The Best Dry-Brined Roast Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 5- to 6-pound chicken
• 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 1/4 teaspoons freshly cracked pepper
• 1 1/4 teaspoons dried thyme

Directions

1. Cover a rimmed baking sheet with foil, then place a baking rack over it; a roasting pan fitted with a rack works too. Remove the lemon zest, then cut the lemon into quarters. In a small bowl, mix the zest with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 1/2 teaspoons salt, the pepper, the thyme, and the juice squeezed from 1/4 of the lemon. Hang on to all the lemon quarters, including the squeezed piece, for the cavity.
2. Blot the outside of the chicken with a paper towel. Work your fingers under the skin over the breast meat to loosen it, then try to free the skin around the legs as well.
3. Massage 3/4 of the seasoning mixture beneath the loosened skin, working it onto the breast and leg meat. Use the rest of the mixture inside the chicken’s cavity, then put the lemon quarters into the cavity.
4. For trussing, snip about 15 inches of kitchen twine. Fold the wings underneath the chicken as neatly as you can. Slide the middle of the twine beneath the rear of the chicken, leaving even lengths near the tucked wings. Bring both ends up and across the top of the bird, loop them around the legs, and tie the legs together.
5. Plan on at least 24 hours for air-drying: set the chicken, baking sheet and all, in the refrigerator without a cover for 24 to 72 hours. If refrigerator space is tight, it’s fine to rest the chicken on a plate, then move it onto the baking sheet when it is time to roast.
6. When you are ready to cook, position an oven rack in the second lowest spot, then heat the oven to 375 degrees F.
7. After the 24-72 hour chill, the chicken may look a little dried out, which is what you want for crisp skin. Take the baking sheet from the refrigerator and set it on the counter. Spread 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the chicken’s skin, then sprinkle the outside with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt and a few cracks of fresh ground pepper.
8. Slide the baking sheet into the oven and roast at 375 degrees F for 1 hour. Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees F for the remaining 20 minutes, or until the thickest part of the breast registers 160 degrees F.
9. At the 45-minute mark, check the chicken and baste it. You may need to tilt the pan toward a corner to reach the juices. If a baster is not handy, use a long-handled spoon to lift the drippings and pour them over the bird.
10. Keep basting at 15 to 20 minute intervals until the skin is deeply golden and crisp and the chicken is cooked through.
11. Take the chicken out of the oven when the thickest part of the breast reads about 160 degrees F. Rest it for 5 minutes; as it sits, the temperature will keep rising until it reaches 165 degrees F.
12. Without a thermometer, cut into the chicken; it is done when the juices run clear.