Roasted Whole Chicken

I often make a couple of roasted whole chickens on Thanksgiving instead of turkey because they are so simple to prepare, juicy, and delicious! And overall, I think my family prefers chicken.

If you wonder how to roast a whole chicken, don't worry. It is simple. I will show you slight differences between the way my husband does it compared to how I do it. Either way, the chicken will be moist and positively delicious!

Ingredient options

*For the herbs, I buy the poultry mix herb package (you can find it in the produce section) that includes rosemary, thyme, and sage.

We have slightly different seasonings we use, as shown in the chart above. Both ways are excellent! Just go with what you are in the mood for.

As you see in the picture above, there is a red rubber rack thing. That is something my husband found one Christmas, and he always uses it under the chicken when he roasts it.

However, I often will slice an onion and some oranges or lemons and use them as a rack. Either way, the main goal is to slightly raise the chicken to cook more evenly and not sit in the grease drippings.

Next, we both use olive oil to coat the skin of the raw chicken before seasoning it.

As far as seasonings are concerned, we both like to use garlic. I also season with salt and pepper. On the other hand, he uses paprika and then tops it off with coarse salt.

How to prepare the chicken

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. (the chicken will only be cooked at this temperature for a short amount of time, then the oven temperature will be reduced)
2. Get a baking dish that the chicken fits in nicely, do not squish the chicken to make it fit.
3. Line a baking dish with foil for easy clean-up. Or, spray the baking dish with non-stick spray.
4. Either lay your rack in the baking dish or add the slices of onion and citrus. You can reserve a few pieces of onion to put inside the cavity of the chicken.
5. Mix the spices in a small dish to have ready, about 1 teaspoon each. If there isn't someone to help, I often put the olive oil in a separate dish. That way, I can grab everything I need for the chicken without washing my hands a dozen times.
6. Unwrap the chicken from the packaging. Check for any extra pieces inside the cavity (liver, kidney, etc...). Remove these pieces.
7. Rinse the chicken, inside and out, with cool water. Be careful not to splash.
8. Place the chicken in the baking dish. Fold back and tuck the wings. If you are not putting citrus and herbs into the cavity, tie together the legs using butcher string. (see photo above)
9. Massage olive oil all over the raw chicken skin.
10. Add the spices and massage on the chicken.
11. If you are using citrus and herbs, you can now place some pieces inside the chicken's cavity. You can also place a few pieces around the outside of the chicken.
12. Sprinkle the top of the chicken with coarse salt if you are using it.
13. Wash your hands.
14. Put the chicken in the preheated oven for 12 minutes. Then, reduce the temperature to 375 degrees. Let the chicken roast for about 1 hour at 375 degrees before checking.
15. To see if the chicken is done, we insert a thermometer into the thigh area. The temperature needs to be at least 165 degrees.
16. Let the finished roasted chicken set for at least 10 to 15 minutes before carving.

This method produces a juicy roasted whole chicken every time. The bonus is that the recipe is simple, and the clean-up is a breeze.

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