Preheat oven to 400°F. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Make a 1-inch-deep bed of salt in a large baking pan. Place chicken in the center of the salt. Sprinkle with pepper to taste. Cover chicken completely with remaining salt, pressing it down with your hands. Sprinkle salt with a little water and roast for 1 ½ hours. Crack the salt crust with a mallet, and discard the pieces. The chicken will be moist and juicy and the skin crunchy—the salt will have absorbed most of the fat in the chicken’s skin!
