Roast Chicken with Quinoa, Swiss Chard, and Lime
By Lan LamPublished on November 29, 2021
Time
1¾ hours
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Before You Begin
This recipe was developed with Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt; if using Morton Kosher Salt, which is denser, decrease the amount for the chicken to 1¾ teaspoons and the amount for the quinoa to ¼ teaspoon. We like prewashed quinoa; rinsing removes bitter saponins from the surface of the quinoa. If you buy unwashed quinoa, rinse it and then spread it out on a clean dish towel to dry for 15 minutes. Rainbow chard is particularly attractive here, but regular chard will also work.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Stir 2½ teaspoons salt and pepper together in small bowl. Place chicken breast side up on cutting board. Using kitchen shears, thoroughly trim excess fat and skin from cavity. Lift 1 drumstick and use paring knife to cut ½-inch slit in skin where drumstick and thigh meet. Turn chicken on side so breast faces edge of counter. Cut ½-inch slit in skin where top of thigh meets breast. Repeat both cuts on opposite side of chicken. Tuck wingtips behind back. Sprinkle about one-third of salt mixture into cavity. Brush top and sides of chicken with melted butter. Sprinkle remaining salt mixture evenly over all sides of chicken.
- Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Place chicken breast side up in skillet; transfer to oven; and roast until thickest part of breast registers 150 to 155 degrees, 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, rotating skillet halfway through roasting. Transfer chicken to carving board and let rest for 15 minutes (chicken temperature will continue to rise as it rests).
- Meanwhile, pour pan juices into fat separator. Add 2 teaspoons fat to now-empty skillet. Add chard stems and onion and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cumin and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add quinoa and stir until well combined. Stir in ¼ cup defatted pan juices, water, lime juice, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt and bring to simmer. Spread chard leaves in even layer over quinoa; reduce heat to low; cover; and cook until quinoa is just tender and all liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
- Carve chicken and transfer to platter. Fluff quinoa, stir in lime zest, season with salt to taste, and transfer to bowl. Serve chicken with quinoa.
Time
1¾ hoursYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
For a golden-brown, juicy, and tender roast chicken, we trimmed off excess skin and fat from the cavity and cut small slits in the skin above and below the thigh. Then we brushed the skin with melted butter instead of oil to facilitate browning. Roasting the chicken breast side up in a preheated skillet set in a 400-degree oven helped the legs finish cooking at the same time as the breast. Cutting slits in the skin allowed juices to drain from the chicken onto the skillet, where they browned, concentrated, and developed more flavor. Finally, we removed the chicken when the breast registered 150 to 155 degrees and let it rest for 15 minutes so that it could gently rise to the serving temperature of 160 degrees. While the bird rested, we used the umami-rich jus as a base for cooking an ultraflavorful side dish of quinoa with Swiss chard.
Want more? Read the whole storyBefore You Begin
This recipe was developed with Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt; if using Morton Kosher Salt, which is denser, decrease the amount for the chicken to 1¾ teaspoons and the amount for the quinoa to ¼ teaspoon. We like prewashed quinoa; rinsing removes bitter saponins from the surface of the quinoa. If you buy unwashed quinoa, rinse it and then spread it out on a clean dish towel to dry for 15 minutes. Rainbow chard is particularly attractive here, but regular chard will also work.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Stir 2½ teaspoons salt and pepper together in small bowl. Place chicken breast side up on cutting board. Using kitchen shears, thoroughly trim excess fat and skin from cavity. Lift 1 drumstick and use paring knife to cut ½-inch slit in skin where drumstick and thigh meet. Turn chicken on side so breast faces edge of counter. Cut ½-inch slit in skin where top of thigh meets breast. Repeat both cuts on opposite side of chicken. Tuck wingtips behind back. Sprinkle about one-third of salt mixture into cavity. Brush top and sides of chicken with melted butter. Sprinkle remaining salt mixture evenly over all sides of chicken.
- Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Place chicken breast side up in skillet; transfer to oven; and roast until thickest part of breast registers 150 to 155 degrees, 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, rotating skillet halfway through roasting. Transfer chicken to carving board and let rest for 15 minutes (chicken temperature will continue to rise as it rests).
- Meanwhile, pour pan juices into fat separator. Add 2 teaspoons fat to now-empty skillet. Add chard stems and onion and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cumin and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add quinoa and stir until well combined. Stir in ¼ cup defatted pan juices, water, lime juice, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt and bring to simmer. Spread chard leaves in even layer over quinoa; reduce heat to low; cover; and cook until quinoa is just tender and all liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
- Carve chicken and transfer to platter. Fluff quinoa, stir in lime zest, season with salt to taste, and transfer to bowl. Serve chicken with quinoa.
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