Roast Chicken With Walnut-Herb Stuffing

Ingredients

• 1  baguette cut into 1 1/4-inch cubes ( 5 cups)
• 0.3 cup parsley fresh roughly chopped
• 2 teaspoons thyme leaves fresh
• 4 cloves garlic smashed roughly chopped
• 6 servings kosher salt and pepper freshly ground
• 4 cups chicken broth low-sodium
• 6 pound roasting chickens 
• 1 stick butter unsalted
• 0.3 cup walnuts roughly chopped

Equipment

• bowl
• frying pan
• baking sheet
• oven
• roasting pan
• wooden spoon
• kitchen thermometer
• stove

Directions

1. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Put on a large plate and refrigerate, uncovered, at least 4 hours or overnight to dry out the skin.
2. Pat the chicken dry and season the cavity with salt and pepper.
3. Put the chicken on a rack in a roasting pan, tucking the wings underneath. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
4. Cook the butter, garlic and walnuts in a small skillet over low heat until the butter is melted and the nuts are lightly toasted, 5 to 7 minutes.
5. Brush the chicken with 2 tablespoons of the garlic butter; transfer the remaining butter mixture (including the garlic and nuts) to a large bowl.
6. Add the parsley, thyme and bread and toss to coat. Fill the cavity of the chicken with about two-thirds of the stuffing. Tuck the remaining stuffing on the baking sheet underneath the chicken.
7. Sprinkle the chicken with 2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
8. Transfer the roasting pan to the oven and roast until the stuffing is toasted, about 20 minutes.
9. Add 2 cups chicken broth to the pan and roast 40 more minutes. Use a spoon to scoop the stuffing out of the chicken and transfer to the bottom of the roasting pan with the rest of the stuffing. Reduce the heat to 425 degrees F and continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees F, 30 to 40 minutes.
10. Transfer the chicken to a platter and let rest 15 minutes.
11. Transfer the stuffing to a bowl.
12. Put the roasting pan on the stovetop over medium-high heat.
13. Add the remaining 2 cups broth to the pan and cook, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon, until almost syrupy, 5 to 8 minutes. Return the stuffing to the pan to soak up the juices.
14. Serve with the chicken.
15. Photograph by Con Poulos