Perfect Roast Chicken

Great recipe for "Perfect Roast Chicken"! I was able to use this for a 7 lb. bird so if you've got something smaller I'd cut the recipe in half. I didn't have garlic salt so I used a bit of salt mixed with garlic powder. I also opted to add a bit of onion powder to the mix. I put it in the roaster and covered it with non-stick foil and let it set in the fridge all day. I stuffed the cavity with some onion and celery let it come to room temp. and baked it for about three hours and it smelled divine. This was so incredibly moist, tender, and delicious without a ton of effort - great recipe!

We thought this was delicious! I 3/4'd the recipe for an almost 5 pound chicken (Trader Joe's), and it was plenty! I did put most of the butter (not margarine) either under the skin or in the cavity, otherwise following the directions. You could add whatever you wanted to the cavity (onion? garlic?), but whatever, this is delicious. Most of the butter doesn't stick to the chicken, but it certainly makes a great chicken, let me tell you! And right now I've had the carcass and all the other bones, carrots, celery, and onion in a pot so that I will have the best broth in the world. We will have several meals from this chicken! Thanks so much for the recipe!

Delicious! I didn't change the portions of ingredients but I did distribute them differently.... 1) Half of the rub was more than enough to coat the chicken under the skin AS WELL AS over the skin. 2) I mixed the other half of the rub with some chopped onions (about half an onion) and 4 minced garlic cloves and stuffed the inside of the chicken with that. AMAZING flavor. The chicken turned out so moist and delicious and the skin was nice and crispy.

I used butter and mixed it with the herbs then added fresh garlic and some lemon. Wonderful!

I've been roasting my chickenS as well as turkeys this way for years. IMHO, this uses way too much marg. For a chicken, I'd say 1/4 cup butter is plenty. Here's a tip I recently learned. Unwrap your chicken from it's packaging and leave in the fridge overnight to air dry the skin then your butter will rub in much better! The whole idea of using this method is that YOU DON'T HAVE TO BASTE!

This is my first time to rate a recipe on the site! But this one was the best roast chicken I have ever made! The only thing I did different was to put some of the rub under the skin also as well as rubbing it all over & put half a lemon in the cavity! Juicy & delish. This will definitely be my go to for roast chix.

Used fresh herbs, real butter and added some lemon and vegetables, but didn't cook in a bag ~ this turned out to be a real winner. Super juicy and moist. Hubby kept saying it was the best he ever had, even better than his mom's. Thank you for sharing. Will definitely make again :)

definitely juicy! i added onion powder, paprika and season salt. i also dotted the chicken with half of the butter mixture and melted the rest and poured over the chicken. i also flipped the chicken every 45 min while in the over.

I have tried so many roasted chicken recipes, and this one is the best!!!! Only used 1/2 cup of butter (not margarine)....everything else was the same. Also, use the pan drippings to make the most delicious gravy you've ever had. I've been eating it spoonful after spoonful. I'm going to go eat some more now. Lol

I just tried this recipe and it is wonderful - and easy! I did use unsalted butter instead of margarine, and reduced the 1 cup to 1/2 cup and it worked great on an almost 6 lb bird. The sauce ( gravy if you choose to make it ) was outstanding.

Delish!! I will be using this recipe for years to come. Beast chicken ever. So moist and flavorful! The only thing I would change is cooking it in a more shallow dish so the skin gets crispier and using less of the ingredients. It makes more then enough rub for the chicken and the butter all melts creating a lot of juice. Way more than needed.

I've cooked this chicken twice so far, within weeks apart. It's just THAT GOOD.

First crack at roasting a whole chicken, and I wanted crispy crackling skin. I followed this recipe which was FANTASTIC. I used butter instead of margarine, and my only complaint is that it needed far less butter than it called for, so I will half the quantity next time. It also cooked faster than expected, so make sure to take periodic temperature readings as you baste it.

