How to cook a whole chicken in the oven, with your favorite veggies. This is a perfect holiday recipe and it’s meant for sharing.
Hey Foodies,
Are you ready for the upcoming holidays?
You are probably going to have lots of friends and family over (I know I do), so have you thought about what to cook for them?
If not, then let me show you a classic recipe that you can’t go wrong with.
This is actually one of the things I like most about it as I have never heard anybody saying that they don’t like it (please don’t prove me wrong 🙂 ).
So today, I made for you a delicious whole roasted chicken stuffed with lemon and fresh herbs, and as a side, I made a yummy mix of roasted veggies.
Now, the second thing that I love most about it, is that it’s so easy to make.
You can make this whole roasted chicken recipe even if you hate cooking or have never been in a kitchen before (again, please don’t prove me wrong ? ).
So instead of going for the dull rotisserie chicken that gets cold before you get home, try making it yourself and see how easy it.
But before firing up the ovens I would like to give you some very useful tips.
So here it goes…
What to cook with roast chicken
The most popular side dish for the whole roasted chicken is veggies.
I made it with potatoes, carrots, Brussels sprouts and red onion. But you can try others like broccoli, butternut squash or parsnip.
One thing to keep in mind here is that you must cut them the same size as I did otherwise the cooking time will differ.
You can also serve this roasted chicken with french fries and garlic, or with salads.
More Recipes:
Now let’s move on, and see…
What is the best temperature to roast the chicken at, and for how long
This depends on the size of your chicken and how you like it.
The one I made has about 3.5-4 pounds (roughly 2 Kg) and I roasted it at 400 F (200 C). It came out tender on the inside and with a crispy skin.
At this temperature, the roasting time is about an hour.
If you want it extra tender and soft skin then you should go for a lower temp, like 300 F – 350 F (150 C – 180 C) and a higher cooking time (about 1 1/2 up to 2 hours).
How to cook a whole chicken in the oven – Best Tips
Roasting a whole chicken in the oven is so easy even a kid can do it. You just can’t go wrong with it.
As you can see in the recipe, there are just four steps for doing it.
To summarize them, you need to place the ingredients on a baking tray, mix and season them, stuff a lemon in the chicken and let everything to roast.
Simple, right?
And to make things even easier (and the chicken more delish), here are some useful tips and tricks:
- Â Take the chicken out of the fridge 45 minutes before cooking it and bring it to room temperature. This will make the meat more tender and juicy. Note that this step is very important and if you skip it, cooking time will be longer and the meat will come out dry, especially the breast.
- Â See when it’s done by inserting an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. If it’s cooked, it should show 165 F (75 C).
- Â If you don’t have a thermometer, then pierce the part between the breast and leg. The juices should run clear when it’s done.
- Â If you want to take things to another level (to the pros league) then you need to marinate it overnight. Note that there are many ways of marinating a whole chicken so you need to choose your favorite. You can do it in lemon or orange juice, with olive oil herbs and condiments, or even in your favorite beer.
These were my best tips for making a whole chicken in the oven.
I am sure you also know a few, so don’t keep them to yourself, alright? Drop ’em in the comments.
Now I know an image is worth a thousand words so I will let the video below guide you further.
So let’s fire up the ovens and start making it.
And if you would like to see more easy recipe videos, then please Subscribe to my YouTube Channel.
Whole Roasted Chicken And Veggies Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 lb (2Kg) whole chicken - rinsed and pat dry
- Sea salt and ground pepper
- 1/2 bunch thyme
- 1/2 bunch rosemary
- 1 lemon
- 3 garlic cloves - minced
- 3 red onions - peeled and cut into quarters
- 10.5 oz (300g) baby carrots
- 10.5Oz oz (300g) Brussels sprouts
- 1 lb baby potatoes - cut into halves
- 4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil - divided
- 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F degrees.
- In a large baking tray place potatoes, carrots, Brussels sprouts, red onion and garlic. Add 2 Tbsp olive oil, then sprinkle with Italian seasoning and add a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Mix well to get the veggies evenly seasoned and coated.
- Add the chicken on top of veggies. Stuff a whole lemon, rosemary and thyme in its cavity. Drizzle olive oil on it and season with salt and black pepper. Using your hands, massage the chicken making sure it's all coated with oil and seasoning.
- Roast until the chicken is golden brown (about 1 hour) and the juices run clear when pierced between its breast and leg (an instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part of a thigh, avoiding bone, should read 165 degrees).
Recipe Notes
- Â Take the chicken out of the fridge 45 minutes before cooking it and bring it to room temperature. This will make the meat more tender and juicy. Note that this step is very important and if you skip it, cooking time will be longer and the meat will come out dry, especially the breast.
- Â See when it's done by inserting an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. If it's cooked, it should show 165 F (75C).
- Â If you don't have a thermometer, then pierce the part between the breast and leg. The juices should run clear when it's done.
- Â If you want to take things to another level (to the pros league) then you need to marinate it overnight. Note that there are many ways of marinating it so you need to choose your favorite. You can do it in lemon or orange juice, with olive oil herbs and condiments, or even in your favorite beer.
- Â You can replace the veggies I used in this recipe with your favorites (like broccoli, butternut squash, parsnip etc). But please cut them the same size, so the cooking time will remain the same.
- Â If you would like it to have a smoky flavor, season it with smoked paprika.
Nutrition
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So easy!