Why do you remove the wishbone from chicken?

Removing it meant that carving the meat later would be a lot easier since there wasn't an awkwardly-shaped bone at the top of the breast to work around .

What is the superstition about chicken wishbones?

If a chicken was killed, the collarbone was thought to be sacred, thus it was not touched and was left to dry in the sun . The people gathered around to hold the unbroken bone and made a wish in hopes of it bringing them good luck. The “wishbone tradition” was derived from this early practice.

Is it better to carve a chicken hot or cold?

I let them cool down enough to handle without scalding yourself, then pick the meat. It comes off the bones easier when warm . But it isn't overly difficult when cold, so whatever works best for you.

How long to wait before carving chicken?

Before carving, allow the bird to rest for at least 15 minutes , so that all the wonderful juices travel back from whence they came and keep everything lovely and moist. The fibres of the chicken will also relax, and this will make carving easier.

How long should chicken breast rest after cooking?

The larger the cut of meat, the more resting time it needs. Chicken breasts only need about 5-10 minutes , while a whole chicken should rest for at least 15-20 minutes. Rest the chicken uncovered or under tented aluminum foil to help retain heat.

What thickens butter chicken?

Yoghurt or heavy cream : To achieve a creamy, tangy curry sauce, incorporate yoghurt or heavy cream. Stir them in gently, as high heat may cause curdling. These ingredients are ideal for creating a luxurious texture in dishes like butter chicken or tikka masala.

How do you fix too much butter in butter chicken?

Refrigerate the sauce . The butter will harden on top. Then skim it off.

Which herbs go well with chicken?

5 Best Herbs To Use For Chicken Basil. Basil is a perfect herb to use in many chicken dishes. ... Oregano. Used widely, dried oregano is related to the mint. ... Rosemary. When it comes to chicken, using rosemary is a perfect collaboration. ... Thyme. Thyme's flavour profile is a delicate herb to add to your chicken dish. ... Tarragon. Jun 28, 2022

How to cook chicken in the oven Martha Stewart?

Directions Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place chicken breasts in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Season both sides generously with salt and pepper. ... Bake until a meat thermometer registers 160 degrees in the thickest part of the breast, about 20 minutes. Remove chicken from pan; let rest 10 minutes before slicing. Jun 12, 2017

What is the tradition of pulling the wishbone?

On Thanksgiving, many Americans remove the wishbone from the turkey, and two people pull at each end while making a wish . When it breaks, the person whose part has the centerpiece will have their wish come true.

What happens if the top of the wishbone breaks off?

The person who pulled the larger part was said to have “the lucky break” and allowed to make a secret wish. The person who broke the smaller part of the wishbone was said to have had a “bad break.” If both pieces were broken evenly, both people were said to get a wish .

Why do people break the wishbone of a turkey?

The idea behind the turkey wishbone tradition is that whoever is holding the bigger piece of the bone post-break will have their wish come true .

Should I break wishbone?

Timing of the tradition varies, but generally speaking people either break the turkey wishbone on Thanksgiving Day or wait to break it at the next holiday . “Many people like to break the wishbone after dinner, but ideally you want the bone to dry out before the breaking,” Nolan says.

Wishbone Roast Chicken with Herb Butter Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Make Ahead

by: monkeymom

February22,2010

4.6

5 Ratings

Wishbone Roast Chicken with Herb Butter Recipe on Food52 (1)

Prep time 12 hours
Cook time 1 hour
Serves 4 to 6

Jump to Recipe

Author Notes

As I was slicing into this chicken, I suddenly remembered this story: one day my daughter excitedly said to her preschool teacher “Guess what? Chickens have a game inside them and it’s called a wishbone! Wishbones are good because you can make wishes on them.” The teacher said “I’ve played the wishbone game before with my mom. Did you cook the wishbone first?” My daughter replied “Yeah, we had to cook the wishbone and then the game is better … way better!”

To cook those wishbone chickens, I use the tube insert of my tube pan, which settles neatly inside my 9 inch cake pan. Cooking it standing up means I don’t have to turn the bird this way and that during the roasting to get a nice crispy skin. The chicken itself is inspired by a restaurant in Carmel (now replaced by a chain restaurant) that served a succulent rotisserie chicken with a flavorful herb butter. Does a perfectly roasted bird need such an embellishment? Some may argue not, but all I can say is that I have never forgotten that dish and often long for that butter while eating other perfectly fine roasted chickens. - monkeymom

You can vary the herbs to what you prefer. Chervil, thyme, lemon zest, cayenne, etc. One bird, many options for flavoring.
—monkeymom

