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For as long as I could recall I’ve always wanted to make a roast chicken. Nothing feels more homey to me than a juicy chicken with veggies on the table for a family. This is quite funny since if you’ve followed me for awhile, you know that I was raised in a vegetarian household and I’ve never actually experienced a family gathering with a chicken on the table! As a kid, I would just find the turkeys so perfect and appetizing though!
I don’t know why but working with a whole bird has always intimidated me in the back of my mind. Chicken is my favourite non-vegetarian protein source all day every day (you can see from the abundance of poultry recipes on the site!), and I really wish I had made whole chickens for meal prepping throughout the years! I would have saved so much money! The 1.4 kg (3 pound) chicken I purchased was only $6 CAD! Isn’t that nuts! For a 3-pack of chicken breast these days you pay $12 CAD! I’ve definitely been converted - better late than never!
At the time of writing this recipe, it’s nearly Thanksgiving, so if you don’t want to make a turkey because you don’t have the time to roast one or don’t have enough mouths to feed with a turkey, then this No-Fail Roast Chicken with lemon and garlic recipe is an amazing easy choice!
My free guide, Make Cooking Fun!, goes into detail about how to use what you have to inspire you to get creative. Of course you can eat this whole chicken for a special holiday meal with your friends and family, but if you want to use it as a meal prep option, then I really recommend you do so! I’ll give you some ideas at the bottom of this post for recipes where you can use pieces of this cooked chicken! If you’ve been intimidated of roasting a whole chicken, then I recommend you cross this off your bucket list as part of your Live to Cook one-month challenge! Sign up to my email newsletter to get those free goodies and so that you never miss a new recipe on the website!
To fully grasp all of the concepts that will guarantee a perfect oven roasted whole chicken, be sure to watch the video! I’d appreciate it if you subscribe to my YouTube channel if you’re not already and hit the bell button so you receive all of the notifications when a new video recipe premieres! I love to share the video recipes to give you a tangible view of exactly what’s going on! Let’s get cooking!
Why This Is the Best Roast Chicken Recipe!
- Easy to follow: This recipe is excellent for beginners to follow! Before making this I had only roasted a chicken once before. If you’re nervous about handling a whole chicken for the first time, you’ve certainly come to the right place! We don’t need any brining beforehand, we just pan-fry and finish baking in the oven!
- Fast: Well, it’s not SUPER fast, but relatively speaking to brining a chicken or roasting a turkey, the entire process is significantly faster! You can easily make this chicken for a last-minute special occasion dinner or even on a weeknight!
- Minimal ingredients: You’ll only need a couple of ingredients that you may already have handy to make this scrumptious whole chicken in the oven! They simply enhance the chicken and really let it shine!
- Multi-purpose: Because we’re simply seasoning the chicken, you can use it in so many dishes for later, and the possibilities of sides to serve with it are endless! This basic roasted whole chicken recipe is perfect for meal prepping!
- One-pot dish: Without side dishes, everything is going to get cooked in one pan! For a lot of food, you won’t need to clean up many cooking tools, and that’s always a bonus!
- Maximum flavour: This chicken is seriously one of the juiciest chickens I’ve ever had! You’ll get an amazing skin and on the inside it’ll be so tender, warm, and an explosion of flavors!
Do I Rinse the chicken?▼
No. This is more of a myth, even the CDC advises so. Kill any germs in the chicken by cooking it thoroughly, to 165 F instead of washing it. You can even spread germs all over you kitchen if you wash chicken.
How Do I know the Chicken Is Done?▼
The temperature on the thickest parts of the chicken should register 165 F on a meat thermometer.
How about those drippings?▼
The drippings are perfect to use in making a gravy, which I highly recommend you make with them! To learn how to make an easy and delicious gravy, check out my recipe here.
How Do You Carve a Whole Chicken?▼
The leg pieces are in two halves. The first is the thigh joint that can be cut with a sharp knife and the second is where the drumstick meets the thigh. At the end of the drumstick, feel the joint with your knife and slice through.
The breast and wing pieces are next. The wings can simply be pulled out while the breast meat need to be carved through the breast bone and ribs. Cut slightly offset from the center straight down and curve outwards as you slice down the breast.
Tips for a Super Juicy Roast Chicken
- Give the chicken a head start by cooking it over the stove, back side down until it appears the chicken might burn. This allows the dark meat to cook at around the same pace as the white meat.
- Reserve any fond left behind in the pan and any drippings to prepare gravy or sides.
- Turn the pan every 20 or so minutes while in the oven to ensure the colour is even throughout
- Reserve the veggies/herbs from the chicken cavity to incorporate in the gravy.
