Upside Down Chicken...

 

As you may recall, part of my New Years Resolution was to post weekly recipes for my grown kids, so they can have some of Mom's recipes to tuck into their cookbook cupboard.  We are two weeks into the New Year and this is recipe number 2...woo hoo, I haven't broken this resolution as of yet!!

  

Today's recipe is an old family favorite.  We enjoyed this over the weekend at our house...

don't think I made this in the year 2011, not sure how I could forget about this one...it is fabulous! The kids, when they were younger, would request this dish...they called it " that upside down chicken."

 

It's real name is Amish Roast Chicken and Potatoes with Garlic.  The recipe comes from an older cookbook of mine, titled NEW RECIPES FROM QUILT COUNTRY by Marcia Adams.  This is a lovely cookbook with wonderful photos and stories of Amish country.

So let's get started...

 

Peel red potatoes, carrots and onions and cut up into chunks.  Use whatever amount will feed your family...and maybe even a little extra for leftovers!  This dish is just as good heated up the next day.

 

Peel 6 or 7 large garlic cloves.

 

Chop some fresh thyme, the more the merrier...

 

Rinse and clean a chicken well and pat dry with a paper towel.  Place the chicken, breast side up, in a shallow 15" x 12" greased pan.  I like to use my well seasoned terra cotta clay pan for this.  Separate the skin from the breast meat with your fingers and insert a liberal amount of thyme between the two.  Place a handful of un-chopped thyme into the cavity of the chicken.  Place onions, carrots, garlic and potatoes around the chicken.

 Add 1 heaping teaspoon of chicken bouillon granules to 1 cup hot water.

 

Melt one stick of butter.  Mix butter into bouillon/water mixture.

 Pour chicken stock/butter mixture over the chicken and vegetables.

 

Cut a lemon in half.

Squeeze lemon over the chicken.

Tuck spent lemon halves along with the thyme into the cavity of the chicken.

Season chicken breast with chopped thyme and freshly ground salt and pepper.

Place in a preheated 425 degrees oven.  Bake the chicken for 1 1/2 hours.  The chicken should now have formed a lovely brown and crispy skin and the aroma in your house is amazing....

 Now take the chicken and flip upside down.  Yep, this is where my kids got the upside down chicken from!! 

It is at this time that you now turn the oven down to 325 degrees.  The high temp of the oven to begin with seals in the juices of the chicken.  When the chicken gets turned upside down, the fat from the dark meat will now run down into the normally drier white meat, making for very moist white meat....delicious!

Bake upside down for 1 1/2 - 2 hours or until leg easily breaks away from the body.

Remove the veggies and chicken from the pan.  Place veggies back into the oven while you prepare a gravy.

 Let the chicken rest at room temp for 10 - 15 minutes before carving.

Separate the fat from the drippings from the bottom of the pan, saving the drippings

Measure drippings and add enough water to make 2 cups of liquid.  Place in a small stove top kettle.

Add two packets of chicken gravy mix, stirring to mix.

Bring to a boil, stirring until thick.  The lemon, garlic and herbs in the drippings make a delicious gravy...yummers.

Our favorite side dish with this meal is fresh green beans.

And remember those garlic cloves we tucked into the dish?  You get to fight over those...they are wonderful spread on warm-from-the-oven French Baguette bread.

Play for a printable version of this recipe...click the arrow to start.

Free printable recipe card generated with Smilebox

Enjoy,

Brenda