This roast chicken is so easy it's stupid.
What can I say - straight forward crispy skin and moist and tender meat. One tip - rinse the chicken and then set it upright to drain and dry - even in the refrigerator for several hours or at least for 30 minutes room temp. You will be surprised at how much water drains out. The salt really makes for a great crispy skin. Thanks for a no fuss recipe.
Read MoreSure, the chicken was delicious, but it certainly wasn't worth the mess.
Read More What can I say - straight forward crispy skin and moist and tender meat. One tip - rinse the chicken and then set it upright to drain and dry - even in the refrigerator for several hours or at least for 30 minutes room temp. You will be surprised at how much water drains out. The salt really makes for a great crispy skin. Thanks for a no fuss recipe.
Hmmm.....I would give this 3 stars as far as "taste" goes and probably 5 stars as far as tenderness. The recipe doesn't clarify how much salt I was supposed to use....I think I ended up using about 1.5 to 2 teaspoons. There just wasn't much flavor....and I don't equate saltiness with flavor anyway. The tenderness was superb. And the "stupid simple" definitely had me intrigued.
I haven"t tried this yet but it sounds delicious and super easy. The kosher salt will make it tender and melt-in-your mouth delicious. I will probably let it sit in the 'fridge after I rub the salt in for an h
I have been roasting chickens for almost 30 years and this is the best method I've tried. I placed a local free-range chicken on a rack, and followed the instructions (only had half of a lemon on hand). The chicken yielded very little drippings (good sign--the juice stayed in the bird). The drippings were mostly dried out and a very deep brown--the makings of a great gravy. I added some potato water (poured off from the red potatoes I boiled for mashing) to the roasting pan and scraped up every last bit of the browned bits, poured it into a saucepan and thickened it with cornstarch for the best gravy I've made (NO added broth or flavor enhancers). The chicken was juicy, tender and delicious. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
This was AWESOME! I made it tonight and tweaked it just slightly. When I sliced the lemon in half- I sqeezed the juice over the skin of the chicken and then put the halves in the cavity with a 1/2 stick of butter. This was the BEST roasted chicken I have ever made - hands down. And so simple! Thanks!
This was my first time cooking a whole chicken and it was fantastic! Instead of putting lemon halves inside I decided to do a bread stuffing (also a first for me). For the stuffing I used some leftover artisan bread that had gotten hard, a diced mushroom, diced an eight of a large onion, and some rosemary and garlic powder. For the outside of the chicken I didn't use kosher salt, instead used rosemary and garlic salt from one of those season grinders (kinda like the sea salt grinders). Again, it turned out fantastic! I'm boiling the leftover bones to make chicken and dumplings or chicken noodle soup.
Elliot, thank you for submitting this recipe! It's so stupidly easy and so good!! Oh my gosh! So moist! I added pepper b/c I like it and butter to the cavity. Followed the roasting directions exactly. This is perfect. I will never fuss w/ roasting chicken at a high heat first and then turning down the heat, etc., for the last hour. They're too high maintenance and aren't even close to this recipe. This is worthy of entertaining guests with. You rock!! Submit more recipes please!!
Rinse & let drain upright in fridge. Spread olive oil on skin, then coat with Kosher salt. Nice and crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, and very easy to make!
I just love this recipe! It makes for an easy entree. The only thing I would include is to put about a cup of water in the roasting pan to reduce the amount smoke that can be produced cooking at this high temperature. Otherwise, you can add whatever seasonings you might like (BBQ rubs, lemon-pepper, garlic, etc.) or just use the salt and lemon called for. A very versatile starting point or just plain delicious as written.
I buy roasters every time I see them on sale and fill the freezer in our garage. I use this resipe all the time because it's "Stupid Simple" and great. Sometimes I follow the recipe as written, sometimes I'll put olive oil over the bird before sprinkling it with salt, pepper, garlic powder and crushed rosemary, then I'll put half an onion and a stalk of celery (cut in half) in the cavity. If I use a six pound bird which I often do, I'll lay a sheet of foil over the bird for the first hour and take it off for the last half hour. Mmmmmm, brown and crispy outside & moist and tender inside. The aroma is enough to drive ya nuts....... Rob; Gold Canyon, AZ
Really good! My chicken was larger than called for and probably still a bit frozen when I put it in the oven so it took much longer than expected. My husband said it was the best he's ever had. Very juicy. Thanks!
I was a little bit afraid to try this because of the high heat but it was amazing! I stuck to the recipe of salt only with a lemon in the cavity and for us, it had tons of flavor. Like another reviewer mentioned, make sure your chicken is as dry as you can get it...you'll have less smoking that way. Also, I would use a bigger sized roasting pan for less splattering over the side. The skin was so good, it tasted like a delicious salty potato chip!
