Melissa Clark, writing for the New York Times:
The first is to seek out a good-quality bird. Whether you buy it at the butcher, farmers’ market or supermarket, and whether you choose organic, air-chilled or antibiotic-free, the better the bird tastes from the get-go, the less you have to do on your end.
Always salt the chicken ahead if you have time. Even an hour makes a difference, giving the salt a chance to form a brine that can get at least somewhat absorbed into the flesh. If you can salt the chicken the day before, even better. Leave it uncovered in the fridge so the skin can dry out a bit. This gives you a crisper, more burnished result.
This recipe is so easy it’s a shame more people don’t just roast chickens once a week!
Under 20 minutes of prep, an hour of cooking, and you can have a delicious dinner and leftovers for the week.