Roast chicken is one of those recipes that seem difficult and tedious to make but is actually super simple. You only need a few ingredients which you probably already have on hand and aside from a little preparation, you literally stick it in the oven, set it and forget it for a an hour and a half.
Do you have family and friends who are coming over that you want to impress? Mother in law? Boss? High maintenance friend? Try this recipe the next time you want to impress them. They’ll think you’re Ina Garten and slaved over the kitchen all day with this fancy dinner.
Roast Chicken with Rosemary Butter Recipe!
Before discovering how easy it was to make my own roast chicken, I used to get mine at Costco. You know the $4.99 roast chicken they’re famous for? The one that’s gigantic because the chicken is plumped up with hormones and sodium and who knows what else? While the roast chicken at Costco is delicious and so big it can feed us for days, it wasn’t the most healthy and I really didn’t know what was in it to make it taste so delicious.
So…I decided to make my own.
My Roast Chicken with Rosemary Butter recipe is made with organic whole chicken and just a few natural ingredients that you probably already have on hand: lemon, onion, fresh rosemary, Kerry Gold Irish butter, salt and pepper. You cannot get any simpler than that.
How To Make Roast Chicken with Rosemary Butter
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Take one of the rosemary sprigs and remove the stems by running your fingers along the sides. Roughly chop it up and mix it really well with the softened butter.
- Note: It’s very important that the butter is softened otherwise it won’t properly spread on the chicken.
- Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels until very very dry.
- Place the chicken on a roasting pan or a sheet pan with wire rack (that’s what I used). Season the inside of the cavity liberally with salt and pepper and stuff with the quartered lemons and onions and rosemary sprigs. Continue to season the outside of the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Using a silicon basting brush, spread the butter and rosemary mixture all over the chicken. Don’t worry, it’s not too much. Trust me. Just keep spreading it all over. The butter is what will give the chicken its golden brown color and add to the flavor.
- Roast the chicken uncovered at 425 degrees for 1 1/2 hours until the juices run clear when you run your knife between the thigh and leg bone.
- Cover the chicken with foil and let it rest for 15 minutes before carving.
More Special Occasion Recipes
Roast Chicken with Rosemary Butter
Equipment
- Roasting Pan
- Large Cutting Board
- Chef's Knife
- Silicon Basting Brush
Ingredients
- 1 5lb Organic Whole Chicken
- 1/2 cup Softened butter *I use Kerry Gold Irish butter but any kind will do.
- 1 Lemon, cut into quarters
- 1 medium Onion, cut into quarters
- 5 sprigs Rosemary
- 1 tbsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tsp Fresh Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Take one sprig of rosemary and run your fingers along the sides removing the stems. Roughly chop and mix well with the softened butter and set aside.
- Rinse the chicken with water and pat dry with paper towels. Make sure it is as dry as it can get and then sprinkle liberally inside the cavity with salt and pepper as well as all over the entire chicken.
- Place the chicken on a roasting pan or a sheet pan (that's what I used).
- Cut the lemon and onion in quarters. Stuff the lemon, onion and the rest of the rosemary sprigs inside the cavitiy of the chicken.
- Take the butter and rosemary mixture and using a basting brush, spread generously all over the chicken. It may seem like a lot but its not. The butter is what gives the chicken its golden brown color and adds to the flavor.
- Roast the chicken at 435 degrees for 1-1/2 hours or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and the thigh bone. Remove the chicken and place on a large cutting board and cover with foil. Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes.
- Carve the chicken and serve with mashed potatoes, stuffing and vegetables for the perfect Sunday dinner.