One of the most beloved and widespread dishes in Russia is oven-baked chicken. Its popularity is not at all accidental, because even chicken cooked according to the simplest recipe always turns out to be tasty, juicy and soft. Despite the apparent ease of preparation of this dish, it requires some culinary skills and knowledge of certain secrets.
In order for a bird baked in the oven to turn out to be truly juicy and tasty, you must, first of all, choose the right carcass, and also strictly observe the temperature and cooking time of the meat.
It is advisable to purchase chilled or steamed poultry, which differs from frozen in a richer taste and tender meat.
For cooking in the oven, chicken carcasses up to a year old and weighing not exceeding 1.5 kg are most suitable. Pay special attention to the freshness of the poultry meat. Fresh, high-quality chicken has well-developed muscle tissue, a rounded breast without too prominent bones. The skin should be uniform, pale yellow with a pink tinge, and the meat and fat of the poultry should not have any spots. Gray skin color, uneven muscle fibers or too yellow fat indicate a poor quality product. Be sure to sniff the chicken before purchasing. Quality products have a pleasant sweetish aroma.
When choosing utensils for cooking, give preference to a ceramic or cast iron mold. Such a container, as it heats up, will save you from problems such as burning and uneven baking of meat. Glass and metal molds are also suitable, but they will require closer attention to temperature conditions. For housewives who prefer to bake the whole bird, there are special deep forms on sale with a cone located in their central part or metal stands that hold the chicken in an upright position.
It is very important to monitor the temperature during the frying process. Meat can be considered completely ready for consumption when the temperature inside it exceeds 85 ° C. However, it can only be measured with a special thermometer. You can determine the readiness of a chicken without professional devices by following some recommendations. Place the prepared carcass only in a preheated oven. At the same time, keep in mind that at temperatures from 180 to 200 ° C, meat is baked for about 40 minutes per kilogram of weight. The readiness of the dish is checked by punctures with a toothpick in the breast area. The juice released from the meat should be clean and transparent, without impurities of blood and turbidity. But you should not keep the chicken in the oven for too long, otherwise the meat will dry out and acquire a not very pleasant smell of melted fat.
In order to get an appetizing golden brown crust, grease the chicken with a small amount of melted honey or a thin layer of sour cream. It is better to refuse mayonnaise used as a coating. It will give your bird an unpleasant vinegar smell and add extra fat to your bird, which will negatively affect the taste of the finished dish.
The easiest way to bake your chicken deliciously in the oven is to cook it on a baking sheet sprinkled with a thick layer of coarse salt. To do this, preheat the oven. Rinse the carcass, cut it in the center of the breast, open it like a book. Then rub the meat with ground black pepper. Spread a kilogram of coarse salt on a baking sheet and place the chicken on top of it. Bake until tender.
Do not be afraid that the meat will be salted, it will absorb as much salt as it needs to be salted.
With no hassle, you get an evenly grilled meat with a crispy brown crust.
