This whole roast chicken recipe is packed with unbelievable flavors, crispy skin, and so juicy! Roasted with garlic butter, rosemary, parsley, lemon, and a hint of white wine. You will find pasture-raised whole chickens at the market this week!
- 4 pound whole chicken, at room temperature giblets and neck removed from cavity*
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 cup white wine, (OPTIONAL) — use a dry wine like a Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay
- 1 lemon, halved
- Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 head of garlic roughly peeled and cut in half horizontally through the middle crosswise
- 3 fresh whole rosemary sprigs
Preheat oven to 430°F | 220°C (400°F or 200°C fan forced). Line a baking tray with foil, or lightly grease a roasting pan.
Discard neck from inside the cavity and remove any excess fat and leftover feathers. Pat dry with paper towels.
Pour the olive oil, melted butter, wine (if using) and the juice of half a lemon over the chicken, under the skin and inside the cavity. Season chicken liberally on the outside and inside the cavity with salt and pepper. Sprinkle over the parsley.
Rub the minced garlic over the chicken, mixing all ingredients together over the chicken and under the skin.
Stuff the garlic head into the chicken cavity along with the rosemary sprigs and the squeezed lemon halve. Tie legs together with kitchen string.
Place breast-side up into baking tray or roasting pan. Roast for 1 hour and 15-20 minutes, basting half way through cooking time, until juices run clear when chicken thigh is pierced with a skewer.
Baste again, then broil for a further 2-3 minutes, until golden.
Remove from the oven, cover with foil and allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving. Serve, drizzled with pan juices and remaining lemon half cut into wedges or slices.
Notes:
For a larger chicken, roast at 430°F (220°C), 0r 400°F (200°C) fan forced, for one hour. Then, reduce oven temperature down to 325 (160°C). Baste and cover chicken. Roast, basting 2 more times while cooking, until chicken is cooked through, about 45 mins to an hour. Internal temperature should read 165°F (75°C) and juices run clear when pierced.