This Simple Whole Roasted Chicken is flavorful, juicy, and tender. It has perfectly crisp skin, and is perfect for Sunday super.
A crispy roast chicken is simple and satisfying. It is perfect for the whole family. My kids devour the juicy chicken breasts, and my husband and I are big fans of the plump leg-thigh pieces. Even the leftover-makeover meals are great.
Make two whole chickens at the same time and this easy roast chicken recipe will yield a few weeknight dinners and a lunch or two. I use the leftovers for salads, sandwiches, and yummy Cheesy Chicken Baked Taquitos.
Make This Recipe!
You may wonder why I am such a big fan of roasting my own chicken when there are perfectly good rotisserie chickens waiting for me at the store. I’ll never knock you for picking up the store bought version because some days we’ve got to do what we got to do, but when you put my simple oven roasted chicken up against a store bought rotisserie chicken; it is no contest.
Store bought is fast and easy, but there are a few drawbacks.
- First is that the seasonings are often way too salty for my taste.
- The next is that sitting in the plastic container makes the skin soggy.
- Finally, those birds are tiny. They seem like a good deal, but at the end of the day there just isn’t much meat on them.
Roasting a whole bird can seem intimidating, but it takes just a few steps to have a beautifully plump, juicy chicken on the table. The cooking process is simple and a great recipe for any home cook to keep in their back pocket.
Fresh garlic, rosemary, and a bit of lemon give this dish it's beautiful, bright flavor.
A little bit of butter and high heat create perfectly crisp skin.
This is a super inexpensive meal to make. Whole chicken runs a little over a dollar a pound in most grocery stores. Serve it with Mushroom Rice and Honey Glazed Carrots for a super simple, but very shareable dinner.
Making two whole roasted chickens is as easy as making one. Making two will pay dividends all week and keep you from spending money going out.
Ingredients
Whole Chicken- I typically buy a roasters for this recipe. They run between 5-7 pounds and make for a hearty meal. (Fryers and broilers are younger, smaller chickens and these are often what you get when you buy a rotisserie chicken.)
Instructions
Step 1
- Start the preparation for this simple oven roasted chicken by preheating the oven to 425°.
- Before handling the chicken, prepare everything you need to make the chicken.
- In a small bowl, mix softened butter, minced garlic, rosemary, lemon juice, and a bit of salt and black pepper. Use a fork to mix the compound butter.
- Cut lemons into wedges, and slice red onions into thick rounds.
Step 2
- Line the pan with thick slices of onion. You are going to rest the chicken breast-side up on top of the onions. This will lift the chicken up a bit in the pan and let the heat circulate around the whole bird to cook evenly and get a good crisp all the way around.
If you don't have a cast iron pan, use a shallow roasting pan or a sheet pan lined with parchment paper
Step 3
- Remove the chicken from the package. Check the inside of the body cavity, and remove any neck or giblets that are inside. ( Some companies do not put giblets in the package, so don’t be too worried if you don’t find anything.)
- Use a few paper towels to pat the chicken dry all around. You need a nice dry skin to get the butter and seasoning to adhere, and to get crispy skin.
- Next, place the chicken on top of the onions breast-side up.
- Rub the compound butter over every part of the chicken. Be sure to pull the legs and wings back to get seasoning in every nook and cranny.
- Place lemons into the cavity of the chicken.
- Then, pull the legs together and tie with kitchen string or use a barbecue skewer and thread it through the backs of the chicken legs. (I never remember to pick up butcher’s twine. The skewer works just fine. If you have neither, you can still cook the chicken. The underside of the legs just might not get as well browned.)
Step 4
- Place the pan of chicken into a preheated 425° oven. Cook at this temperature for 20 minutes.
- Then, turn the oven down and finish cooking at 350°. A higher temperature in the beginning will start to crisp the outer skin and guarantee a golden brown bird. It will also seal moisture in to get super juicy meat.
- Once the chicken has reached 165°, remove it from the oven. Place the whole roast chicken on a cutting board and cover with a piece of foil to rest.
Step 5
- Carve the rested chicken by removing the legs and thighs at the joint. They should come away from the body by simply twisting them upwards towards the breast and using a butcher knife to help separate the joint.
- Remove the wings the same way.
- Then remove the breast meat. Bring your knife in as close to one side of the breast bone as possible and cut away one whole side of the breast. Then cut the breast into thick slices. Do the same to the other side.
FAQs
Poultry is fully cooked and safe to eat when it reaches an internal temperature of 165°. A meat thermometer placed into the thickest part of the thigh close to the breast will give you the most accurate reading. Be sure you are not touching bone.
Some people recommend checking for the color of the juices. Red juices mean the bird is still raw and clear juices signify a cooked chicken.
However, I would caution you against using this method as different parts of a whole chicken cook at different speeds. You will also lose moisture poking and cutting around the chicken before it has rested.
Start out with the oven set at 425° for 20 minutes to sear the skin and keep the juices in. Then lower the oven to 350° for the remaining time.