My chicken turned out very juicy when we cut the breast meat after baking it. I did sprinkle Lipton onion soup mix on the chicken in addition to the herbs and stuffed the cavity of the chicken with 2 stalks of celery. We could smell the chicken roasting in the oven around the house and couldn't wait for it to be done. My family devoured the chicken in one sitting and they declared it to be yummy! Now that is a compliment from them!

The chicken turned out great! I will be using this recipe again. My husband and kids loved it. We baked the potatoes and carrots along with the chicken. They had great flavor as well. I used butter insead of margarine. I only used 1/2 cup.

Good recipe for newbies to whole chicken cooking. I did what others recommended and halved the butter/margarine (but I used 1/2c butter) but the other adjustment I'd make is CUT THE SALT IN HALF (or more!). This was borderline overpowering garlic salt for me. I won't be using the broth to dress anything, unfortunately that will go to waste, but the rest should make a top notch chicken broth!

Great recipe with just a few modifications. I used butter not margarine. I put most of the butter mixture under the skin. Anywhere I could cram it in. Then I added it to the slow cooker with just a little liquid. and cooked it most of the day on low. This chicken came out so juicy and tender. This is easy with ingredients you usually have and tastes WOW.

This recipe was awesome! I modified some part of the recipe though. I brined the chicken for about 4-5 hours, i used butter instead of margarine ( but butter was difficult to work with, so margarine might be the best , i put more rosemary, and I put celery and lemon inside the chicken. it was awesome.

I really liked this recipe. I added minced garlic, minced onion, and used butter. I did baste it twice in the drippings. Very good !

I followed the recipe exactly. I used a 4.5lb chicken and it was delicious. I plan on adjusting some spices, but enjoyed.

Our roasted chicken turned out tender and succulent! Made this last night. To start off we didn't have the 4 pound bird, but we did have 2 big skinless chicken breasts(only cooking for two). Nor did we have the rosemary and thyme, but it still worked! I cut the seasonings in half and continued the recipe. We added small frozen potatoes around the chicken and cooked for the specified time. It smelled wonderful and tasted even better. I thought the potatoes would be mushy for being in that long a time,but nope they came out perfect too. And yes we will be making this recipe again! Chicken was tender enough to cut with just your fork, no need for a knife! And very moist. THUMBS UP!

I followed the instructions and also added some of our family favorites. I stuffed it with fresh celery leaves and half an orange. I baked it per the instructions and we had it with baked potatoes.

Kid and hubby approved!!

My son's favorite. So moist and delicious! It's a MUST to load the seasoning underneath the skin.

Try stuffing it with fresh basil leaves seasoned with salt and the lemon. Meyers lemon from CA if possible. Best roast chicken I ever tasted!

Excellent recipe. Very easy to make and tasted so good!

This is the best recipe I've tried all year. It is perfect chicken.

Added 1 tsp oregano and 1 tsp paprika.

Delicious!!! Just tried this recipe for the first time and it was very easy and turned out great...very juicy and very flavorful!

It is the PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN

Excellent flavor. I put 1/4 lemon and garlic inside the cavity and rubbed the chicken with Tory’s rub.

Very good recipe. I only had leg quarters and it was delicious. I followed the recipe exactly. We are roasting a whole bird tonite, I might put a bit more rosemary in. Good recipe to build on

Great recipe. A new favorite.

Excellent!!! I used 8 pound roaster...did not have thyme or rosemary...kept everything else the same and it was delicious!!!!

This turned out extremely well. I used unsalted butter instead of the margarine, and I used more rosemary than called for, about a teaspoon.

I used 1/2 cup of margarine like others suggested and rubbed a little bit under the skin and a little on top. I then cooked it for 30 minutes and added the rest of the margarine mixture until cooked through. What can I say? Three of us ate the entire 4 lb bird on our own. Even my 9 year old asked for seconds.

