Roast Chicken slathered with a garlic-herb-lemon butter then oven roasted to golden crispy perfection.
Juicy on the inside, and served with liquid gold pan juices loaded with flavour, this is THE Roast Chicken recipe you’ll make over and over again!
The best Roast Chicken recipe is….
….. juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside with golden skin that’s buttery and herby and garlicky with just a subtle perfume of lemon to remind you it’s there without overwhelming.
It creates its own pan juices that’s used as the sauce for the chicken. This stuff is liquid gold!
This is the chicken version of the Herb and Garlic Butter Roasted Turkey Breast I shared for Christmas / Thanksgiving last year. I’ve lost count of how many messages there were asking for a chicken version – and I’m finally sharing it!
How to make the BEST roast chicken!
The best roast chicken has garlic herb butter under and on the skin, is stuffed with lemon and herbs, roasted until it’s crispy and deep golden on the outside, and juicy on the inside.
It’s really easy to prepare a whole chicken for roasting. The trick is to use an upside down dessert spoon to loosen the skin – the shape hugs the curves of the chicken and it doesn’t tear the skin.
Then simply spoon the garlic-herb-butter under the skin then spread it from the outside. OR hold it upright and drizzle in (see photos below) – whatever you find easier!
TIP: Use most of the butter under the skin, that’s where you get the most bang for your buck. Plus, garlic burns on the skin so you don’t want too much on the surface.
After the chicken is all buttered up, place it on a bed of garlic and onion. This serves two purposes:
-
Elevates the chicken off the base of the pan for more even cooking (otherwise the underside sits in the pan juices and will cook faster); and
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Adds extra flavour into the pan juices used as the sauce for this recipe. OR used for gravy!
How to make the BEST roast chicken (cont’d)
I like to stuff the chicken with a wedges of lemon and a couple of sprigs of rosemary. Not so much for the flavour, because in truth, you can just barely taste it. It’s more for the perfume you get when you cut into the chicken so it seems like you can taste it.
And this is the reason why I do not put garlic inside oven roasted chicken. There’s no point – it doesn’t get hot enough to make any difference to flavour and just steams.
Flavour bomb set, now it’s time for the easy part – roasting.
How long does it take to roast a 2 kg chicken?
10 minutes at 220C/450F, then 1 hr 15 minutes at 180C/350F until the internal temperature is 75C/165F or until juices run clear.
The formula is: 10 minutes at 220C/450F, then 20 minutes for every 500g/1lb at 180C/350F until the internal temperature is 75C/165F or until juices run clear.
But….. I want gravy!!
OK OK, hold the tantrum! It’s all good! I have the gravy recipe in the notes.😇
But really, give the liquid gold a go one of these days…. It’s crazy good! I mean, it’s garlic butter. Infused with herb flavours and a hint of lemon. Mingling with roasted chicken juices.
Watch the video. It tastes even better than it looks! – Nagi x
More whole chicken recipes
-
Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Roast Chicken (set and forget!)
-
Jamie Oliver’s Chicken in Milk (seriously delish!)
-
Chicken Noodle Soup – from scratch!
What to do with leftovers?
Use it to make epic Bread Bowl Sandwich, Chicken Pasta Salad, Chinese Chicken Salad or toss it into a Frittata or Omelette! salad
Best of Sunday Supper Roasts
Roast Chicken recipe
Watch how to make it
Sometimes it helps to have a visual – so watch me make this Roast Chicken recipe!
Roast Chicken recipe originally published May 2016, improved May 2018. Updated for housekeeping matters January 2019, no change to recipe. It’s perfect as is! 🙂
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Roast Chicken
Ingredients
- 1.75 - 2 kg / 3.5 - 4lb whole chicken , patted dry
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 lemon, quartered
- 3 rosemary sprigs
Butter:
- 100 g / 1 stick unsalted butter , melted
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 tbsp sage , finely chopped (Note 1)
- 2 tsp rosemary , finely chopped (Note 1)
- 1 tbsp parsley , finely chopped (Note 1)
- 1/2 tsp each salt and black pepper
Under Chook:
- 1 cup / 250 ml dry white wine , or low sodium chicken broth
- 1 onion , quartered (Note 2)
- 1 garlic bulb , halved horizontally (Note 2)
Instructions
- Take the chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking.
