At least 1 hour, and up to 24 hours before cooking, season the chicken liberally with salt and pepper. Salting in advance allows the seasoning to fully penetrate the meat, resulting in a more flavorful and tender final product. Cover and place chicken back in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Set a large cast-iron skillet over high heat and add oil, just enough to coat the bottom of the pan. Pat any excess moisture off of the chicken with a paper towel. When the pan is very hot, sear the chicken pieces, skin side down, in the oil, rearranging as needed to crisp up all available surface skin, until lightly golden brown (about 2-3 minutes per side).

Leaving the chicken skin-side down, add garlic cloves, thyme, and most of the sage (reserving some for garnish) to the pan, around and underneath the chicken. Roast, uncovered, in oven for about 10 minutes.

To prepare the miso-maple butter, melt the butter, miso, and maple syrup together in a small saucepan over low heat, whisking to incorporate. (Especially if you use a chunkier miso, it will likely not stay emulsified. Just give it a good stir before each use.)

Remove chicken from the oven, brush the meat with some of the miso-maple butter, and, using tongs, turn the pieces over so they sit skin side up. The skin should be deep golden brown. Brush the skin with miso-maple butter.

Return to the oven and roast until a thermometer inserted into the center of each piece registers 165 degrees, about 20 more minutes. (Pulling the chicken out of the oven to check the temperature is another opportunity to give it another layer of butter.) Depending on the size of your pieces, the thighs may be done quite a bit sooner than the breasts; pull them aside to rest.

Rest chicken at least 10 minutes on a sheet tray fitted with a rack before carving. Give it a little more butter and a squeeze of lemon as it rests.

Slice meat off the bone, drizzle with one final kiss of butter, and serve garnished with a sprinkle of thinly sliced fresh sage.