Oh my, this chicken is so succulent and amazing! I doubled the recipe and used two chickens, six pounds each, I used real butter instead of margarine and added some salt-free chicken seasoning as well. I applied the butter and seasoning under the skin with the remainder going inside. Lastly, I cut the ends off of two lemons and stuffed one inside each of the cavities. I cooked on convection mode until done and it was the best ever! Wow!!! I'm making this for Christmas every year. It's so easy and delicious!!!

I made it just like it was written. It turned out amazing. My daughter said the best she’s had. Will definitely cook it again.

It came out delicious and I don't even like chicken much. It was very easy to make. I will try to substitute butter for something more healthy next time though.

Made this wonderful chicken on a cold winter day and it is the perfect comfort food. I used 1/2 cup of softened butter in place of a cup of softened margarine and the flavor was outstanding. The aroma of the chicken roasting is mouth watering! Will roast chicken this way again and again!

Yummy

This was excellent made without any changes except I used about half cup of butter instead. Only thing is making sure that the chicken is dried very well to spread the mixture. Otherwise it’s difficult to spread. Delicious will definitely make regularly.

I used butter instead of margarine and Italian seasoning instead of the thyme and rosemary just because that’s what I had. It was perfect and smelled so good while cooking. I had a 5 lb chicken so I cut the recipe in half and had plenty rub. Will definitely make again.

Yum! I didn't use a whole cup of butter, I don't use margarine. I used about half a cup. Delicious!

Loved it! Easy and delicious!

The best roasted chicken recipe I've tried!

I will make it anybody like it

Absolutely delicious. Juicy and deliciously seasoned, crispy skin. The only change I made was to use 1/2 cup of butter.

I made this and it was the star of the meal. I used butter cause I didn't have margarine. It was so tender and juicy.

One of the easiest rubs with simple ingredients!

Excellent as is!

Loved it and I will make it again and again!

I put legs and thighs in a 13x9 pan. Used half the butter and whole amounts of spices. It was delicious!

I have made this several times. Always comes out perfect.

So moist and delicious! This is the recipe I’ll use again.

I have made this roast chicken many times just as the recipe calls. it has been a hit every time and I've cooked for some very fussy people. The meat is juicy and the skin is crispy and flavorful. This is definitely my go to recipe for Roast Chicken.

Great recipe. I cut back on the butter as suggested in the reviews , other than that I followed the recipe. It turned out Great. Moist and tastey. Thanks

So good! I didn't have margarine so I used butter. This one is a keeper. Thank you!

Great taste! I used the herbs, but I also soaked a cheesecloth in the butter and covered the chicken for all but about the last 15 minutes, when I removed the cloth and let the skin brown up. I used an instant read thermometer and a 375º oven.

Great recipe the only i did was stuff the cavity with some onion, garlic, lemon, and some thyme. It was soooo juicy, flavorful and delicious.

I used 1/2 the butter indicated with an organic chicken - 1 cup butter kind of negates the reason I bake chicken rather than fry it. It is delicious. Not dry at all - herbs and spices just right - I cooked it 1 1/4 hours as it was a smaller chicken. Recommend. Very easy with ingredients common to homes.

You can also put lemon in the cavity and all the herbs you like.

Perfect :)

This was so easy and produced a tasty, moist chicken. My chicken was a bit small, so it only needed 1/2 the butter mixture, and it was ready in 1 1/2 hours. Yummy. I will make this again.

This recipe for chicken is really good! Came out moist and flavourful just like promised! Very crispy on the top. I agree with other reviewers, the recipe does not need 1 cup of margarine. I used 1/2 for an over 7 pounds bird and that was more than enough. Mixture of other ingredients was wonderful, taste is just right!

Added a fresh lemon to the center. Had a bit smaller bird, and it was done in less than two hours. Delicious. Will definitely make it again.

This was amazing! The chicken was so moist and tender and the cooking time was spot on!

Delicious and family approved! Used two 3.5 pound chickens and halved the recipe using butter and a few extra shakes of thyme and rosemary. Crispy, brown skin and juicy, fall off the bone meat. Will be making this again and again.

