Thursday, February 2, 2012

Cook a whole chicken in 30 minutes...seriously

Before yesterday, I had never attempted to cook a whole chicken. I've cooked chicken breasts, pork loin, roasts, etc., but never a whole chicken. The idea scared me, as crazy as that sounds. I don't have a meat thermometer, so I had no way of really knowing if the thing would be completely cooked, and the idea of eating raw chicken makes me gag. 


However, Pampered Chef has a deep covered baker (stoneware) that is supposed to cook an entire chicken in the microwave--the microwave--in 30 minutes or less. Being a PC consultant, naturally, I have a deep covered baker, so I finally got up the courage to attempt cooking a whole chicken. 


And guess what? It turned out amazing. And, if the moist, flavorful chicken wasn't enough--the outside was a golden brown color! It browned the chicken, even though it was cooked in the microwave. 


Here's the recipe that I used to make this wonderful chicken. I'm not sure how it'll turn out in any other dish, so you may want to invest in a deep covered baker from PC to get the results that I got.






Ingredients:
  • 1 whole chicken (gizzard, neck, insides removed)
  • olive oil 
  • seasoning of your choice (I used PC Moroccan Rub)
  • sliced lemon



Directions:
Rinse chicken with cold water, then pat dry with paper towels. Brush entire surface of chicken with olive oil. Add seasoning to surface of chicken. Place sliced lemon into chicken cavity.

Place chicken in deep covered baker. Microwave uncovered for 25-30 minutes (7 minutes for each pound of chicken). Remove and check chicken. Stick knife in deepest part of chicken. If juices are clear, chicken is done (160 degrees fahrenheit--internal temp). If juices are pink, continue to cook.

Remove from microwave. Cover with lid for 10 minutes. Your chicken is ready! (And it should be golden brown). 

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