There’s nothing quite like making a roast chicken. With this easy recipe, you can have your chicken prepared in very little time with herbs and spices you probably already have in the cupboard. Then it’s just one hour in the oven with a little TLC along the way to make sure it stays nice and juicy and tender.
The key to this easy recipe is to roast the chicken in the oven at 500 degrees F for the first 20 minutes, basting along the way, then flip it over breast side up and continue to roast at 500 for another 8 minutes. At that point, you can baste again turn heat down to 325 degrees F for the rest of the way.
This recipes uses dried herbs and spices but if you have fresh herbs, by all means use them! You’ll want to double the amount of fresh to dry. So if using fresh herbs use 2 tablespoons of each instead on one.
You will also need a roasting pan with wire rack for this recipe. If you don’t already have one, they can be found at almost anyplace that sells kitchenware and you can get a less expensive if you like. If you don’t already own one, you’ll be glad you picked one up – even if just for this recipe. When you take that golden roasted chicken out of the oven that you’ve slathered up with all these delicious herbs and spices, and then take that first bite of hot and juicy chicken, you’ll never go back to store bought rotisserie chickens again.
- 1 3-4 lb whole chicken, trimmed of excess fat, innards removed, rinsed and patted dry.
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon thyme
- 1 tablespoon chopped rosemary
- 1 tablespoon marjoram
- 1 tablespoon sage
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.
- Place chicken, breast side down in the roasting pan and begin roasting. Mix together the olive oil with the herbs, salt and pepper. After 20 minutes roasting, spoon some of the oil and herb nix ofer the bird and then flip it over breast side up. Baste it some more. Rub the mixture in real good if you can. Place back in oven for another 7-8 minutes or until breasts are becoming golden brown.
- Now turn heat down to 325 degrees F, baste again, and continue roasting for the rest of the hour.
- After the hour is up, use an instant read thermometer in the thighs and look for a reading 165 degrees F.
- Remove from oven and let chicken rest in roasting pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a cutting board for carving.
