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    Home » Recipes » Chicken

    Easy Roast Chicken for Sunday or Christmas Dinner

    Published: Mar 24, 2019 · Modified: Oct 6, 2022 by Jocelyn | JOZmahal· This post may contain affiliate links and generates income via ads · 1 Comment

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    Roast Chicken with herbs and spices in a round baking dish.

    Roast Chicken is by far my and my family's favorite Sunday meal! It is so simple to make with just a few herbs and spices that you can readily find in your pantry! Fancy it up with the addition of some colorful roasted vegetables and it can be served beautifully on your Christmas dinner table.

    Roast Chicken with herbs and spices in a round baking dish. this recipe for later
    Jump to:
    • Simple Ingredients and Variations
    • How to Roast Chicken
    • Cooking Tips
    • What To Do With Leftover Roast Chicken
    • Frequently Asked Question
    • Other Chicken Recipes You May Like
    • 📖 Recipe Card
    • 💬 Reviews

    Simple Ingredients and Variations

    • Whole Roasting Chicken: perfect size for roasting is anywhere from 4 to 5 pounds, with 5 pounds being the ideal size.
    • Sea Salt or Kosher Salt
    • Ground Black Pepper: I have also used the multi-colored or rainbow peppercorns which adds some heat and more flavor to the dish.
    • Paprika: Hungarian or Smoked add an intense flavor and color.
    • Lemon: I have also used orange which gives a hint of sweetness.
    • Onion: any variety will work.
    • Thyme: Using fresh thyme adds a more appealing look to the finished dish.
    • Garlic: I prefer using a whole bulb and then cut in half, as you see in the photo. This makes the roast chicken more flavorful and I think you can agree that it adds to the whole presentation of the finished roast chicken.

    Please see the recipe card for specific measurements for ingredients.

    How to Roast Chicken

    • STEP 1: Rinse and dry the whole chicken with paper towels. I know this is a bit controversial. Some people don't rinse the chicken. I always have. So I'll stick to what I'm used to doing. How about you, do you use your chicken before cooking it? Anyway, back to roasting chicken... Rub the whole chicken with olive oil. Set aside.
    • STEP 2: In a small bowl, mix sea salt, ground black pepper, and paprika. Rub the dry mixture all over the chicken, as well as inside the cavity of the chicken.
    • STEP 3: Stuff the chicken with the lemon, onion, sprigs of thyme, and garlic.
    • STEP 4: Roast the chicken in the oven for 30 minutes at 425 °F (218 °C). After 30 minutes, decrease the temperature to 350 °F (177 °C) and cook until a thermometer inserted into the chicken breast registers 165 °F (74 °C).  Enjoy!

    Please see the recipe card for specific instructions on how to roast chicken.

    Cooking Tips

    • Remove the seeds from the lemon, as it can cause a bitter taste.
    • Cut the garlic crosswise as this helps infuse some flavor to the chicken as it cooks.
    • Cut some garlic cloves into thin slivers and put some in between the skin of the chicken.
    • If desired, you can also add a couple of carrots and celery stalks and lay them at the bottom of the baking dish while roasting the chicken. This adds more flavor to the roasted chicken and will yield some juice which you can use to make gravy.
    • For a more festive look, garnish with orange slices and fresh cranberries.

    What To Do With Leftover Roast Chicken

    Roast Chicken is one of those dishes that can be used and repurposed in many different ways from meal prep and sandwiches, to stock, and soups. Here are some recipes you can find here in my blog that I used leftover roast chicken.

    • Homemade Chicken Stock
    • Chicken Flautas
    • Pancit Guisado
    • Leftover Roast Chicken Soup

    Frequently Asked Question

    Should I cover the chicken when roasting?

    Covering the chicken while roasting will keep it from getting crisper skin and a nice golden color. For this reason, we suggest roasting the chicken in this recipe to be uncovered.

    Is it better to roast or bake chicken?

    Roasting a chicken will give it crisper skin while maintaining a tender and juicier meat. Baking is a cooking method for recipes that start out soft such as dough or cake batter.