- Preheat oven to 220C/450F (standard) or 200C/430F (fan/convection). Put shelf in the middle.
- Mix together Butter ingredients. Add juice from 2 wedges of lemon.
- Place chicken in a roasting pan. Use a dessert spoon to loosen skin from chicken (see video). Do the top (the breast) and the drumsticks – not the underside.
- Prop chicken upright, drizzle butter under skin, using most of the garlic/herb sludge, but saving a bit of butter for the skin (Note 3).
- Drizzle / smear remaining butter all over surface of the chicken. Squeeze over juice of 2 lemon wedges.
- Stuff used lemon wedges and rosemary inside chicken.
- Tie drumstick ends with string and tuck wing tips under the chicken.
- Sprinkle all over with salt and pepper.
- Place onion and garlic in the pan, place chicken on top. Pour wine around, drizzle chicken with oil.
- Transfer to oven. Roast for 10 minutes, then turn oven down to 180C/350F (all oven types). Roast for a further 1 hr 15 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 75C/165F or until juices run clear when pierced at the join between the drumstick and the body. Baste twice (30 min then at 1 hr), spooning pan juices over skin.
- Rest for 15 minutes – don’t cover, skin becomes wet.
- Serve with pan juices (see video for how to carve). I discard onion but use the garlic in the pan. See notes for side suggestions & how to use carcass for incredible homemade broth!
Recipe Notes:
50 g / 3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp / 40 g flour (any white)
2 cups / 500 ml liquid from pan topped up with low sodium chicken broth Melt butter over medium heat, add flour, stir for 1 minute. Add half the liquid while whisking. Once incorpoated and lump free, add remaining liquid. Continue cooking for 2 minutes, stirring regularly, until gravy thickens. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 5. COOK TIMES: 10 minutes at 220C/450F, then 20 minutes for every 500g/1lb at 180C/350F until the internal temperature is 75C/165F or until juices run clear. This assumes the chicken was taken out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking. If it’s fridge cold, add another 10 minutes to the cook time. 6. TYING DRUMSTICKS: I find it easiest to use one piece of string, wrap string around one leg, then yank the other leg closer and wrap string around that one to. Then once string is around both of them, it's much easier to handle to use the string to pull then together then wrap the string around both of them tightly so they are crossed over each other. 7. CARCASS and leftover bits/juices: Scrape it all into a pot or slow cooker, add water so water is about 2.5cm / 1" above chicken. Add 2 tsp Vegeta or chicken stock powder or 2 crumbled cubes, celery, carrot and a few garlic cloves (chunky pieces) and a few sprigs of fresh herbs like thyme/rosemary/parsley OR 1 tsp dried herbs. Simmer 1 hour  / slow cooker 6 hours, strain. Pick out/off bits of chicken to use in soup. Use as incredible broth for Chicken Noodle Soup or Chicken Rice Soup. 8. SIDES: Roast potatoes (cut, toss in olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs, roast under chicken for 40 minutes), mashed potato or cauliflower, or garlic bread. Also try Potatoes au Gratin or Easy Cheesy Potato Bake - can make ahead then reheat in oven quickly. Pictured on the very edge of photo in post is this Kale Quinoa Salad (I often have it on hand as it lasts for days and days). Other great salads: Corn Salad with Avocado and Tomato, Roast Pumpkin Spinach Salad, a garden salad with Italian or French Dressing. 9. Nutrition assumes 1.2kg / 2.4lb of meat, remainder is bones discarded. Also assumes all pan juices are consumed which they probably won't be, also you lose some in the onion/garlic/discarded chicken.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Like a mohawk – gone wrong. (Aftermath of a knee operation he had back in May 2018 when this recipe was first published…)
Very nice,i like the melted butter mix option a lot less messy than our usual method usingsoft butter mix with fingers.For a richer gravy base add carrot,leek,celery and the brocolli stalk (if using fresh for a side) to the veggie trivet for sitting the chicken on to the onion and garlic.As nagi does we also eat the lovely roasted garlic just add to the plate.
Real nice thanks.
