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How to Make a Perfect Roast Chicken Every Time

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Donna Urso
You can make a perfect roast chicken. Roasting a whole chicken at home is easy. Follow a few basic steps and you'll know how to roast a perfect chicken every time.     

If you are a regular reader here at Just One Donna, you know I'm all about food that is delicious, easy to prepare, and good for you.  A roasted chicken fits all of those requirements.  What's more, the leftovers will be great for additional meals during the week.

Easy Oven-Roasted Chicken

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A Perfectly Roasted Chicken
Donna's Easy Roasted Chicken
Getting into the habit of roasting a chicken every weekend is just good meal management for busy people.  Having a roasted chicken in your fridge means you'll always have the start of a delicious meal ready to go.  Leftovers are easily turned into a delicious chicken salad, chicken soup, chicken tacos, chicken pot pie, and more.

Those grocery store rotisserie chickens are a good choice in a pinch, but I have found it is pretty hard to get one that isn't overcooked.  I also find myself wondering what they might have injected the rotisserie chicken with as a flavor booster.  I'd much rather have complete control over all things related to my roasted chicken.

Roasted chicken recipes abound across the internet. It's time for you to perfect your very own roast chicken recipe. I hope this post will inspire you to start the habit of roasting your own chicken on a regular basis.  The key is to get consistently good at executing the basic technique and then make your roasted chicken recipe your own by customizing it to your personal preferences.
How to Make a Perfect Roasted Chicken
Jump to Recipe

Seven Basic Tips for Roasting a Chicken

  • What size chicken is perfect for roasting? Select a chicken that is about five pounds in weight.  You can buy them smaller or larger, but a five-pound chicken roasts well, It won't take too long to cook, and has enough meat on the bones for a family dinner.
  • How can you make roast chicken cleanup easy? Use a roasting pan that is easy to clean.  I've settled on glass or ceramic 13x9-inch baking dishes as my favorite pans for roasting chickens. Run hot water into your roasting pan after removing the chicken and juices from the pan. Let the pan sit until you are ready to wash the dish to make cleanup easy.
  • What oven temperature should you use to roast a chicken? Choose an oven temperature that works for you.  You can roast a chicken at 350 degrees F, or 375 degrees F, or 400 degrees F.  I like 375 degrees F because it produces a roasted chicken with a well-browned, crispy skin every time. A lower temperature will extend the cooking time.
  • How do you make the roasted chicken's skin crisp and flavorful? Dry the skin with a paper towel. Use a spice rub on your chicken. First, rub the skin with olive oil or butter. Then sprinkle with a mixture of salt, pepper, and garlic powder, 
  • Should you stuff your chicken? Select your favorite aromatic fruits, vegetables, and herbs to stuff in the cavity to flavor the chicken.  Think oranges, lemons, carrots, celery, parsley, rosemary, onion, garlic...you get the idea. You won't eat these but will enjoy the additional flavor in your chicken and the juices from the chicken.
  • What tools are needed to roast a chicken? A good baster and digital thermometer will make your roasting easier and ensure success.  These tools aren't absolutely necessary, but they do take some of the guesswork out of the picture.
  • How do you keep your chicken from drying out during roasting? Tie the legs together with kitchen twine to keep them close to the breasts.  This will help to ensure even roasting of the chicken and keep your legs from getting overcooked and dried out. Use a baster to distribute the roasting juices over the chicken.
  • How long should the chicken rest after roasting? Always let your roasted chicken rest for 15-20 minutes before carving it.  You want to juices to settle down to keep the chicken moist.
The Chicken Prepared and Ready for the Oven
The Prepared Chicken Ready for the Oven

How to Make a Perfect Roast Chicken: A Video

Lemon Garlic Chicken Version


My Easy Roast Chicken Recipe

chicken dinner, baked chicken, how to roast chicken
dinner
American
Yield: 6 servings
Author: Donna Urso
Oven Roasted Chicken

Oven Roasted Chicken

A simple recipe for perfect oven-roasted chicken every time.
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 10 M

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Remove the giblets. Rinse the chicken with cool water and pat it dry.
  3. Place the chicken in your roasting pan.
  4. Mix together the salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder.
  5. Rub the olive oil all over the chicken. Season the inside of the chicken with approximately half of the seasoning mixture and stuff with the sprigs of parsley and rosemary, chunks of onion and 4-6 whole garlic cloves.
  6. Now comes the key step. Run your fingers under the skin on the breast and legs to loosen.
  7. Spread approximately 1/2 tsp of the seasoning mixture under the loosened skin. Placing seasoning under the skin really makes a difference on the deliciousness scale.
  8. Rub the rest of the seasoning over the outside of the chicken. Tie the legs of the chicken together with kitchen twine.
  9. Place the chicken in the preheated oven and roast until the internal temperature is 185 degrees F.
  10. Baste the chicken occasionally while it roasts. Begin checking the internal temperature of the chicken after one hour.
  11. Cover the chicken with foil and let it rest for 15-20 minutes before serving.

Notes

Cooking time seems to vary greatly from bird to bird, how much you stuff in the cavity, or how long your chicken has sat out of the refrigerator before roasting.

Start checking the temperature using a meat thermometer around 90 minutes of cooking.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

419.83

Fat (grams)

26.81 g

Sat. Fat (grams)

6.88 g

Carbs (grams)

1.45 g

Fiber (grams)

0.45 g

Net carbs

1.00 g

Sugar (grams)

0.03 g

Protein (grams)

40.98 g

Sodium (milligrams)

751.07 mg

Cholesterol (grams)

159.80 mg

Nutrional information is approximate.

Similar Recipes

Crispy Oven-Fried Boneless Chicken Thighs

Weeknight Chicken Parmesan

Forgotten Pork Chops

https://www.justonedonna.com/2016/11/how-to-make-perfect-roasted-chicken.html
©Just One Donna
Enjoy!

Comments

  1. TobeOctober 21, 2020 at 8:23 AM

    Thank you! Ya know, after cooking for over forty years you would think I could roast a dang chicken but I've definitely had my challenges. Ha! I'm going to give it another go. Wish me luck and thanks again for your recipe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Donna UrsoOctober 21, 2020 at 8:31 PM

      You’ve got this Tobe! Let me know how you do. Practice makes perfect.

      Delete
  2. carolOctober 21, 2020 at 9:00 AM

    why so difficult to print your recipes. older citizens need simple easy directions. love your site but can not print. too bad

    ReplyDelete
  3. Donna UrsoOctober 21, 2020 at 8:27 PM

    Hi Carol, I appreciate the feedback. Google hosts my blog and has made some changes this year that mess up the printing. I*ll work on making it easier. I’d appreciate your patience, though. I think you know your access to my blog is totally free. It is a lot of work to publish a blog and the wheels of progress turn slowly without a budget.

    ReplyDelete

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