Step 2. Which you can choose to do or not to do. I always do. BRINE it. Fill a large bowl with salt water and submerge the bird in it. Keep in in the fridge for 4-24 hours. This gives the bird flavor deep in the meat. You can add parsley or citrus to the brine as well. The salt water also helps to plump the meat.
The reason why some people don't brine is because it can dry out the meat. I have never had this happen and am of the mind that brining simply brings more flavor to the table, kinda like that token black guy that was on The Bachelorette a few seasons ago.
So, your bird is brined. Preheat your oven to about 400 degrees. Rinse the sucker out with water and pat it dry. Now your are gonna season and stuff the cavity. Woohoo! Sounds fun, right? You stuff it so the bird cooks evenly and also for flavor so throw whatever you want in there, really, it won't fuck it up. Salt and pepper the inside. Now, I usually put in half an onion or fennel bulb. Half a lemon or orange, a shit ton of garlic, some herbs....chicken love sage, parsley and rosemary but whatever herbs you have will do the trick. Thyme, tarragon etc....Once stuffed, put it in a roasting pan. Some will say you must tie the chicken up. I never do and it always cooks evenly. If you doubt yourself, get some twine and do this : How to tie your bird or just look it up on youtube, there's a bazillion videos.
Now season the outside of the chicken with salt and pepper. Don't be shy folks. Sometimes, I add cayenne if I want my chicken a bit spicy. Take a few pats of butter and put them underneath the skin on the breasts. Breasts love butter. You can also drizzle your bird with olive oil. Now, I like this step. It's a tip from Tyler Florence and you can totally skip it but......bacon makes everything better so.......place 4-5 strips on the breasts. It adds flavor and helps the skin all brown evenly. Add a half chopped onion to the pan and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for about 25 minutes. Remove the bacon and baste with stock or what I do, BEER. Or wine. The beer or wine will give your pan sauce flavor (so does the chopped onion). Continue roasting for about 55 minutes for about a 3 lb bird. Baste every 20 minutes or so with roasting liquid. When there is about 30 minutes remaining, add carrots, potatoes and garlic bulbs to the pan. The roasting liquid will cook and flavor the vegetables. Skin will be brown. When a thermometer reads 165 in the thickest part of the thigh, the chicken is done. Remove and let rest for 15 minutes. Take out vegetables. Skim off any fat from the remaining liquid and put over heat on the stove top. With a wooden spoon, scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. This is FLAVOR, people and tastes delicious. Add a tablespoon or so of flour to thicken the sauce. Whisk so there aren't any lumps. Add a splash or 3 of wine (red or white) . Add chicken stock in stages until sauce is at desired thickness (about a cup and some), and continue whisking. Taste. Add salt and pepper if needed. Carve up the bird and spoon the sauce over it. Everyone will think you're so domestic. Enjoy with the roasted carrots and potatoes (In the pics I also chopped up a fennel bulb and roasted that with the potatoes and carrots) Yummy.
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