how to roast a whole chicken?

Gingham_Ribbon

~Um, never cooked a chicken before. Should there be brown 'juice' running out of it? I got rid of the plastic bag of 'bits' before I put it in the oven.

MrsMW

The juice that runs out should be clear. I usually check by sticking a sharp knife point into the thick part of the leg.
How long have you cooked it for?

Olliebeak

Sounds like the 'bloody juices' were coming out. By now they should be clear - so fingers crossed for you.

Best to do what Mrs MW says and stick a sharp knife point in to make sure that any remaining juices are 'clear'.

I usually do 20 minutes per lb plus 20 mins extra. (3lb chicken for 1hr 20mins - but still test to make sure). If you want to stuff the chicken, you need to rinse and wipe out the cavity, stuff and then re-weigh the bird as it'll take longer. I find it best to cook the stuffing separately in a dish so that the heat can penetrate the body cavity to aid the cooking process.

Hope that helps.

Penelope_Penguin

Gingham_Ribbon wrote: »

~Um, never cooked a chicken before.

That'll be because you're a vegetarian The brown juices are perfectly normal, and show that the chicken isn't yet cooked. When the juices run clear (stick a knife into the thickest point inside the thigh) then it's done.

Enjoy :j Penny. x

Gingham_Ribbon

Thanks all. Not the prettiest experience but it's done now. _pale_

Tasted delicious though.

Olliebeak

Penelope_Penguin wrote: »

That'll be because you're a vegetarian .........

aaahhhh - that explains why :rolleyes: (but I didn't like to ask ) .

Pink_fluff

Hi

Can anybody tell me how to prepare and cook a whole chicken? I've cooked chicken breast etc. But it would be much cheaper to buy a whole chicken

Any help appreciated!

Cheers

Pink.

Hi Pink_fluff,

Cooking a whole chicken for the first time always feels a bit daunting but it much easier than it sounds. This earlier thread should help:

how to roast a whole chicken?

I'll add your thread to that one later to keep the replies together.

Pink

glitterycloud

I remember when I first cooked a whole chicken!! Its quite daunting but if you keep checking on it you will be fine. Its a great learning curve!

3KIDSNOMONEY

Sorry, sure this won't help but my tip is don't put your oven on the grill setting like i did earlier tonight. Kids were starving and had to wait ages for their tea and i was really stressed!