HOW TO SEASON CHICKEN FOR BAKING RECIPES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Arrange opened Cooking Bag in 13x9-inch baking pan or dish. Sprinkle Seasoning Mix evenly over chicken.
• Place chicken in single layer in bag. Add vegetables. Sprinkle any remaining seasoning over chicken and vegetables. Close bag loosely with nylon tie. Cut 4 small holes in top of bag to allow steam to escape.
• Bake in lower half of oven 1 hour. Remove from oven. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut open bag. Serve chicken and vegetables with pan juices. If desired, serve with prepared McCormick® Chicken Gravy.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5. Have a shelf ready in the middle of the oven without any shelves above it.
• Scatter 1 roughly chopped onion and 2 roughly chopped carrots over the base of a roasting tin that fits the whole 1 ½ kg chicken, but doesn’t swamp it.
• Season the cavity of the chicken liberally with salt and pepper, then stuff with 2 lemon halves and a small bunch of thyme, if using.
• Sit the chicken on the vegetables, smother the breast and legs all over with 25g softened butter, then season the outside with salt and pepper.
• Place in the oven and leave, undisturbed, for 1 hr 20 mins – this will give you a perfectly roasted chicken. To check, pierce the thigh with a skewer and the juices should run clear.
• Carefully remove the tin from the oven and, using a pair of tongs, lift the chicken to a dish or board to rest for 15-20 mins. As you lift the dish, let any juices from the chicken pour out of the cavity into the roasting tin.
• While the chicken is resting, make the gravy. Place the roasting tin over a low flame, then stir in 1 tbsp flour and sizzle until you have a light brown, sandy paste.
• Gradually pour in 250ml chicken stock, stirring all the time, until you have a thickened sauce.
• Simmer for 2 mins, using a wooden spoon to stir, scraping any sticky bits from the tin.
• Strain the gravy into a small saucepan, then simmer and season to taste. When you carve the bird, add any extra juices to the gravy.