A perfectly whole roasted chicken with rosemary and root vegetables is easy enough for a weeknight meal but feels fancy enough for a weekend dinner date!
I’ve got a giant, juicy, warm, delicious, crispy, savory, welcoming hug for you today; and it kinda looks like a chicken. BUT it’s a hug – I promise!
Making a whole roasted chicken is something really special to me. I’m not sure exactly why, but there is something about it. Something about roasting an entire chicken that just feels right, you know? And it feels especially right when you make it on a Sunday night, serve it with a glass of wine, and enjoy the last moments of the weekend slowly.
No Sunday Scaries around here. Except that I wasn’t able to partake in the wine…
Plus, when you roast a four pound chicken for only two people, there are always leftovers for lunches throughout the week! And that is a serious Whole30 win. I’m going to be doing a Whole30 check-in next week but so far it’s been good. The biggest thing is meal planning and prepping. I purposefully made this on a Sunday in order to have leftovers in my lunches for the following days.
cook once + eat 4 times = happy Ellie
The key with this dish is to use a pan large enough that it holds a layer of vegetables and the entire bird. I use my Lodge 12-inch Cast Iron for this and for just about everything else. If you watched my Instagram stories last week, you might have seen how I use my cast iron to make one-skillet steak fajitas. I seriously cannot imagine my life without this skillet.
You want a skillet this large so that you can prop your bird up on top of the layer of vegetables. The drippings from the bird will mix with the olive oil on the potatoes and carrots to create the most flavorful au jus. I love drizzling the au jus over the chicken and vegetables once it is plated.
And while many are intimidated of cooking a whole roasted chicken, it is really not hard! The key is having a meat thermometer. Set your oven to 425 degrees F, roast the bird for 60 minutes and check the temperature. If the thermometer does not read 165 degrees F, place the chicken back in the oven and roast for another 10 minutes. Your chicken is done when the temperature reaches 165 degrees!
Tell me: Are you intimidated by cooking a WHOLE roasted chicken? Don’t be!
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Whole30 Rosemary Chicken with Root Vegetables
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 70 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 mins
- Category: Main
- Method: Oven
Description
A perfectly whole roasted chicken with rosemary and root vegetables is easy enough for a weeknight meal but feels fancy enough for a weekend dinner date!
Ingredients
- 1 pound small potatoes, cut in half
- 1 pound carrots, cut diagonally into bite-sized pieces
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- 1 3 to 4 pound chicken, giblets removed
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 lemon, quartered
- 2 Tablespoons ghee
- 1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Add potatoes and carrots to the bottom of the cast iron skillet or any large oven safe roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Dry the chicken inside and out and place it on top of the vegetables. Add garlic and half of the lemon to the inside of the chicken. Squeeze the other half of the lemon over the vegetables and leave in the pan.
- Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.
- Mix the ghee and rosemary together to create a paste. Using your hands, spread the mixture all over the chicken. Season with salt and pepper.
- Roast for 60 minutes. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the breast. If the temperature does not read 165 degrees, continue roasting and check every ten minutes until the internal temperature is 165 degrees. At this point, the juices will run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.
- Remove the skillet from the oven, cover with aluminum foil, and let the chicken rest for 20 minutes before you slice.
- Serve with the au jus from the skillet!
Keywords: chicken, easy dinner, whole30
Sunday Scaries be gone!
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A four pound chicken is enough for… JUST ME! 😉 But seriously.
And now… I want a whole chicken for lunch! Or breakfast. Or pre-breakfast?
★★★★★
Hahah yes! I love girls who can eat 😉
Make it tonight! And then you can have it for breakfast tomorrow!!
Looks amazing – whole 30 or not! I’ve always been a bit daunted by making whole chickens, but this might change my mind…
Thank you Christine! And I was the firs time I cooked one too, but they are seriously really easy. You will have no issues!
That is so pretty! It looks straight out of a food magazine! I love how easy roasting whole chicken and veggies is! One dinner all in one tray!
That is so pretty! It looks straight out of a food magazine! I love how easy roasting whole chicken and veggies is! One dinner all in one tray!
Thanks Kayla – and EXACTLY! I am all about easy, healthy, delicious one-skillet meals!
I LOVE LOVE LOVE crispy roast chicken! I am definitely not intimidated about cooking a whole chicken. I have found you just need to keep it simple, know how long to roast it for, and at what temperature and you are good to go! Thanks for sharing this recipe! XOXO
Exactly! Thank you!
Neat little trick, make a small slit in one leg, just enough to slide the other end of the leg thru. Then you don’t need butcher’s twine and it will hold thru the roasting!
JIM! That is such an amazing tip – thank you so much!!
Roasting chicken this way is actually one of my fave methods of preperation!! This looks awesome!!!
Mine too – thanks Abbey!
This looks great!! And I just got a cast iron skillet for Christmas so I think this is the perfect recipe to try it out with. I’ve made something kind of similar in the crockpot before but can’t wait to try your version here.
I seriously use my cast iron every single day. You will LOVE it!
What a gorgeous dinner. I love that you roasted this over a bed of veggies. Such a great way to add flavor to the veggies and less work for the chef! 😉
Thank you! And exactly – I’m all about less dishes 😉
Ok I’ve been wanting to suck it up and try roasting a whole chicken for a while now and I think you may have finally convinced me. This looks so simple and SO delicious!
It is SO simple! I was terrified the first time, but you really just need a meat thermometer to check the internal temp and you’ll be fine!
OMG this is perfect! Ever since the holidays, I’ve been craving a simple, wholesome chicken!
Thanks Carmy! Roasting a whole chicken is one of my favorite things to do on a Sunday – the house smells amazing and there are always leftovers!
Ok. Wow, roast chicken is one of our favorites! I love roasting veggies too… This looks so perfect Ellie.
Then you will love this! Thanks Emily 🙂
This is such a super tasty chicken recipe! Love that you added the rosemary!
Thank you Ilka!
I love roasting a whole chicken too and having leftovers for the week. Usually I just throw it in the slow cooker 😀
Right?! It’s so simple and cannot be beat!
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