Ultimate Chicken Roaster
Perfection in one pan? That’s what All-Clad is promising with its new Stainless-Steel Ultimate Chicken Roaster ($179.95), designed to produce flawlessly roasted chicken and vegetables from the same dish. A detachable 9-inch metal arm suspends the chicken over a small tri-ply roasting pan with handles at either end, which holds the vegetables. But while every test produced a chicken with moist, tender meat, getting crispy skin was a crapshoot. Even when trussed, bigger birds (at least 4 pounds) drooped onto the vegetables, which thwarted browning for both and drowned the vegetables in drippings. But smaller birds weren’t perfect either: Though they cooked up with perfectly golden skin, they didn’t weigh enough to keep the inadequately anchored arm firmly in place (at one point it even fell off, dropping the chicken into the pan). We also were disappointed with the ¼-cup “infusion reservoir” in the arm; though we filled it with orange juice, our tasters couldn’t detect any citrus flavor in the cooked bird. We’ll stick with setting our favorite vertical roaster from Norpro ($27.95) in a regular roasting pan.
- Good:
- ★★★
- Fair:
- ★★
- Poor:
- ★
- N/A:
- ----
| Product Tested | Performance | Comfort | Price* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highly Recommended | ||||
 |
Victorinox (formerly Victorinox Forschner) 6-inch Straight Boning Knife: FlexibleThe nonslip grip and narrow, straight blade let testers remove the smallest bones with precision and complete comfort. Perfectly balanced with enough flexibility to maneuver around tight joints. The low price was a bonus. |
★★★ | ★★★ | $19.95 |
| Recommended | ||||
 |
Wüsthof Classic Boning KnifeHefty in weight, this knife was a solid performer when removing poultry bones, and the handle was easy to grip, even when covered in chicken fat. Piercing silver skin was a challenge since the tip wasn’t sharp enough and the long narrow blade produced slightly jagged cuts. |
★★ | ★★★ | $99.95 |
| Recommended with Reservations | ||||
 |
Mundial Boning Knife: FlexibleThe sharp tip performed well when removing silver skin, but it was too flexible when maneuvering around poultry joints, leaving testers feeling a lack of control. The heavy handle was slightly unbalanced and became slippery once covered in poultry fat. |
★★ | ★★ | $19.95 |
| Not Recommended | ||||
 |
Shun Gokujo Filet KnifeDesigned to replicate a samurai blade, this expensive knife was a disappointment. It struggled to pierce the silver skin, although long cuts were smooth and even. Minimal flexibility and extreme curve got in the way when maneuvering around joints. The smooth handle was hard to grip and slippery. |
★★ | ★ | $179.95 |
 |
MAC Boning Knife—Chef SeriesThe large, cumbersome handle reminded testers of an outdoors knife for fishing and hunting. The blade was too wide to maneuver around joints and it struggled to pierce silver skin. Unlike other knives, this boning knife could only slice in one direction, making intricate cuts around joints difficult. |
★ | ★★ | $34.95 |
 |
Messermeister San Moritz Elite Flexible Boning KnifeThe blade was so flexible it led to erratic cuttings; testers said the knife was hard to control. The blade was not sturdy enough to maneuver around joints and the lightweight handle felt flimsy and unbalanced. |
★ | ★ | $53.60 |
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