05 March 2009

Ingredient Alert: Mainely Poultry's Awesome Avians

I haven't roasted a whole chicken in years, but the urge to do so came over me this week. My go to method has always been the one in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking as transmitted to me by my mum. That method has always yielded such good results that it did not seem worth exploring the matter further, but I've often wondered why is there such a fuss over the roasted chicken recipe in Judy Rodger's Zuni Cafe Cookbook?

I have to say up front, that I don't really care for Rodger's book, although I am grateful to her for turning me on to brining pork chops. That said, I just made the best roasted chicken of my life using her method where the bird sits salted for a few days and is then high roasted, untrussed without any additional fat. I'm placing the bulk of the success, however, on the shoulders of Mainely Poultry's amazing chicken. If you're not already treating yourself to their chicken, you can pick it up at the Portland and Brunswick winter farmer's markets or at Rosemont Market & Bakery.

Where else are people getting good local birds? Any recommendations? How about for duck? Is there a Mainely Duck?

The photo was a bit of an afterthought:

2 comments:

Unknown said...

This very much tempts me!

Brad said...

Definitely give it a go. The skin was really delightful.