A Brewer's Yeast Slather Can Take Roast Chicken Where It Wants To Go

Brewer's yeast has traditionally been a byproduct of making beer. Today yeast is cultivated, dried, and used for nutritional purposes with the yeast cells deactivated and removed. You can source both locally from drug and food stores. Do not confuse the two with beer yeast (sometimes called brewing yeast) and baker's yeast which are different. Unlike brewer's yeast which is inactive, beer yeast is active and is used to give beer its characteristic taste and fizziness, while baker's yeast is used to make bread rise. For the purposes of our roast chicken recipe, choose either brewer's yeast if you're a bitter taste lover, or nutritional yeast if the nutty taste is your kind. The fact is they are quite similar (via Self Decode).

When looking for a cooking technique that will get you a perfect roast chicken, you can go with spatchcocking, or opt for other techniques like chicken stir fry, skillet cooking, or grilling. To make sure your chicken nudges your palates into excitement, you may have stuffed it with onions, your favorite herbs, lemon, garlic, or spices. Seasoning your chicken before roasting makes it even more crispy. 

You can opt for pre-mixed chicken seasoning from the stores or – you guessed it – slather it with brewer's yeast.

According to Betsy Andrews, the secret to a perfect roast chicken is umami mayo, a mixture of brewer's yeast and mayo. "Slathering the bird with a mayonnaise–brewer's yeast mixture before it goes into the oven yields maximal umami flavor," Andrews tells Food and Wine adding that "It also helps lock in its juiciness." He also explains that you should let the chicken "stand uncovered in the refrigerator overnight [because it] helps to dry out the skin for a crispier bird." In addition to chicken, Andrews says that umami mayo is also amazing "on a side of salmon."

The simple process starts once you've made your umami mayo mixture. Slather umami mayo generously on your chicken and roast it in the preheated oven till you realize your umami mayo crisps. Follow the usual steps you do when roasting chicken but remember to prevent over-browning by covering it with aluminum foil in the last 10 minutes. 

Roasting chicken umami-mayo style is mouth-watering. "Delicious ... I've done that yesterday. I had added a bit of my fav spices and put it in the oven to grill @150 degree. Truly mouthwatering," a user said on Twitter.