Beautiful! I’ve never cooked a roast chicken as I’ve always had dry roasts when they aren’t store bought from the deli. It was perfect, moist and full of flavour. Now a family favourite for us!
I made this a couple of weeks ago and it’s absolutely delicious!! I bought a big fat chicken so I cooked it for 1.5hrs and it was perfection. It was a messy affair dealing with the chicken and the butter and all, but it was worth it. I made the gravy using your recipe in the notes and it was amazing. Couldn’t let the glorious roasted garlic go to waste so I smashed it into the gravy. Next level stuff!!
Made this for dinner tonight. Wow, think it’s better than Swiss Chalet (Famous Canadian chicken) LOL. Easy and can’t wait to use it for leftovers 😉
Delicious! My whole family loved this as it retained so much moisture & flavour. Fabulous as all your recipes I’ve tried are. Thank you for taking the time to share in such detail. I always know your recipes will work & often turn out better than expected!
In the ingredients for the butter, it doesn’t say anything about lemon juice. It only says to add the lemon juice in the instructions. Why isn’t it listed in the ingredient list?
Hi Steve, the lemon is listed in the ingredients above the butter 🙂 N x
I was eager to try this recipe and followed the directions, cooking it until it measured 165 on the thermometer. However, when I cut into it it was not fully cooked. Perhaps it would be better to cook it to 175 and then let it sit to come up the last 5 degrees as most advise to Cook chicken to 180degrees.
My son is now using your recipes and made me this roast chicken for our Sunday dinner. The only problem we has was he needed to have cooked it 10mins more. Such flavour. Yes and he did put the half garlic in just because you said it was pointless. And it did nothing. Cold and blue when removed. Aside from all that the chicken was delicious. Thank you.
Hi Nagi,
Loved your recipe! Thank you! Only one funny issue encountered: the chicken keeps slipping and it doesn’t stand over the onions and the garlic that I put under it! So chicken is in the liquid from the bottom and not elevated as it should be! How to solve this issue? Any ideas? Thanks!
I roll up Al foil balls to elevate my roasts 🙂
Another great recipe, Nagi. I’m a more traditional stuffed chicken and brown gravy kind of guy, but I made this exact and was amazed at the taste! Loved the infused flavour of the garlicky herb butter, and the golden pan juices was perfect…but next time I’ll use the juices as gravy base to compare!
Great recipe
Thanks so much!! N x
Added your roasties to this gorgeous dish. Brilliant combo. Defo my go to roast Chicken dinner from here on! Thanks so much for all your hard work and wonderful insights.
I’m so glad you love it Paul, thanks so much!! N x
As always Nagi, you aced it! I’m not confident with cooking meat but your instructions were bang on and the results perfection.
Wahoo, thanks so much Kathy!! N x
Hi, what would be the cooking time for roasting 2 whole chickens in the same oan
Hi Diana, you’re cooking based on the weight of each chicken (not the combined weight) – so as long as they are the same size as the recipe, cook as per the recipe 🙂 N x
I’ve tried tons of “the best” roast chicken recipes that all turned out blah. This recipe was totally perfect and the chicken was delicious! The butter under the skin gives the meat great flavour and I can’t wait to use the stock that’s cooking right now! Great instructions/info and love the different notes that you offer up.
Woah, what a compliment! That’s great to hear Laurel – thanks so much! N x
Made your recipe again today…this time I remembered to baste the chicken and it was even better!
Hi, I’m planning on making this for Christmas dinner, along with the bbq oven ribs. And I was wondering can I add the season and everything to the chicken and ribs and put them in the fridge like the day before ? Thank you!
Hi Kaya! You sure can. You can even pour the butter under skin and on the skin – when melted butter hits fridge cold skin, it solidifies which is handy. Rub on ribs is fine too. YUM! – N x
Everybody loved it!!
Although I didn’t get any gravy out of it.
It was really tender and juicy.
Thanks!
Ah-maze-ing, absolutely loved it. Moist and flavourful, definitely a hit with everyone.
Hi Nagi, Can you use your brined chicken recipe and this one together?
Hi Nagi, my parents really want a roast chicken on Christmas, but I am planning to spend the morning at my in laws and then lunch at my family home! Is is possible to prep this on Christmas Eve (eg all steps but roasting) and leave it overnight in the fridge?