This easy roast chicken is a classic family meal that brings everyone together around the table. It looks absolutely fantastic and like you spent hours making it, but it’s actually fairly simple. Its impressive enough for company but easy enough for a regular weeknight dinner with your family.
A roast chicken can be a little intimidating if you have never made one before. Or if you have had one flop on you. We understand… But once you have that great recipe that works, you will realize for yourself how easy this roast chicken really is and you will have one more kick ass recipe in your back pocket to impress your family and friends.
There’s nothing quite like a perfectly roasted chicken with crispy skin and juicy meat to bring people around the table.
The secret to the crispy skin is two fold. It starts with the butter, garlic and herb mixture that’s rubbed all over the skin before it goes in the oven. And second, the scorching hot oven for the first 20 mins before you turn the heat down to roast just gets that skin super crispy. To make sure the skin stays crispy, roast the chicken by itself and make your sides separately then add them before serving if you want to serve them in the same dish. That will keep the bird dry and the moisture low in the oven.
When your chicken comes out of the oven, its hard not to start eating the crispy skin right away. I got my hand slapped away at least twice!
Useful tools to make your easy roast chicken:
- Lodge Enameled Cast Iron Skillet – we absolutely love our cast iron and they roast up this chicken perfectly!
- Lodge Enameled Dutch Oven – these babies are so versatile and not to mention gorgeous!
- Le Creuset Enameled Dutch Oven – a little more pricey, but these are beautiful heirloom pieces that will last you a lifetime and you can pass on to your kids. I love mine for roasting meat, making pasta dishes, baked rice dishes and many others.
- Meat Thermometer – a must for making roast chicken or any other roast meats. If you want perfectly cooked meat, you must use one of these.
- Serving Platter – this one is super cute and we love how it has a spot for dark and a spot for light meat
Doesn’t that meat just look so juicy and tender! Totally perfect…
Serve your roast chicken with roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes or these delicious garlic potatoes with dill, and these amazing pan fried brussel sprouts.
Easy Roast Chicken with Lemon, Garlic and Herbs
Ingredients
- 5 lb roasting chicken (approximate size)
OVER THE SKIN
- 4 tbsp butter at room temperature
- 3 sprigs rosemary
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp paprika
FOR THE CAVITY
- 1 lemon sliced
- 2 heads garlic
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 2 sprigs thyme
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Rinse your chicken with cold water inside and out and dry well with paper towels.
- Remove the herbs from their stems and roughly chop. Mix with the butter. Rub the butter mixture all over the skin of the chicken. Sprinkle skin with salt, pepper and paprika. Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the remaining lemon, garlic, and herbs.
- Tuck the wings under the chicken and truss up the legs with string if desired. You don’t have to do this, but it can help your chicken cook more evenly.
- Put your chicken in a large cast iron pan or roaster and pop it in the oven and cook for 20 mins. Then reduce the heat to 350 and roast your chicken for approximately 20 minutes per pound, or until the temperature of the breast meat registers at 157 degrees.
- When its done, tent it immediately with foil for 10 mins and let the meat rest in the pan to let the juices settle down and redistribute. Serve whole and cut at the table, or chop it up and arrange the pieces on a serving tray. Everyone will be impressed either way! It tastes so so good.
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