Marco Pierre White Roast Chicken
A breakdown of the infamous, lightning-fast professional method adapted for the home kitchen.
Equipment
- Vacuum sealer
- Sous-vide water bath
- Heavy frying pan or skillet
Ingredients
- 1 High-quality whole chicken crown wings, legs, and wishbone removed
- 1 generous knob of butter
- Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil for searing
Instructions
- Prep and Bag: Place your prepared chicken crown into a vacuum pouch. Marco gives absolutely no mention to seasoning in his book text, which is highly unlike him, so I recommend throwing a handful of salt and a good knob of butter straight into the bag to help things along. Seal it up using a vacuum sealer.
- The Quick Water Bath: Set your sous-vide machine to 80°C. Drop the sealed chicken bag into the water and leave it for exactly 10 minutes. Note: 80°C is incredibly hot for sous-vide - usually we work around the 50–60°C mark for poultry - but follow the system.
- The Sear: Remove the chicken from the bag. Heat a heavy pan over a high heat with a splash of vegetable oil (butter will burn too quickly at this temperature). Sear the chicken crown vigorously on all sides until it is deeply browned. Turn on your extractor fan; it's going to get noisy and smoky.
- Season and Roast: Transfer the browned chicken to a roasting tray. Season the exterior generously with salt and pepper. Pop it into an oven preheated to 200°C for exactly 30 minutes.
- Rest and Check: Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes. Always verify the internal temperature with a digital probe thermometer at the thickest part—it needs to hit the high 60s°C to ensure it's completely cooked and safe to eat.