Whole Roasted Chicken is one of my favorite classic dinners, fancy looking but really very easy. It’s an all-in-one meal, the chicken sits on a bed of root vegetables, roasting both at the same time. Crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, it’s the perfect family dinner. It pairs beautifully with couscous, and makes the best chicken stock and leftovers!
Roasted Chicken Instructions
A whole Roasted Chicken is a beautiful meal! The chicken needs to cook about 90 minutes, but the prep is really very simple. Line a casserole dish, with a bed of chopped vegetables. Hearty root veggies cut into large chunks are best. For this recipe I used onion, celery, carrot and potato, but you could also try different combinations with cauliflower, fennel, red bell pepper, parsnip, sweet potato or winter squash. The vegetables give the chicken a place to sit so it can get nice and crispy on the outside while flavoring the veggies in the delicious chicken drippings.
The chicken is rubbed with butter and simply seasoned with salt and pepper. Garlic, lemon and fresh herbs can be tied up in the cavity and it’s ready for the oven.
While the chicken is roasting, clean up the kitchen, and make the couscous or a big green salad. After 90 minutes, check that your chicken has an internal temperature of 165°, and let it rest 15 minutes before slicing. Your kitchen will smell divine and you will have a stunning meal! The kids will love it because to them it’s just plain cut up chicken. And, everyone will love it for its “Sunday Supper” elegance.
Leftover Chicken and Chicken Stock
For a family of four, this is a big dinner, complete with wonderful chicken bones and leftovers! Don’t waste them! Throw the chicken bones in a large pot along with the vegetable scraps from the onion, carrot and celery and fill it with cold water. Let it simmer on low at least a few hours, or until reduced in volume and a rich golden color. If done after dinner, I usually strain the stock just before going to bed. I freeze my chicken stock in glass jars filled only about three quarters full, cooled in the fridge first. Never again buy chicken stock when making soup!
The leftover chicken is also great for soup the next day! Try Chicken Wild Rice Soup or Chicken Tortilla Soup. Use is to fill quesadillas made in the panini press, or quick flatbread pizzas with pesto or BBQ sauce. Use it for Chicken Pot Pie or Roasted Veggie Flatbread Pizza. Add it to taco night with black beans or rice, or use it to top a big dinner style Chopped Salad. A whole roasted chicken is worth every effort, with amazing leftovers the next day!
Served with the Best Couscous
I absolutely love the chicken on a bed of couscous. I’ve made it a few different ways, starting with the simple package instructions, but my favorite recipe is below. Pine nuts and shallots, toasted in butter, with a hint of cinnamon. Finished with plump juicy golden raisins and fresh herbs. The flavors are delicious and with the chicken and vegetables, it’s the perfect comfort food!
More Favorite Chicken Recipes!
- Curry Chicken Salad
- Chicken Apple Potstickers
- Creamy Pesto Fettuccine
- Chicken Salad
- Chicken Wild Rice Soup
Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables and Couscous
Ingredients
For the Roasted Chicken
- 1 onion
- 2 ribs celery
- 2 to 3 carrots
- 1 potato, any kind
- 1 T olive oil
- ½ t kosher salt
- 6 grinds fresh black pepper
- 1 whole roasting chicken
- 1 T butter at room temperature
- 1 t kosher salt
- 6 grinds fresh black pepper
- ½ lemon
- 3 cloves garlic smashed with side of a knife
- fresh herbs, any combination of parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, or 1t dried Italian seasoning or any chicken seasoning blend
For the Couscous
- 1 T butter
- ⅓ c pine nuts
- 1 shallot (or ¼ of a regular onion) finely chopped
- 1½ c Israeli couscous
- ½ cinnamon stick (or ¼ t ground cinnamon)
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 c chicken stock
- ¼ t kosher salt
- 4 grinds fresh black pepper
- ½ c golden raisins
- ½ juice of a lemon
- fresh chives or parsley for garnish
Instructions
For the Roasted Chicken
- Preheat oven to 425° convection bake.
- Chop vegetables into large chunks and put in a 9×12 casserole pan, toss with oil, salt and pepper.
- Prep chicken: rinse, pat dry, (discard the little packet in the cavity if it came with one), set on the bed of vegetables, tuck wing tips under, smear entire chicken with butter, season with salt and pepper, put lemon, garlic and herbs in the cavity and tie legs together with string.
- Roast for 90 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165° and the juices run clear.
- Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before carving.
For the Couscous
- Melt 1 T butter over medium heat in a sauce pot and add the pine nuts and shallots, toast until golden. Do not burn them! Stir often and don't walk away! Transfer to a bowl.
- To the now empty pot, add couscous, cinnamon, bay leaf and stir a minute until couscous is lightly toasted. Add chicken stock, salt and pepper and bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer until liquid is absorbed and couscous is tender, stirring occasionally.
- When the couscous is just finishing, add the raisins, lemon juice, pine nuts and shallots, and lastly the chives (parsley would work too).
- Serve chicken with the roasted vegetables on a bed of couscous.
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