I learned this in cooking school and taught it to several chefs over the years. You may ask me for a video of this but first I want to describe it for you. I was the master of chicken bondage at Cafe Beaujolais, sent to dispatch twelve chickens (hack off neck and feet of all 12 and rush them on a sheet pan up to the chef to roast for stock) every Wednesday night for Thursday – Sunday dinner service prep.
Let us assume that you’re not stuffing the chicken, but have salted and peppered the cavity and perhaps inserted a lemon or orange or onion, head of garlic or whatever flavoring you desire.
Pure linen twine – I bought a cone 10 years ago for $10 and cover it with a plastic bag to protect it from dust. When it’s gone I suspect I’ll die peacefully in my sleep. Believe me, get this at Sur La Table and you’ll save lots of money at the grocery store buying a few feet at a time.
So you have one chicken, cavity facing you, and let’s say four feet of twine that you cut before you touched the chicken.
Trim off the two segments of each wing, saving for stock, and any extra fat around the cavity. Freeze. Pope’s nose fold in (the tail, in Catholic girl slang), mea culpa Pope Benedict. Flaps in, cross legs at “ankles.”
Take your twine in the middle. Wrap the left side around and then right side around ankles and bring twine over the body to the neck. Flip the chicken, hook on the wings and crisscross over the bony part. Flip again, and tie two knots and remove excess string.
This packaged bird will look lovely and cook evenly with a bit of butter, salt and pepper. Cook as usual, 20 minutes per pound at 350 degrees plus 10 minutes to rest before carving. Carving is another lesson.
You may not understand a word of this due to my description but know I’m good at it. I’ll help you understand it better but not with a video camera in my teeth.
This was part of the special dinner I made for Jim this evening, which he appreciated. I added thyme and sage, and a version of Mom’s stuffing with consomme gravy. It was good, indeed.
Sweet dreams, Dee
Cooking with Dee 