BEER-BRINED ROAST CHICKEN

Beer-Brined Roast Chicken image

This recipe, from the chef Adrienne Cheatham of Red Rooster Harlem in New York, pairs a whole roast chicken, brined overnight in lager, with roasted potatoes, brussels sprouts, pearl onions and sage. The resulting bird is crisp-skinned, with juicy, flavorful meat.

Provided by The New York Times

Time 2h

Yield 4 to 6 servings

Number Of Ingredients 19

Ingredients

1 cup kosher salt
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
4 cloves garlic, lightly crushed
1 leek (white and light green part), quartered
5 sprigs thyme
7 sprigs sage
2 shallots, halved and peeled
3 (12-ounce) bottles lager-style beer
1 whole chicken (4 to 4 1/2 pounds)
1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
1 1/2 pounds fingerling potatoes (or other small potato), cut in half lengthwise
2 cups whole peeled pearl onions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 to 4 sprigs sage
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 (12-ounce) bottle lager-style beer

Steps:

Prepare the brine: In a large pot combine 8 cups water, the salt and the sugar and bring to a simmer over high heat, stirring to help dissolve the salt and sugar. Remove from heat and add garlic, leek, thyme, sage and shallots; let cool to room temperature.
Place the chicken in a deep container large enough to hold it and the brine. Pour the cooled brine over the chicken. Pour in the 3 bottles of beer until the chicken is submerged; cover and refrigerate overnight.
Prepare the chicken and vegetables: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the brussels sprouts, potatoes, onions, chopped sage and lemon zest in a large bowl. Drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper; toss to evenly coat.
Remove the chicken from the brine and pat the skin dry with paper towels. Place about half of the vegetables in the bottom of a roasting pan or large sauté pan and set the chicken on top. Rub the butter evenly over the top of the chicken to coat. Pour the bottle of beer into the pan and arrange the sage sprigs in the pan around the chicken.
Roast the chicken for 1 hour, basting every 20 minutes with the liquid in the pan.
Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Spread the remaining vegetables on a baking sheet and place on a low rack or the bottom of the oven. Cook until the chicken skin is golden brown and crisp and the vegetables are just tender and slightly charred, 20 to 30 more minutes, stirring the vegetables and basting the chicken once halfway through.
Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before carving. Plate chicken with a mix of roasted veggies and the vegetables from the pan. Spoon the reduced cooking liquid from the pan over the top.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 999, UnsaturatedFat 30 grams, Carbohydrate 81 grams, Fat 48 grams, Fiber 16 grams, Protein 51 grams, SaturatedFat 15 grams, Sodium 2040 milligrams, Sugar 30 grams, TransFat 0 grams