Free Range Whole Chicken | ±2.1kg - ±3.3kg

Free Range Whole Chicken - Roast

±2.1kg to ±3.3kg, oven-ready. Defrost 30–46 hours depending on size.

1. Defrost
Move the pack from freezer to fridge. Leave it in its packaging, on a tray. Allow 30 hours for the smaller birds and up to 46 for the largest. A whole bird must be thawed right through to the cavity. Cook within 48 hours of defrosting. Do not refreeze.

2. Dry the skin the night before
Unwrap, pat the whole bird dry inside and out, and salt the skin generously. Leave it uncovered on a rack in the fridge overnight. A dry skin is the difference between crisp and pale.

3. Temper
Out of the fridge one hour before roasting. A cold bird cooks unevenly, and the legs will still be behind when the breast is done.

4. Roast
Oven at 200°C. Set the bird on a rack over a tray, breast up, and roast for 20 minutes per 500g plus 20 minutes. For a 2.5kg bird that is around 1 hour 40 minutes. Baste once or twice with the fat in the tray.

5. Cook it to 75°C
Probe the thickest part of the thigh, not the breast, and keep the probe clear of the bone. Chicken is cooked through, never pink. The juices should run clear and the leg should feel loose in its socket.

6. Rest
20 minutes, loosely tented with foil, on a warm plate or board. This matters as much on a chicken as on a steak.

7. Carve
Legs first, cutting through the joint, then the breasts off the crown in one piece each before slicing them. Spoon the resting juices back over.

Keep the carcass. A herb-fed free range bird makes a far better stock than a commercial one. Cover it with cold water and simmer for 3 hours.

Delivered frozen. Keep frozen at -18°C until needed. Use by the date on the pack.
Defrost in the fridge, in its packaging, on a tray. Allow 30–46 hours depending on size. The pack will release liquid as it thaws.
Never defrost at room temperature or in a microwave.
Once defrosted, keep at 0–4°C and cook within 2 days.
Do not refreeze once thawed.