I was skeptical, I won't lie. It is delicious; I didn't change a thing.

I used 1/4 cup butter rather than 1/2 and I reduced the garlic salt to 1 1/2. Otherwise, followed the recipe. Turned out moist, flavorful but not overwhelmed by the herbs.

This made the most moist and flavorful roast chicken we habe ever had! The herb blend was just perfect! I accidentally forgot the black pepper, but this doesn't really need it. This was so good I want to double (or triple) amd try it on the Yule turkey!

Used garlic powder and a pinch of dried onion as well as a 1 tsp of celery seed, So juicy and tender not to mention full of flavour. Will be making this again

Great flavor. I added carrots and red potatoes to the pan to round out the meal. It was a hit with the entire family.

This chicken was alright. I did exactly what the directions said, and the chicken was a bit dry. I will try it again using a bag next time.

I too used butter instead of margarine but followed the seasoning list as printed. Turned out super and the Rosemary made the house smell great. No need to baste this, comes out crispy if you just let it be.

My first ever roast chicken and with this recipe I nailed it!

I used butter and reduced it to half a cup. Other than placing some of the spread under a few parts of the skin, I stuck to the recipe. This recipe was sublime! I probably would have eaten the whole chicken in one sitting if my wife didn’t like it as much!

This recipe is delicious!! I will never buy a grocery store rotisserie chicken again! The only changes I made was that I omitted the rosemary, as I don't care for it and I also used real butter instead of margarine. I also added some cut up red potatoes, carrots, celery and onion to the bottom of the pan. That way your veggie side is done and you don't have to worry about what to make to serve with your bird. Any extra butter mixture I just drizzled over the veggies. I also basted the chicken and veggies once during cooking. Another critical step to not skip is the use of a meat thermometer. Without one you may be tempted to cook your chicken longer and therefore end up with a dry bird as a result. Just spend the couple bucks and buy one. Your taste buds will thank me later.

I really like the quick simple and easy ingredients and directions. The bird comes out so nice, tasty and juicy. Good basic starter recipe that can be altered with impunity.

Delicious - very juicy

Roasted mine "covered" on the barbecue. Brilliant !

This is a FABULOUS recipe. I make it once a week and use the leftover chicken for soup and chicken fajitas or chicken tacos. I use half of the butter for a 5.5 lb chicken. I also add seasoned salt, dill, and a bay leaf(the bay leaf is added specifically to the cavity along with an onion). I rub under and on the skin over the whole chicken. My family LOVES it. Thanks for sharing!!

Great tasting chicken. I used all fresh herbs, very juicy definitely a keeper

my recommendation would be to remove the cover during the last 15 minutes of baking to brown the skin.

I only used one stick of butter and 2 tsp. of garlic salt. I also put a half of a lemon in the cavity. It was very moist and delicious.

oh wow this chicken is delish! I used butter seasoned salt and herbs cooked in shallow glass dish. I did allow chicken to be at room temp and pat dry I also split in half. Comes from the oven with crispy skin and juicy on the inside I've made 3x great!

This was delicious and did not disappoint! We picked it clean!!!

As is, this recipe is meh. With some changes, it's absolutely amazing!! Instead of dried herbs, I minced up fresh herbs (smells nicer too). I used the idea from another recipe to stuff the chicken with a sliced lemon, about 1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped onion, and five garlic cloves. Also, instead of just rubbing the butter herb mixture on the outside, I loosen the skin and spread it under the skin and on top of the skin. The result is a juicy well seasoned chicken. Even the white meat is juicy and flavorful! Oh, and take the chicken out of the pan after it's cooked, throw some finely chopped broccoli into the leftover juices, and cook for 10 to 15 minutes and you'll have some super tasty broccoli that fits perfectly with the chicken. So yeah, I would not use this recipe as is ever again, but it's a great starting point.