Yep. So simple it's stupid. I've been experimenting with various roast chicken recipes and methods and this one so far is the clear winner. Easy. Moist. Delicious. And ridiculously easy.
I've made this many times now. This chicken is delicious. The only things I put in/on the chicken are lemon and salt and it comes out perfectly done every time - moist, crispy skin, and cooked all the way through. UPDATE: After I insert the lemon, I tuss the chicken and cook it breast side down. Never had chicken this juicy before - amazing. Thanks for the super simple roast chicken recipe! I wouldn't change a thing.
this is from an Italian book I have the only thing different was roast at 400 upside down, for a half hour. then turn the temperature down to 350, and roast another 1 and a half. season with salt and pepper inside and out. it makes it crispy on both sides like a rotisseri chicken
This was very good! Unfortunately, I should have gone by the thermometer instead of the clock, as my 4 lb. chicken was quite overcooked at the end of 50 minutes. I rinsed and patted dry the chicken, then stood it up over a Solo cup in the refrigerator for about an hour to let the water drain out before roasting (I didn't want a soggy chicken). After roasting for 30 minutes, I poured about a cup of water into the roasting pan and it made for a delicious jus for the chicken. Hubby loved it, too! I will just watch my meat thermometer next time.
Wow! And wow again! Wonderfully moist, best skin ever and so tender. I did add the 1/2 stick of butter to the cavity. Well done you!
Sure, the chicken was delicious, but it certainly wasn't worth the mess.
I gotta admit this was super good! I have another favorite chicken recipe but one of my kiddos complains that it always has to much garlic in it so I decided to give this one a whirl. My complainer declared it was delicious. SCORE! Really couldn't be easier and was a nice change of pace for us! Thanks so much for sharing =)
Great recipe. The skin was crispy and the chicken was so tender and juicy. I cannot understand the people that said it did not have enough flavor or was too bland. Chicken is supposed to taste like chicken and this recipe came though with flying colors!
The best skin I have ever tasted. The chicken was moist and delicious and stupid simple. Thanks!
I had an 8 pound chicken so took a little longer to cook of course. I put a glass of wine over it after an hour at 450 degrees because I always put wine on whole chickens. It came out great. Nice and moist and it had great brown skin!!
This is the second time I have made this AWESOME chicken. I following recipe exactly, put chicken in a 9 x 13 glass dish (I thought it might be too hard to scrape the drippings out of an aluminium pan. It took a little over an hour for a 5 lb chicken. I scraped the dripping out of the dish and made my delicious gravy using cornstarch and water. This is the best gravy I have ever made. No other seasonings were needed. The chicken was juicy, tender and delicious. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
AMAZING recipe! Like others, I placed the uncovered bird in the fridge for a few hours to dry out. I then rubbed it all over with just a bit of olive oil and liberal amount of kosher salt, stuffed it with a quartered lemon and used a rack in my pan. My roaster was over 6lbs., so it took about an hour and 15 minutes to come to 160 degrees. It's essential to let it rest for even longer than 15 minutes. Who would have thought this recipe, with so few ingredients would create the juiciest, most flavorful roast chicken ever!! Why there are so few reviews is a mystery to me. ELLIOT, YOU ROCK!!
Didn't have a lemon. Used salt inside and out. Amazing! I never considered baking chicken at such a high heat. It came out extordinarily moist and tender. We have reheated it for leftovers twice now. Even the breast...with its tendency to become dry...has retained its moisture. Used a roasting pan. After the chicken browned I covered it with a lid. I have been baking chicken 37 years and have never been so pleased with the results!
I also use kosher salt when roasting a whole chicken. Instead of rubbing salt all over the chicken...I put about an inch of salt on the bottom of the roasting pan..place chicken on top..nothing on the chicken.. Crispy skin and moist inside.
Made this for dinner tonight and it was a huge hit. My mother-in-law declared this to be the best roasted chicken she's ever had! I was skeptical with so few ingredients but this was seriously amazing!! I rinsed the chx, patted dry with paper towel, brushed on some melted butter then added salt. Chopped a lemon into quarters and put them inside the chicken- is that the secret to making the meat so juicy?The bird was on the small side so 45 minutes at 450 was perfect. Don't forget to throw the bones in a crockpot afterward with some onion, carrot and celery, cook on low 12-24 hours for a delicious homemade stock.
This is one of those recipes you can return to again and again because it always comes out well and is so easy to prepare.
As says, very simple and although this chicken was bland without any seasonings I did find the lemon helped with moisture and the lemon in the drippings made for great gravy. While i will stick to my other recipes I now add the lemon to all my baked chicken and turkeys
This recipe was perfect! My chicken was tender, juicy, and covered in crispy skin. Mmmmm!