    How can I make sure that the chicken doesn't dry out when roasting?

    Using a foil towards the end of cooking time to cover the breast of the chicken will ensure that the meat stays moist and juicy.

    What are the best herbs or spices for roast chicken?

    Chili, Cilantro, Cumin, Curry, Garlic, Ginger, Marjoram, Nutmeg, Oregano, Paprika, Peppercorns, Rosemary, Sage, Salt, Tarragon, Thyme.

    What's the best wine with roast chicken?

    A full-flavored red, a medium-bodied rosé, or a dry white will pair very well with the simplicity of this dish.

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    Have you tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ rating and/or a review comment below. Let's be taste buds and connect with us on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.

    📖 Recipe Card

    Roast Chicken with herbs and spices in a round baking dish.

    Always Perfect Roasted Chicken

    A perfect dish for a Sunday or Holiday meal.
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Add to Collection Go to Collections
    Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 1 hour hour
    Total Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes
    Course: Dinner
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: One-Pot Meal
    Servings: 6 8 servings
    Calories: 644kcal
    Author: Jocelyn | JOZmahal
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Ingredients

    • 4 lb. Roasting Chicken
    • ¼ c. Extra Virgin olive oil
    • ½ T. sea salt
    • ¼ t. black pepper
    • ¼ t. paprika
    • ¼ c. of sliced onion
    • 1 lemon cut in half
    • sprigs of thyme
    • 1 whole bulb of garlic

    Instructions

    • Rub the whole chicken with ¼ c. olive oil.
    • Then on a small dish, mix ½ T. sea salt, ¼ t. black pepper and ¼ t. paprika.  Rub the dry mixture all over the chicken, as well as inside the cavity.
    • Stuff the chicken with 1 lemon cut in half with seeds removed, ¼ c. of sliced onion, sprigs of thyme, and a whole bulb of garlic (yes, a whole bulb – don’t worry it’s an aphrodisiac!)
      .
    • Cut the garlic crosswise (so the garlic flavor will slowly infuse onto the chicken as it cooks).  Slice a few cloves of garlic and put some in between the skin of the chicken and the meat.
    • Roast the chicken in the oven for 30 minutes in 425 degree F .  After 30 minutes, decrease the temperature to 350 degree F and cook until a thermometer inserted into the chicken breast registers 165 degree F, 30 to 45 minutes.  Enjoy!

    Notes

    This is a nice meal to make on a Sunday, then throughout the week you can make other dishes made with left-over chicken meat, then as a finalé, you can make chicken stock with the carcass!
    Be sure to remove the seeds from the lemon as this may give it a bitter taste.
    Another thing to note, is lemon with thicker rib will tend to be bitter, so keep an eye on that and use lemons that have thinner skin.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 644kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 52g | Fat: 47g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Monounsaturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 260mg | Sodium: 209mg | Potassium: 593mg | Vitamin A: 2549IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 4mg
    Did you make this recipe?Post a photo @JOZmahal and tag #JOZmahal!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Angie

      December 30, 2021 at 11:00 am

      5 stars
      Perfect and delicious! Made this for Christmas and I was wanting to make something fancy but wasn't too hard to make thank goodness I found this recipe. My family loved it and I will for sure make this again. Thank you!!

      Reply

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    Hello and Welcome! I'm Jocelyn, Joz for short. I am the recipe creator, food photographer, and food stylist here at JOZmahal ❤️ a Filipino-American kitchen. My passion for cooking earned me a college degree in Food & Nutrition. I love to cook all types of food, and you’ll see many Filipino-inspired recipes here. My goal is to create recipes that are healthy without sacrificing flavors and with easy-to-follow instructions. Living in the States for many, many, years, I have learned to get creative with cooking and use ingredients that are easy to find, (thank you Amazon!) So bookmark my site, subscribe to my newsletter, and I will help you create quick, easy, tasty, healthy, and delicious meals that you, your family, and your friends will LOVE. ❤️ Get to know me and my style of cooking! And thank you for being here!

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