baked split whole chicken with lemon and rosemary
I don’t know about you? I don’t care much for baking in the summer months. It just makes the house too hot. But now that the weather is making a turn into cooler days and chilly nights, I’m ready for some Baked Chicken.
Even though we eat at home most days, just like many of you, I don’t have all day to cook. By having my butcher split open the whole chicken, it helps reduce the chicken’s cooking time almost in half. This Lemon and Rosemary Whole Chicken recipe is fast and easy for a weeknight supper but it looks fancy enough for a weekend dinner party.
Something different you will notice about this recipe, the chicken is bathed in vinegar for a few minutes. This is a step I learned from my mother and grandmother. I really don’t know why they did this to all their meats but I can assume it was to clean the meat. Possible do to the vinegars’ antibacterial qualities. However, I was reading an article on the benefits of vinegar the other day, and apparently, it can help you lose weight too. Mom and grandma are geniuses! Nevertheless, it gives the chicken a really nice acidic undertone.
Ingredients:
1 split chicken (3 to 4 lbs.)
½ cup of white vinegar
2 tbsp. dry adobo
¼ cup olive oil
1 to 2 lemons cut in slices
1 tbsp. of lemon juice
Swings of fresh rosemary
1 tsp basil (fresh or dry)
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
Place the whole split chicken into a large bowl and bathe in the ½ cup of vinegar. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Run water over the chicken until the vinegar is washed away. Approx. 30 sec.
Sprinkle the dry adobo and lemon juice on the chicken on both sides of the chicken.
In a large baking dish arrange two swings of rosemary and slices of lemons before placing chicken on top.
Once in the baking dish, drizzle the chicken with olive oil; sprinkle with salt, black pepper, and basil.
Place two more swings of rosemary and slices of lemon on top of chicken and refrigerate at least 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Bake in preheated oven until chicken meat is no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, 45 to 60 minutes.
