The Genius Way Ina Garten Ensures Her Chicken Is Extra Flavorful

When you're a celebrity chef, beloved author, and erstwhile specialty shop owner known for living beautifully, unpacking groceries and starting dinner in one fell swoop comes naturally, And that's precisely how Food Network darling Ina Garten gets a jump on her famed roast chicken. In a clip from "Barefoot Contessa," Garten casually mentions to a pal that she starts seasoning her chicken as soon as it gets through the door.

"First thing I do, actually, is I salt it in advance," Garten says in the clip. "When it comes home from the store, I salt it, put it in the fridge, and all that salt gets into the meat, so it gives it lots of flavor." This roast chicken seasoning technique is referred to as a dry brine, and it's a perfect way to achieve delicious chicken all on its own, even though Garten goes on to further jazz up her bird. Dry brining helps a protein retain its natural moisture, which leads to a juicier finished product. Dry brining also draws said moisture inward, away from surface areas, leading to the coveted crispy golden skin in the chicken's case. And if you've ever shaken some salt over a chicken in your own kitchen before letting it rest in the refrigerator, then congratulations: you've already successfully executed a dry brine. This technique is so easy to repeat that it's a natural choice for inclusion in Ina Garten's 10-recipe rule.

The salt in a dry brine needs time to mingle with all those moisture molecules and pull them away from the chicken's skin for the shattering finish of poultry dreams. Many sources cite a 24-hour minimum, with a preference for three days. You'll also want to leave the chicken uncovered and exposed to all that critically skin-drying air, so store it on your refrigerator's lowest shelf with plenty of clearance to avoid cross contamination. The United States Department of Agriculture, for its part, advises that fresh chicken be cooked within two days of purchase. Salting as soon as you get it home, as Garten does, gets you a little closer to that food safety target.

Once your brine is complete, apply your seasonings, pat your bird even drier, and then bake it at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for around 90 minutes, depending on its size. As for Garten's go-to seasoning, she prefers to salt and pepper the chicken, inside and out. She also stuffs the chicken with a whole, sliced garlic bulb and a quartered lemon for an extra punch of flavor. Finally, she covers it all in melted butter before roasting. Crusty bread arranged under the bird can turn out to be the best part of a roast chicken, and veggies like potatoes also benefit from its wonderfully flavorful drippings.