Salt-Crusted Whole Roast Chicken

Remove any packet from the cavity and pat the chicken completely dry inside and out with paper towels. Mash the softened butter with the crushed garlic, picked and chopped thyme leaves, and black pepper. Use your fingers to loosen the skin over the breast and thighs, spread the butter mixture into the pocket, and press from the outside to distribute it evenly. Put the halved lemon in the cavity and tie the legs together with kitchen twine.

Put the coarse salt in a wide bowl and add the egg whites and water. Mix by rubbing it together with your hands; when squeezed in your palm, the mixture should hold its shape. If it crumbles, add one 15 ml measure of water.

Preheat the oven to 200°C / 390°F. Spread a 1 cm layer of the salt mixture over the bottom of a baking pan and set the chicken on it breast-side up. Insert the probe thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh without touching the bone, leaving the wire outside the crust. Press the remaining mixture around the chicken in a 1.5 cm-thick layer, sealing it completely with no gaps.

Place the tray on the middle rack and roast for 80 minutes; the crust will harden and turn pale yellow. Remove the tray when the thermometer in the thigh reads 74°C / 165°F. If it has not reached that temperature, continue roasting in 5-minute increments. If you do not have a probe thermometer, insert an instant-read thermometer through the crust where it covers the thigh.

Let the chicken rest inside the crust for 10 minutes; this resting time is not active work. Tap the crust with the back of a heavy knife and remove the pieces. Brush off any salt stuck to the skin with a dry brush. Transfer the chicken to a clean tray, set the oven broiler to 220°C / 430°F, and broil for 8–10 minutes, until the skin is bronze-colored.

Separate the thighs and wings at the joints, then remove the breast meat from the bone in two pieces. Squeeze the juice from the lemon in the cavity over the meat and spoon over the buttery juices collected in the tray.