When shopping for a good roasting chicken you want to choose a “roaster”. A roaster is a mature chicken between 5-7 pounds. These birds are meatier and have a thicker layer of fat which keeps them from burning while they cook for a long period of time. The extra fat bastes the meat as it roasts and makes them extra juicy and flavorful.
Diana's Tips for Success
Cooking time is going to vary depending on the size of the whole chicken. Once the chicken has been in the oven for 1 hour and 40 minutes, I check the temperature. This would be about 20 minutes per pound for a 5 pound chicken.
If the skin starts to get too brown before the inside is fully cooked, make a tent over the chicken breast with aluminum foil to prevent burning.
Rest the chicken before carving. Let the chicken sit in the pan with foil over the top for at least 10 minutes.
This is a very simple oven roasted chicken recipe and the seasonings are very simple. I purposely chose a simple flavor combination of lemon and fresh herbs so that I can use the leftover chicken for other meals. Get experimental with your compound butter, and see what kind of awesome flavors you can make with one simple technique.
Storage and Reheating
Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Serve leftover chicken cold on sandwiches or salads.
Reheat chicken pieces by placing in a skillet with chicken stock. Heat on low until the meat is warmed through.
Related Recipes
- Cast Iron Chicken Breast with Garlic Herb Butter
- Dutch Oven Lemon Sage Thighs
- Crispy Oven Roasted Chicken Thighs
- Easy Air Fryer Chicken Taquitos
- Waldorf Chicken Salad
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📖 Recipe
Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 Whole Chicken Roaster 5-7lbs with giblets and neck removed
- 1 Red Onion Thick Slices
- 6 Tablespoons Butter
- 3 Cloves Garlic
- 2 Tablespoons Fresh Rosemary removed From stem, or 2 teaspoons dry
- 2 Teaspoons Cracked Pepper
- 2-3 Lemons ½ for juice, the remainder for stuffing
- 1 Tablespoon Kosher Salt
Instructions
- Start the preparation for this simple oven roasted chicken by preheating the oven to 425°.
- Before handling the chicken, prepare everything you need to make the chicken. If you do not have a cast iron skillet, use a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, mix softened butter, minced garlic, rosemary, lemon juice, and a bit of salt and black pepper. Use a fork to mix the compound butter.
- Cut lemons into wedges, and slice red onions into thick rounds.
- Line the pan with thick slices of onion. You are going to rest the chicken breast-side up on top of the onions. This will lift the chicken up a bit in the pan and let the heat circulate around the whole bird to cook evenly and get a good crisp all the way around.
- Remove the chicken from the package. Check the inside of the body cavity, and remove any neck or giblets that are inside. ( Some companies do not put giblets in the package, so don’t be too worried if you don’t find anything.)
- Use a few paper towels to pat the chicken dry all around. You need a nice dry skin to get the butter and seasoning to adhere, and to get crispy skin.
- Next, place the chicken on top of the onions breast side up. Rub the compound butter over every part of the chicken. Be sure to pull the legs and wings back to get seasoning in every nook and cranny. Place lemons into the cavity of the chicken. Then, pull the legs together and tie with kitchen string or use a barbecue skewer and thread it through the backs of the chicken legs. (I never remember to pick up butcher’s twine. The skewer works just fine. If you have neither, you can still cook the chicken. The underside of the legs just might not get as well browned.)
- Place the pan of chicken into a preheated 425° oven. Cook at this temperature for 20 minutes. Then turn the oven down and finish cooking at 350°. A higher temperature in the beginning will start to crisp the outer skin and guarantee a golden brown bird. It will also seal moisture in to get super juicy meat.
- Once the chicken has reached 165°, remove it from the oven. Place the whole roast chicken on a cutting board to rest and carve.
- Carve the rested chicken by removing the legs and thighs at the joint. They should come away from the body by simply twisting them upwards towards the breast and using a butcher knife to help separate the joint.
- Remove the wings the same way.
- Then remove the breast meat. Bring your knife in as close to one side of the breast bone as possible and cut away one whole side of the breast. Then cut the breast into thick slices. Do the same to the other side.
Notes
Nutrition
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Easy Peasy Life Matters says
This sounds to die for!! Pinned! 🙂
Diana Reis says
Thank you! I made it twice this week so I can make a chicken salad. Recipe coming.
Helen Adams says
Thanks so much for sharing this awesome Roasted Chicken with us at Full Plate Thursday this week. Hope you are having a great weekend and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
Diana Reis says
I enjoyed my visit. I will surely return. Great contributors and a great blog!
Erika says
This is so delicious! I love cooking whole chickens because there are so many ways to use the meat.
Angela says
I love making whole roasted chickens. They are so easy to make but also feel like a special meal. Thanks for the recipe!
Sarah James says
Your roast chicken looks delicious. I love how you've flavoured the chicken with a fresh garlic, rosemary and lemon butter. Thanks for the tip about drying the chicken skin before you cook it.
Jessica Formicola says
I love this! So much better than buying a rotisserie chicken at the store. Can't wait to try it!
Emily Flint says
Butter makes everything better, especially this roasted chicken. Such a perfect meal for my family of 3!