Something about roasting an entire chicken has always felt a little intimidating to me. In the past I have generally stuck to my plain, boring organic chicken breasts, however that really isn’t the most affordable way to purchase meat when choosing organic, free range, and local. I’ve recognized the opportunity to save money and get more for my dollar, while utilizing the entire bird by going with a whole chicken. With it being just my husband and I, we can get several meals from one bird, and then I save and freeze the bones to turn into broth. It’s efficient, and I feel good that no part is going to waste.
Often I’ll cook a whole chicken for dinner and serve it with fresh roasted veggies. We will have that as our protein, and then I’ll remove the meat from the bones and use it throughout the week in a variety of ways, such as sandwiches, soups, or salads, tacos, sourdough skillets, or sourdough chicken pot pie. The uses are of course endless, and our protein is covered for much of the week. I throw the leftover bones into a large container in the freezer which I will continuously add carrot, celery, and onion scraps to until I’ve got enough to make a batch of bone broth.
This process is beyond simple, yet something about serving a whole roasted chicken seems a little more impressive. I’m not sure exactly what it was that turned me off of it for so long, because it’s truly the furthest thing from complicated.
I simply coat the entire chicken in some high quality, high heat fat like coconut oil or grass fed butter, herbs, salt, pepper, and a generous squeeze of fresh lemon.
Go with whatever you’re feeling that day, you really can’t go wrong. Right now I’m utilizing all the fresh herbs I’ve got growing. Just promise me you’ll never skip out on the fat.. that’s what’s going to get you that beautiful crispy golden skin. Your chicken will be real sad without it.
Throw it in the oven and after only about an hour you’ll have a golden, crispy, perfectly roasted chicken ready to go.
Simple Lemon Rosemary Roasted Chicken
A simple recipe for crispy, tender whole roasted chicken. Perfect to cook at the beginning of the week and to use as leftovers throughout the week. Be sure to save the bones to make a batch of gut healthy bone broth.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken (organic, free range ideally)
- 2 tbsp coconut oil or grass fed butter, melted
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- salt + pepper
- 1 lemon
- 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat oven to 425.
- Step 2 Place the chicken in a 9×13 baking dish.
- Step 3 Rub the chicken with melted grass fed butter or coconut oil.
- Step 4 Sprinkle chicken with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice of the entire lemon over the chicken. Arrange rosemary sprigs around the chicken.
- Step 5 Place chicken in the oven for between 1 hour and 1 hour 15 minutes. I suggest checking the chicken at the 1 hour mark to avoid it drying out, though I find it usually takes 1 hour 15 minutes for me, depending on the size of the bird. Use a meat thermometer to ensure the chicken is cooked to temperature.
