Ratowitz Family Lemon Tarragon Chicken
Ingredients:
2-3# Chickens
6-Whole Lemons (3-cut in 4 quarters/1-cut into slices/2-juiced)
Fresh Tarragon
Sea Salt and Pepper (Over the years I’ve used an assortment of salts including Smoked, infused with various herbs and plain old Kosher)
Whole Garlic Cloves
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Mashed Garlic (if you freeze the cloves and let them thaw out the make a terrific paste)
Yellow Onions for the bottom of the pan
Method:
Chicken Prep:
Massage cavity of chickens with Olive Oil and fill with quartered lemons, whole garlic, fresh tarragon and salt and pepper.
Slide under breast skin, Lemon slices, mashed garlic and fresh tarragon
Mix mashed garlic with lemon juice and massage skin (if you don’t use all of this pour into cavity), sprinkle with salt and pepper (I am liberal with the pepper)
Slice onions and sprinkle on bottom of baking pan with additional garlic cloves (I use a glass pyrex).
Roasting Time:
Cover and Place in preheated 350 Oven (roasting setting if possible).
Roast for approximately 30 minutes then baste with juices and remove cover to brown and crisp the skin for approximately 30 minutes.
Remove chicken when internal temperature is 170 or juice runs clear and legs wiggle free easily.
The Final Step:
Let sit for 15 and then cut each chicken into 10 pieces (2-wings, 2-thighs, 2-legs, 4-breast)
The remaining juice is also delicious. Sometime I simmer it a bit to reduce, add chopped parsley and serve on the side. Sometimes I add a bit of dry vermouth.
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