleights of hand.

When done properly, however, the unadorned, unpretentious roasted chicken is one of the best things you can put in your mouth. As with most simple dishes, however, achieving that level of gastronomic nirvana requires first-rate product, careful and exacting technique, and equipment that’s up to the task.

All of which are evident when the moist, succulent roasted chicken is served in all its crisp, golden skinned glory at 13 American Table in Boca (451 E. Palmetto Park Road, 561/409-2061), where executive chef Anthony Fiorini uses the exotic and ferociously hot Josper oven to turn out birds that require no place to hide, merely a fork, knife and hearty appetite.

—Bill Citara

 

ROASTED HALF-CHICKEN with SHERRY PAN SAUCE

 

One half-chicken, boned except for wings and leg*

2 tablespoons olive oil or oil of your choice

Handful coarsely chopped thyme, parsley, sage and rosemary

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup sherry

1 1/2 cups chicken stock

Small pat of butter or splash of good olive oil

* If you’re not confident of your chicken-boning skills, ask the butcher at your local supermarket to halve and bone out the bird for you.

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add oil to oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat and when just smoking, add chicken skin-side down.

• As soon as the chicken starts to sizzle, transfer to oven and roast for 20 minutes, then flip the chicken over, scatter with chopped herbs and roast for another 15 to 30 minutes, to an internal temperature of at least 160 degrees. (Total roasting time will depend on the size of the chicken and the efficiency of your oven.)

• Remove chicken from oven and let rest for five to 10 minutes. (At 13 American Table, Fiorini makes a deeply savory roasted chicken stock, then adds that and the sherry to the pan juices. This is an easier procedure to do at home.)

• Remove chicken from pan and let rest. Spoon off some of the chicken fat, the add sherry and reduce slightly. Add chicken stock and reduce until thickened. Finish off the heat with butter or olive oil and serve with chicken.

Boca Magazine

Author Boca Magazine

More posts by Boca Magazine