-1 full chicken (2 to 3 pounds)
-1/2 lemon
-1/2 onion
-1 clove of garlic
-1 tablespoons herb de Provence
-1 tablespoon soft butter
-salt and pepper
-1 tall boy can of beer
-2 cups chicken broth
-Wash the chicken, pat dry. Salt inside of the chicken and place the lemon and onion inside the cavity. Place the chicken in a roasting pan, pour in the 2 cups of broth and half the can of beer. Use a small amount of salt to rub the skin of the chicken, then apply freshly ground pepper. Take the herb de Provence and sprinkle over the chicken and into the beer and chicken broth. Then lift the skin and rub the whole chicken with the butter.
Cover and place in a preheated oven at 400 degrees. Cook covered for 60 minutes then take off the lid ad allow the skin to become golden brown, about another 20 minutes. Make sure you check the temperature of the chicken to ensure it is cooked, which is about 180 degrees Fahrenheit. Turn the oven off and place chicken in the oven to keep warm while you make the gravy.
To make the beer Gravy
-remove the liquid from the bottom of the pan and place in a sauce pan, I poured through a wire colander to remove some fat and chicken pieces. Place in a sauce pan on medium heat, add the rest of the beer and bring to a boil. In a small jar that has a tight fitting lid add 2 tablespoons of flour, salt and pepper, and 1/4 cup of water. Shake this mixture until no lumps and pour into the chicken dripping beer mixture, reduce to simmer and once thick serve over the chicken. The gravy did have the herb de Provence in it and the flavour was just incredible.
This gravy was amazing, words of advice pick a beer that you enjoy the flavour of. The alcohol is cooked off, so this recipe is suitable for the whole family, but is not gluten free. There was not one drop of chicken wasted and even the pickiest eater ate the gravy and the chicken.
