Buttermilk roast chicken
with schmaltzy potatoes. A whole bird soaked overnight in salted buttermilk, roasted over potatoes that cook in its drippings.
- 1 hr 45 min plus an overnight soak
- Serves 4, scales to 12
- Gluten-free
- Tested 3 times in 2 kitchens
- Sunday, Oct 18 in Mains
Why it works
Buttermilk is mildly acidic and salty once you stir the salt in, so overnight it seasons the meat all the way through and loosens it without turning it mushy. It's the same reason the fried chicken around here starts in a buttermilk bath.
The potatoes go under the bird, not beside it. Everything that drips off the chicken lands on them, and in the last ten minutes they go back into the oven alone to crisp in that fat. That's the schmaltz.
Roast it hot and leave it alone. Basting cools the oven and softens the skin; the buttermilk sugars brown it on their own.
What I use
Disclosure: links marked affiliate earn me a small commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. I bought each of these with my own money and have used them for years.
- A 12-inch cast-iron skillet. It goes from stovetop to a 425°F oven and holds the potatoes in one layer. Affiliate link
- An instant-read thermometer. 165°F in the thigh is the only test that matters. Affiliate link
- Kitchen twine. Any kind. No link needed.
Buttermilk roast chicken and schmaltzy potatoes
- Time
- 1 hr 45 min, plus an overnight soak
- Diet
- Gluten-free
- Tested
- 3 times, 2 kitchens
Ingredients
Method
- Whisk the buttermilk and salt in a large zip-top bag. Add the chicken, seal it and refrigerate overnight, turning it once. Short on time? Four hours still helps.
- Heat the oven to 425°F. Toss the potatoes with the olive oil, a big pinch of salt, the garlic and the thyme in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet.
- Lift the chicken out, let the buttermilk drip off and pat it dry. Tuck the lemon halves inside, tie the legs and set it breast up on the potatoes. Grind the pepper over.
- Roast 70 to 80 minutes, until the thickest part of the thigh reads 165°F and the skin is deep brown. If the top darkens early, lay a sheet of foil over it.
- Rest the chicken 15 minutes. While it rests, stir the potatoes through the drippings and return them to the oven to crisp. Carve, and squeeze the roasted lemon over everything.
Tess's note. Buttermilk browns fast because of its sugars. Darker than you expect is right; black is not.
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Questions I get about this one
Can I skip the overnight soak?
Yes. Four hours gets you most of the way. Even 30 minutes on the counter is better than none; the skin just browns a little less.
Can I use chicken pieces?
Yes, about 3 pounds of bone-in thighs and drumsticks. Soak them the same way and roast 40 to 45 minutes, to 175°F.
I don't have buttermilk.
Stir 2 tablespoons of lemon juice into 2 cups of whole milk and wait 10 minutes. Plain yogurt thinned with milk also works.
How long do leftovers keep?
Four days in the fridge. Pull the meat off the bones the night you cook it and Monday's email has two things to do with it.
