Session 62 — High-Heat Whole-Bird Roast
← Block 23–24: Poultry Overview
Skill: The classic high-heat roast — 450°F, bird dry-brined overnight, no basting. This produces crackling skin and juicy meat if you understand why: the high heat cooks so fast it dries the surface before the interior overcooks. A chicken at high heat is not an accident. It's physics.
- Read (before you cook): Serious Eats — The Science of Perfect Roast Chicken
- Dry-brine the bird the night before the block starts: kosher salt inside and out, uncovered in the fridge
- Roast at 450°F on a rack. No tent. No basting. Let it go.
Full Meal: Roast chicken + Serious Eats — The Best Roast Potatoes Ever + Watercress Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette — the peppery bite cuts through the roasted chicken fat
Skill note: Take the bird's temperature in three places — thigh near the joint, thickest part of the breast, and the cavity near the backbone. They'll never be the same reading. Understand the variance before you declare it "done."
🎥 Compare Notes: How to Properly Roast a Chicken — Watch his setup before the bird goes in — dry skin, rack position, pan underneath. Every step is a reason.