Roast Chicken with Meyer Lemon and Shallot Sauce Recipe

How to make it

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• Rinse chicken inside and out and pat dry with paper towels.
• Loosen skin of breast and thighs and work some salt under the skin.
• Rub remaining salt all over chicken and in cavity.
• Chill, uncovered, at least 3 hours and up to overnight.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Zest lemons.
• Slice 1 lemon.
• Juice half of the second lemon.
• Pat chicken dry, inside and out.
• Rub zest under as much of the skin as possible.
• Rub remaining zest inside cavity.
• Rub chicken all over with 1 tablespoon olive oil and the thyme.
• Put lemon slices in cavity.
• Set a V-shaped rack in a heavy roasting pan large enough to hold the shallots.
• Put chicken in rack, breast side up.
• Add shallots to pan and drizzle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, turning to coat shallots.
• Roast chicken, basting every 30 minutes until chicken leg moves easily and skin is brown and crisp, about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours, removing shallots after 1 hour of roasting time.
• Set aside shallots.
• Tip chicken so juices from cavity pour into roasting pan.
• Transfer chicken to a carving board, cover with foil and let rest.
• Meanwhile, make sauce: Pour pan drippings into a measuring cup with a pouring lip.
• Trim tops from shallots and squeeze soft insides into a blender.
• Pour off all but about 1 tablespoon fat from drippings.
• Add drippings to blender.
• Add 1/2 cup broth and wine and pulse until smooth.
• Pour sauce into roasting pan.
• Cook, scraping up brown bits and adding more broth if required until sauce turns a nutty brown, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in 1 tablespoon reserved lemon juice OR more to taste.
• Pour sauce through a fine strainer into a serving bowl.
• Carve chicken, discarding lemon slices.
• Serve with sauce.