For some reason, I was always intimidated by roast chicken. It looked like it took a ton of time to make and I always worried it would turn out dry. A few years ago, I cooked a turkey for the first time for Friendsgiving (see recipe here). It was SO much easier than I thought and it tasted delicious. I figured if I could cook a 20 pound turkey, I could handle a 5 pound chicken. So I attempted my first roast chicken and it was simple and SO yummy. The prep is super fast and easy and it only take an hour and a half to cook. There is something so comforting about a roast chicken, especially during the fall. This is my go-to roast chicken recipe. I love to serve it with roasted fall veggies.
Ingredients:
- 1 (4 – 6 lb) roasting chicken
- 2 yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 5 carrots, roughly chopped
- 20 sprigs of rosemary
- 20 sprigs of thyme
- 1 head of garlic, cut in half
- 1 lemon, cut in half
- 4 tbsp butter, melted
- Olive oil
- Salt and Pepper
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Place the sliced onions, carrots, half of the thyme and half of the rosemary in the bottom of a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss until all the veggies and herbs are nicely coated. Then place the roasting rack on top.
To prepare the chicken, begin by removing the giblets. Then rinse the chicken (including the inside) and pat dry with paper towels. Generously season the inside of the chicken with salt and pepper. Then stuff the chicken with the garlic, lemon and remaining thyme and rosemary. Tie the chicken legs together using kitchen twine and place the chicken on the rack in the roasting pan. Then tuck the wings under the chicken. Finally, brush the chicken with the melted butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Place the chicken in the oven and cook for 1 1/2 hours, until a meat thermometer inserted between the leg and breast reads 165 degrees. Once done, remove from the oven. Arrange the veggies and chicken onto a platter and tent with foil for about 20 minutes. Then slice the chicken and serve. (I love to serve this Roast Chicken with roasted fall veggies, including butternut squash, delicata squash and Brussels sprouts. Simply slice/chop/dice all your favorite fall veggies and lay them onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Place in a 400 degree oven for 30 – 45 minutes until perfectly roasted.)
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