- If new to cooking whole birds, invest in a meat thermometer to ensure you can check the temperature accurately.
Equipment for the Best Roasted Chicken
- Cutting board: You’ll need this to prep the chicken before baking and to carve it when you serve.
- Chef’s knife: Used to cut your chicken.
- Stainless steel pan: I’ll be cooking my chicken in this pan over the stove and baking it in the oven. Ensure that your pan is oven-safe. You can also use a cast iron pan or Dutch oven if you have one, but my cast iron pan is too large for the chicken!
- Meat thermometer: This is absolutely essential to know that your chicken is fully cooked!
- Carving fork: I like to plate pasta with this, but it’s called a “carving fork” for a reason! This really helps you grab hold of the chicken off the pan when it has finished cooking.
- Kitchen twine: When I purchased my whole chicken, it came with it, but if yours does not, you’ll need to buy some in order to tie the legs of the chicken together.
Ingredients
Remember, the FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD for all ingredient quantities and step by step instructions. You can save the recipe for later!
- Whole chicken: Any size of chicken will work! My chicken was about 1.4 kg or 3 pounds. If yours is closer to 4 pounds then you should be good to go to follow the recipe as is, just account for a slightly longer cooking time. This can even work with a cornish hen or a small turkey.
- Lemon: Used to add a nice zing to the chicken and stuff the bird.
- Fresh thyme: Alternatively you could use sprigs of rosemary or use freshly chopped parsley.
- Salt and Pepper: These are the only seasonings we’ll need. Of course you can season it all sorts of ways, but if you want to serve this for Thanksgiving or any holiday or use this chicken for multi-purpose weekly meal prep, then simple is the way to go!
- Olive oil (already in the pan!): We’ll use cook our chicken over the stove in some olive oil, and it will seep into the skin as it bakes in the oven.
How to Roast a Chicken
Preheat your oven on 400 F and adjust the oven rack to the lower third of the oven.
Untie the legs of the chicken if tied in the packaging with kitchen twine. Add the lemon and thyme to the cavity of the chicken and then tie the legs back together using the kitchen twine. Place the twine under each end of the leg piece and then wrap the twine around either leg, making a figure eight.
Tighten the knot and then tie, similar to tying a lace. You can cut any excess twine if needed, I leave it on. Make 3 slits on the drumsticks using a sharp knife, going all the way down to the bone.
Add a thin film of olive oil on your roasting pan or oven safe stainless steel pan. Place the chicken in the pan and toss to coat each side with olive oil. Wash your hands and season well with salt and pepper. Spread the seasoning throughout the chicken.
Turn the pan on medium high heat, and ensure the chicken is resting on its back. Let the chicken sizzle for 8-10 minutes, or until it smells like the chicken might start to burn.
Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for about 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until golden brown throughout. Make sure to turn the pan every 20 minutes, since most ovens have hot spots.
Once the chicken is golden brown throughout and the thickest parts of it registers 165 F, transfer the chicken to a plate and let it rest for at least 25-30 minutes. Reserve the fond on the pan and any drippings to prepare gravy and sides.
Carve chicken as desired and serve with your favourite sides.
What to Serve with Roasted Chicken
- Air Fryer Roasted Potatoes: You can season them with paprika as I did here!
- Sautéed Broccoli: Delicious buttery and garlicky broccoli that’s ready in a flash!
- Garlic Creamed Spinach: Super fast to make over the stove with some cream cheese!
- Air Fryer Cajun Potato Wedges: A little bit of heat from our crispy air fried potato wedges.
- Ultimate Creamy Mashed Potatoes: Super smooth, buttery, and creamy, and will be amazing with gravy!
- Healthy Creamy Coleslaw: This coleslaw is made without mayo so it’s light but still super creamy and will be an amazing accompaniment with your chicken!
- Super Easy Potato Salad: A nice creamy side of potatoes and eggs with the tanginess from dill! It’s quick to make and perfect with this chicken!
How to Store Whole Roasted Chicken▼
Store any leftover chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Poultry lasts about 4 days in the fridge. You can reheat your chicken in the microwave or air fryer or even over the stove, depending on how you want to use it! Check out the next section for recipes where you can use your chicken! I most
If you have an air fryer, I recommend you reheat in the air fryer to maintain the crispiness and for the quickest method.
How to Use Leftover Roasted Chicken
If you’re cooking a whole chicken for cheap meal prep, then there are so many ways you can use the different cuts of the chicken! Basically any recipe where you need a cooked chicken breast works! Here are just a couple of ideas:
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