Easy Weeknight Roast Chicken and Root Vegetables

At least two hours before cooking:
Take out giblets or any other weird stuff that may be packed in the cavity of the chicken. Tell the chicken you love it and thank it for providing itself to you and for agreeing to be delicious. Salt the chicken liberally inside and out. This will make the skin nice and crisp but also make the meat amazingly tender and flavorful. Cover lightly with foil, and place in fridge.

An hour before cooking:
Take the chicken out of the fridge. It’s all about the temperature: a cold chicken put into a hot oven will result in uneven cooking.

Then: Preheat oven to 425 F. Place a lemon inside the chicken cavity. Or an onion. Just put something moist in the cavity or else it will dry out. Optional: Rub chicken with butter, ghee, or coconut oil, even getting under the skin.

Roughly chop root vegetables into 2-inch chunks, toss with the olive oil and a sprinkle of salt to coat.

Lay veggies in a baking pan, large oven-proof frying pan, or cast iron skillet. Place the birdie, breast side up, on top of the root vegetables. Place in the oven for about an hour.

After an hour of minding your own business, take chicken out of the oven. You’ll know it’s done when you tilt the chicken and the juices that run out of the cavity are clear. If they aren’t clear, put it back into the oven for a few minutes longer.

Set the dish on a cooling rack. Let the chicken sit for about 15 minutes to let all those juices settle back in. Then cut, and serve along with a hefty helping of veggies. Or cut it apart, pull the meat off and put it into the refrigerator for easy leftovers on tomorrow’s salad.