I have been on this kick with my buttermilk brined chicken. I can’t get enough of it! This week I was re-watching Salt Fat Acid Heat and remembered where the seed was planted. The wonderful, glorious Samin Nosrat! If you haven’t seen her series, stop what you’re doing now and go watch it! Here’s a video (about buttermilk chicken) to whet your appetite:
I had been making the chicken in the air fryer in preparation for last Saturday’s class. Disaster struck when the nonstick coating started peeling off the inner basket. I decided to return the air fryer and started looking for another model. Apparently, this peeling coating problem is common to a LOT of brands. I would have liked to have ordered one with ceramic or stainless steel, but those models were too small. I found a model that should be big enough for us, BUT I’m not completely convinced it will hold a 4 pound chicken.
In the meantime, I had promised our friends who came over last night a beautiful chicken. I cracked Samin’s book (same title as the show) and found more details on her Buttermilk-Marinated Roast Chicken. So here’s what I did.
INGREDIENTS
- 5 lb chicken
- 1/4 c kosher salt
- 1 tsp ground pepper
- 1 qt buttermilk
- 2 lemons, sliced
- 5 cloves garlic, smashed
INSTRUCTIONS
- In the morning, I put the chicken in a gallon-size ziplock bag with the rest of the ingredients. I usually do this step the night before.
- I removed the chicken from the fridge 1.5 hours before I put it in the oven. I sat it on a wire rack over a plate and just let it drain without patting it dry.
- Preheat the oven to 425℉.
- Place the chicken on a roasting rack in a shallow baking pan and place on the center rack in the back of the oven, legs up and pointing to the back left corner, breast pointing to the center of the oven.
- After 20 minutes, drop the oven temperature to 400℉.
- 10 minutes later, I rotate the chicken so that the legs are pointing to the back right corner of the oven and the breast was still pointing to the center. Cook for 30 minutes in this position.
- Check the chicken. Samin can feel when it’s done, but I use a meat thermometer and check for 165℉ in a few places. Place it back in the oven if need be.
- When done, let the chicken rest for at least 10 minutes before carving.
Last night’s chicken was glorious! And we’ll probably have it again this week.
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