Roast It! Good Housekeeping Favorite Recipes

Good Housekeeping
Roast It!

Good Housekeeping
Roast It!

MORE THAN 140 SAVORY RECIPES FOR
MEAT, POULTRY, SEAFOOD & VEGETABLES

HEARST BOOKS
A division of Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.
New York / London
www.sterlingpublishing.com

CONTENTS

CHICKEN &
CORNISH HENS

TURKEY, GOOSE
& DUCK

BEEF, VEAL
& LAMB

FISH &
SHELLFISH

At Good Housekeeping, we find roasting to be a delicious solution to everyday cooking. Its a way to get dinner on the table with no fuss and with superb results! Meat and poultry come out of the oven crisply browned on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside. Oven-roasted fish stays moist and succulentwell tell you exactly how to time itwhile vegetables roasted at high heat are especially sweet and tender.

No wonder many of Americas favorite meals Thanksgiving turkey, holiday roast beef, Easter ham, golden roast chicken, or spring leg of lambare roasted in the oven. And many of these are made from recipes that have been handed down for generations.

We all look forward to these special holiday hams and turkeys, but dont reserve roasting for just weekends and celebrations. Once its in the oven, a roasted dinner cooks virtually on its own; all you have to do is check the time.

On the pages that follow, youll find a wonderful variety of recipes to choose from. Some are simpleperfect for a weeknight mealothers are show-stopping holiday feasts. Best of all, each and every recipe has been triple-tested to ensure that you get perfect results every time.

SUSAN WESTMORELAND
Food Director, Good Housekeeping

READY TO ROAST

Successful roasts have come from ovens of all kinds, but it is important to know something about how your oven works before starting. In Colonial America, meats were first roasted on a spit over the fire or in a tin oven that consisted of a spit and a reflector to concentrate the heat. Cooks had to take into consideration the temperature of the fire and the temperature of the air when determining the roasting time.

Today, whether your oven is gas or electric, it has a thermostat that allows the temperature to rise to slightly above the temperature you have selected. Then the oven turns off the heat source and allows the heat to drop to slightly below your selected temperature before turning back on again. Here are some tips to keep your oven operating smoothly.

EVEN DOES IT. Always preheat your oven, then check the temperature in various parts with an oven thermometer to see that its heating evenly. Your oven should average the temperature you selected and have no hot spots that might cause burning.

PREVENT SMOKING. Occasional cleanup is essential to keep your oven working well, particularly after roasting meats that are high in fat or whenever juices have spilled. Splashes are easiest to clean as soon as the oven is cool enough to touch and should definitely be removed before using the oven again. Otherwise they will bake on and be harder to clean. If you have a self-cleaning oven, wipe off spots just after they occur because baked-on residue will produce smoke when exposed to the high heat of cleaning.

EQUIPMENT CHECK

You probably have pans and racks suitable for roasting in your kitchen right now. But if you want to purchase new or add to your collection or just be sure youre fully equipped for success, heres what we suggest:

HEAVY PANS, such as stainless-steel, enameled cast-iron, or anodized aluminum roasters, or Dutch ovensare a necessity. They will distribute the heat evenly and are less likely to warp. Plus they are strong enough to lift from the oven without spilling any juices that might have collected.

LOW SIDES aid evaporation and are good for crisping the bottom of foods that are being roasted on a rack. Pans with high sides prevent spattering and are good for poultry and meats that will produce a lot of drippings.

STURDY HANDLES are a necessity because they make it possible to remove the pan from the oven without getting your fingers or potholders into the hot and possibly slippery interior of the pan.

ROASTING RACKS to fit each of your roasting pans.

KITCHEN TIMER to remind you to check for doneness.

SPATULAS AND TONGS to remove foods from the pan.

LARGE, HEATPROOF BOARD or several trivets to protect surfaces from hot roasting pans.

GOOD-QUALITY POTHOLDERS to protect your hands when removing hot, heavy roasting pans from the oven.

OVEN THERMOMETER to alert you if the oven needs to be recallibrated. We suggest you keep one in your oven at all times. It will help you understand the heat-flow patterns in your oven.