I just can’t help myself any longer. You all are getting a roasted chicken recipe today. A garlic herb butter roasted chicken recipe, I might add.
I know you might all be recovering from a green beer induced hang-over of St. Patrick’s Day Thursday, in which case you might prefer eating something a little more carby and a little more cheesey. (In which case, let me forward you to your nearest In-N-Out Burger…)
But hear me out. (If your hung over brain will let you. If not, pause, pin, and return another time). Because you will most definitely want to make this one.This little chicken is slathered with butter, garlic, and herbs.
Liberally. Both under and over the skin.
And showered with salt and pepper. And then roasted to crispy, golden, tender perfection.
I don’t want to brag, but I’m going to brag. I think this is the best roasted chicken recipe I have ever made or encountered.There are no tricks, tips, or fussy brines. My recipe includes only acquisition of high quality meat, simple preparation, and correct cooking times. And butter. (Always that).
But for a little clarification on the recipe method- I always cook my chicken in my dutch oven (as I currently lack an “official” roasting pan due to limited storage capacity in my kitchen). This works well for me, but please note that you won’t get a crispy bottom on your bird. If this bothers you, you might want to invest in a roasting pan with a rack to allow air to circulate entirely around the bird. If you don’t really care about it, follow my lead.One critical component that I definitely recommend is timing your chicken by using a meat thermometer. I have attempted to roast sans thermometer in the past, but will never again after that one Thanksgiving my friend Emily and I roasted a chicken for our friends and it came out vaguely pink-ish. And of course I didn’t notice until after people were already eating the chicken.. Yuck! Luckily no one got sick… (that I heard).
For a correctly and thoroughly (yet juicy) roasted bird- the goal temperatures are 170 degrees for the thickest portion of the thigh meat, and 165 degrees for the breast meat. I read somewhere that you want to estimate about 20 minutes of cook time per pound of chicken (if roasting at 400 degrees), and this seems fairly accurate from my personal experience.So hopefully this inspires you to roll up your sleeves and remember that roasting can be a wonderfully simple and delicious method for cooking chicken. Especially when butter, garlic, and herbs are involved.
14 comments
That is a beautiful roast chicken!! Simply perfect. Love the butter massage pic 🙂
Haha thank Jennifer! I am a weirdo and like to take pics of food prep 😉
Roast chicken is my all time favourite. Have you tried roasting your chicken on and off chicken wings? Great for getting the chicken off the bottom of the dish ?
No I’ve never tried that! Great idea though!
This is one beautiful bird! I just love the smell of a roasted chicken slow roasting in the oven with herbs. Buddy…our family dog, will not stop whining as the smell is overwhelmingly delicious. Can’t wait to try your recipe. Pinning for later.
Awww I want to meet Buddy, he sounds adorable. This is a good one, hope you have a chance to give it a try 🙂
This roasted chicken looks amazing and sounds so good!!!
Thanks Quin!! I really appreciate it 🙂
Wow – the chicken turned out beautifully. You’ve convinced me that I should use a meat thermometer. 🙂
Thanks Sheryl! Yeah I was pretty avoidant for a while as well, just because it seemed annoying, but it has definitely helped with the accuracy of meat roasting for me.
This is my husband’s favorite meal without a doubt! I need to try this garlic herb butter! He’s going to love it!
Yesss! I feel like roast chicken is a guy thing for some reason. And the garlic herb butter is excellent. Hope he likes!
Roasted chicken for liffffffeeee! It is the best, and so underrated! Garlic and herb butter roasted chicken? Sign me up!! Looks amazing!
Thanks Phi! 🙂 🙂