HOW TO ROAST
Roasting larger pieces or even small pieces of meat or poultry is a simple technique that requires a good timing so that the meat doesn't get over- or undercooked. Roasting can be done in an oven and is sometimes described as baking, but this is just a misconception. The purpose of roasting is to get a nice crispy skin or surface of the meat and of course a nice tenderly cooked interior. Some variants of roasting include spit roasting, which is quite similar to grilling, and there is also a technique called rotisserie, which simply means that you put a larger piece of meat on a rod and you turn it continuously around the heat source (e.g. like kebab cooking!).
Roasting is commonly done with larger foods, like whole birds or fish, or bigger cuts of meat. One good thing about roasting is that the juices that flow out of the food (as it gets heated up) can be collected in a pan placed below the rack on which the food is roasted. This liquid makes a very good base for making a gravy!
Select food that is naturally tender, like chicken or other poultry, fish, or the tender cuts of meat. For preparation, remove all the unnecessary fats (meat, poultry) or silverskin (fish) and season the food with salt, pepper or other spices and herbs. You can also use butter and oil, as well as a marinade to further improve the flavor of the food. Some foods can be stuffed (chicken, chicken breasts, loin). It is common, when roasting a chicken, to insert some stuffing under its breast skin and also to pack its inner cavity with herbs and spices. The skin can be rubbed with oil or marinade and it can also be fried in a pan before placing the bird in the oven. As you see there are many ways to add some extra flavor to the dish and you should choose the one that best fits your desires.
When the food is prepared, place it on a roasting pan. It should have a rack so that heat can freely flow around the whole meat, and there should be a collecting pan below the rack. Insert the pan into a preheated oven - the temperature should be proper for the type of food you are roasting (see the recipe to find it). Generally, small or delicate foods are roasted in lower temperatures, 150 C/300 F, while larger meats are roasted in 180-200 C/350-390 F. The timing is important - the food should be removed from the oven when it reaches the correct doneness - you can measure the temperature inside it with a thermometer if you like. Or if you know the way, you can tell by pressing the finger against the meat. During the cooking, you should bast the food from time to time to prevent it from drying out - bast it with oil, butter, marinade, or the with the juices that flow out of the food.
When the food has almost reached its desired degree of doneness, remove it from the oven and let it aftercook by its inner heat. Also, now you have to rest it to make the juices inside the food become evenly dispersed. The resting time depends on the size of the food - small pieces of meat require only a few minutes, while the big roasts may need up to half an hour of resting time.
If you want to make a pan gravy, add the aromatic vegetables to the collecting pan at the end of roasting in order to brown them. This is optional, as you can also do it later on the stove. Use the common mirepoix vegetables, like onions, celery, carrots, garlic, and maybe some herbs. When the roasting is over, place the pan on a moderately hot stove to continue browning the ingredients. The fat should become separated from the rest of the flavored liquid. Remove most of the fat, but leave some of it in the pan and add some flour to make a thickening agent (roux). As it gets brown, start adding the stock to the pan while stirring all over to prevent and to dissolve any lumps. Then cook the gravy until it's thick, and strain it.