I no longer worry about what to do with a few chicken pieces left on the fridge. I have just the recipe for it. It takes a few minutes to cook and just about the simplest of ingredients you can find in your cupboards. Actually, it takes just 3 basic ingredients. Bake it and you’ll see what I mean.

Chicken doesn’t need an over-complication of ingredients and cooking techniques. I’ve always believed that baking is the best way to cook chicken. And this is the perfect chicken recipe – humble, delicious and high on the taste points.

I’ve received plenty of high fives on this one. No one believes that it took no more than 3 major ingredients and that’s it. I can’t explain it any simpler than this so I’ve always suggested to friends that this be served on dinner parties. It’s guaranteed to make every mom curious. And they’ll want to keep making it for as long as chicken would never go out of style. I don’t see that happening anytime.

Ingredients

  • 3 to 4 lb chicken, cut into 8 parts (2 breasts, 2 thighs, 2 legs, 2 wings) excluding the back
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1/2 cup of chicken stock or white wine for the gravy (optional)

Description

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Next, rinse chicken pieces in water and pat with paper towel to dry them off. Then, proceed by coating the bottom of a roasting pan with olive oil. And then you can rub some olive oil over all the chicken pieces. Then sprinkle on salt and freshly ground black pepper. Arrange the pieces with the skin-side up on the roasting pan. Put the largest pieces like the breast in the center. Make sure there’s room between the pieces so they won’t crowd in the pan.
  2. Bake the chicken for 30 minutes on the same temperature and then reduce the heat down to 350°F and cook for 10 to 30 minutes. It takes approximately 14 to 15 minutes per pound total for cooking time. Cook until the juices run clear when poked with a sharp knife. You can check the internal temperature of the chicken breast at 165°F and the thighs at 170°F. If you find the chicken pieces not browning to your satisfaction, cook them under the broiler for 5 minutes.
  3. Take the roasting pan out of the oven. Remove the chicken pieces and transfer it on a plate. Cover it up with aluminum foil and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
  4. You can make gravy for the chicken by taking the roasting pan with all the drippings and heating it on top of a stove. Scrape the drippings that got stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add a half cup of white wine or chicken stock in order to help deglaze the pan.
  5. Pour this mixture of wine/stock and drippings on a small saucepan and warm on medium to high heat and reduce its thickness to a gravy consistency.

Classic Baked Chicken