Test Kitchen Notes

This recipe with its unassuming 5 ingredients caught our eye for its use of simple techniques to achieve a flavorful bird with crisp skin. Monkeymom has thought a lot about roasting chicken: she has you tuck shallots and butter under the skin, season the bird and then let it rest in the fridge, uncovered, for 8 hours. The butter keeps the meat moist and the air-drying in the fridge ensures a crackly skin. She also came up with an ingenious way to replicate the verticle roasting in "beer can chicken," in which the chicken sits on top of a beer can while it grills. For her brilliant adaptation, she sets the chicken on the tube part of a tube pan. The verticle positioning allows the fat to drip off the bird while it cooks, and we think it does a great job of helping to cook the bird evenly, as every part is equally exposed to the oven heat. And did we mention that the finished bird is then served with an herb butter? Herb butter gets us every time. —The Editors

Test Kitchen-Approved
Your Best Roast Chicken Contest Winner

What You'll Need

Ingredients

For the wishbone chicken
3 ¹/₂ poundschicken
2 tablespoonssoftened butter
1 shallot, sliced thinly
1 tablespoonsalt and pepper

For the herb butter
¹/₄ cupsoftened butter
¹/₂ teaspoonkosher salt
1 teaspoonfinely minced parsley
1 teaspoonfinely minced chives

Directions

Wash and dry chicken. Using your hand, spread softened butter under skin on breasts, especially the part near the neck. Put shallots under skin all around. Sprinkle pepper, then salt the bird very generously all over. The key to a crispy skin is a dry bird, plenty of salt, and a hot oven. Place in refrigerator, uncovered, for 8 hours to overnight.
For herb butter, soften the butter and add the other ingredients. Mash with fork to mix thoroughly, then scrape into saran wrap. Wrap up the butter to form a tube and chill in refrigerator.
To roast chicken, preheat oven to 400°F. Use only one rack, placed in the bottom slot of your oven.
Place chicken feet side down on tube insert that is placed into a 9-inch cake pan. This forms a stable base that will catch the drippings without leaking out. Tuck wing tips behind the neck and pull the legs out to separate them from the breast. This helps them cook a little faster so the breast won’t dry out. If the skin has torn or is short, you can use a toothpick and pin it to the bottom end of the breast. Place the bird into oven and roast for 55 minutes (my chicken was a little under 4 lbs and was cooked perfectly at this time.)
Remove nicely browned chicken from oven. Let rest on tube while preparing the rest of your dinner.
Slice legs from bird, then carve breasts from bones. Be careful not to cut the wishbone, which is near the neck cavity on the front top of the breast! I’ve disappointed my kids many times by accidently breaking the wishbone prematurely. Pick off the goodies from the rest of the bird and share them with your favorite helper(s).
Slice the herb butter and serve with the carved chicken. A little dab of butter on the chicken goes a long way.
Play wishbone game.

Tags:

American
Chicken
Butter
Shallot
Make Ahead
One-Pot Wonders
Gluten-Free
Entree

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Your Best Roast Chicken

See what other Food52ers are saying.

eatchimac
Tricia Tan
dymnyno
Tamara Hudes Agarwal
gotham gourmand

Recipe by: monkeymom

My favorite distraction is to cook. Though science and cooking/baking have a lot in common, I'm finding that each allows me to enjoy very different parts of my life. Cooking connects me with my heritage, my family, friends, and community. I'm really enjoying learning from the food52 community, who expose me to different ingredients and new ways to cook.

Popular on Food52

90 Reviews

eatchimac March 30, 2021

Oh, I didn’t try Wishbone Roast Chicken with Herb Butter Recipe. Now I can make it at home. So glad for sharing this recipe Now I can make it at home. It looks delicious. Now I can share your blog with my friend circle. I am so glad after seeing your recipe, Thanks for sharing this recipe. Food is one of the biggest topics of conversation online and offline. Keep it up, I am waiting for your next recipe!
https://eatchimac.com/

Diane G. November 23, 2020

Made this Friday and it was beyond delicious and easy. Couldn’t find my angel food insert so used a 13x9 with a ginger ale can!😂 Oh I do love butter 💕

Nell T. March 17, 2019

The smallest chicken I could find was 5 lbs. Are 3.5 lb chickens common? Any recommendations on how much longer I should cook it?

Nell T. March 19, 2019

I cooked it for 70 minutes, and it was perfect.

Tricia T. December 22, 2016

could I use the same recipe but replace with chicken thighs? Would it work as well?
thanks!

dymnyno October 27, 2013

I have a tube cake pan and the tub part is removable. I usually remove the tube part and put it on a rimmed sheet pan.(one less piece to wash) Someone also gave me a tube that is for roasting chicken and guess what...it is exactly the same size and interchangeable with the one from the cake pan!