Clean the chicken. Take all the giblets garbage out, trim the tail fat. Rinse it, insode and out, really really well. Pat dry with paper towels (don't use a dish cloth - salmonella and all.....). Season the bird, in side and out with salt and pepper. Chop the fresh herbs and mix with the olive oil and garlic. Seperate the skin from the breast and sort of stuff the mixture in there. Pat the remainder all over the outside of the bird. For extra pow, throw a few cloves in the cavity too. Roast it for about an hour, at 450 degrees, breast side up, until the juices run clear and the thermometer reads 180. Baste it every now and then while it's cooking. Let it sit for about 10 minutes before you carve it, otherwise all the juices will run out and the breasts will be dry.
Yum.
Buy the Joy of Cooking or even the red plaid Better Homes cookbook. Lots of great chicken recipes!!
I have no argument with any of those steps, aside from perhaps specifying the size of the chicken in terms of cooking time. The instructions of 1 hour at 450 are good for a 4-5 lb. chicken. If it's larger, 20 min per pound.
My only quibble would be that I start at a high temp like 450 on a larger chicken, for 20 min or so, then turn it down to 400 for the rest of the time. I also use the olive oil for a "massage" for the bird, since I like a crisp, brown skin when it's done. :)
Did the chicken... and you were right... it was very easy! the secret is to not to skimp on the basting steps, and to resist temptations to remove skin or otherwise cut down on the fat; it all runs to the bottom anyway and so these steps are the only ones keeping it from being as dry as the Sahara... something I'm sure my family neglected. Thank you. I'm very happy, and feeling less of a bachelor.