Roast Chicken & Potatoes With Sumac Butter

By ltrodrigu

This flavorful chicken is roasted with a sumac-garlic butter under its skin. Sumac loses some of its tartness as it cooks and develops a richer, earthier character.

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons butter, softened
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons sumac
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 pounds new potatoes, halved
• 3 large yellow onions, quartered
• 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3-pound whole chicken

Details

Adapted from wsj.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Make sumac butter: In a small bowl, mix butter with garlic, 1 tablespoon sumac and ½ teaspoon salt until well combined. Set aside.

In a bowl, toss potatoes and onions with 1½ tablespoons oil and remaining sumac and salt. Fill cavity of chicken with half the onions. Spread remaining onion-potato mixture in a single layer on a 9-by-13-inch baking sheet.

Use your fingers to loosen skin all around chicken. Stuff sumac butter between skin and flesh, spreading in an even layer. Set chicken on bed of potatoes and onions. Rub with remaining oil.

Roast chicken for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 400 degrees. Continue to roast until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165 degrees, about 50 minutes. Remove from oven and let chicken rest 10 minutes before carving.