Delicious!! I took a few of the other ideas and combined them by adding the butter, rosemary, & garlic.
This was awesome! I had doubts that this would come out as well as people said, as easy as it is. It was so easy and so delicious I will be making it regularly. Thanks!
This is quick and easy, and pretty good. I was surprised that the lemon imparted so much flavor to the chicken! I would make it again. Thanks.
Excellent recipe. Elliot may want to incorporate the other reviewers' comments about how much it smokes during cooking -- but for that, i wouldn't have believed that I wasn't burning the bird. Like others, I rubbed the chicken with olive oil, then added rosemary, garlic, black pepper and paprika on the outside.
It's as juicy as beer butt chicken, but easier to prepare. I brushed on some olive oil before rubbing in the kosher salt. Very simple and very good. Thank you for the recipe!
I've made it sever times and it's juicy and tender. My son's favorite. the first time I made it, because out range vent is less than mediocre, the house smoked up and set off the smoke detector. Now I make it with t he window s open and remove it from the oven twice to drain the fat. Also I put a spring of rosemary in the cavity. So simple and tasty.
I am ashamed to admit that I, too, have cooked for over 30 years. However, even though I do turkeys every year, I have never baked a chicken until today. What a great recipe! I sprinkled some sage, rosemary and thyme on the bird. But however you do it, it's moist and done in an hour. Thanks!
Perfect! Juicy! Delicious! Easy! The only thing I did differently was I also peppered it.
I made this for our immediate family thanksgiving dinner (had the big dinner with relatives on black friday this year). My daughter said that she wanted "chicken that looks like a turkey", so thats what she got :). This is a fantastic recipe - I have maybe roasted a chicken once before and wasn't impressed, but this recipe made the chicken really moist and tender and flavorful. I ended up cooking it for about an hour and 10 mins, which might have been a little long, because the drumsticks were a little dried out by that point, but I don't really care for the dark meat anyway. The only downside was that the kitchen got a little smoky when I was cooking this (I rubbed the outside of the skin with olive oil and sprinkled with salt & pepper), so maybe an open window would be a good thing unless you have an awesome exhaust fan! I tried a variation the next night where instead of the lemons in the cavity, I stuffed some boursin cheese under the skin of the breast and drumsticks and stuck a little in the cavity and then rubbed the outside of the chicken with whatever got on my hands ended up cooking at 325 for about 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours (that time I was using my mom's convection oven, so it might take longer in a regular one). It was a bit of a messy job, but was absolutely delicious (not very healthy though, but hey it was black friday thanksgiving dinner!) Thanks for the great recipe - I never thought I would successfully roast a chicken, but this recipe really is stupid easy!
Really simple! Only used half a lemon as the chicken is small and baked for 50min. very moist and tender!
Awesome and super easy. I've cooked it as is and it was great, but I've also added some herbs and spices (poultry seasoning) to give it some more flavor. I've also replaced the lemon with celery and it came out just as well! Thanks for sharing!
AMAZING!! Tasty and super juicy. This the ONLY way I will roast chicken from now on!
Made this for dinner. The flavour with the lemon inside the cavity was lovely. Will make again....I think. So many good recipes so little time.
This is too easy, too consistant and some of the most tender chicken I've ever made! I brag on this recipe and share it all the time! Thanks for sharing it with us! I have followed directions to a " t", but Ive also thrown in half of an onion and some butter (calories schmalories!) into the cavity along with the lemon. I cant seen to ruin this recipe, and believe me, that's what I do best in the kitchen! This is the only exception I've found to that "too good to be true" saying. But dont just take our word, try it!!!
I never review recipes but this one is a keeper. Easy, delicious, perfectly cooked chicken each time. If my chicken is larger than 4 lbs, I add 15 minutes for each extra 1/4lb. I add an extra lemon and 4 garlic cloves because that is our preference but this recipe is perfect as written. Thank you!
Very easy to do! I avoid tenting the bird hot' as I find it turns the crispy skin soggy. If you wait 10-15 min. to carve the bird it'll stay warm without tenting.
This has become my faithful no fail recipe...maybe I add a bit more to the cavity...maybe I spice it up...but the recipe is just what it is..stupid simple and no-fail!
I am absolutely "special" when it comes to whole chickens. Used this recipe 1st time and chicken was awesome. I stuffed it with onions and garlic like my mom would the TG turkey, patted the chicken with a paper towel to decrease water, slathered it with butter, tied up the legs/wings, seasoned it with: salt, pepper, garlic powder (nothing special), popped it in the oven with a digital thermometer (180). Chicken was moist and yummy. I think I might stop buying chicken from the store (unless I'm in a pinch for time).
I had a horrible time with smoke and grease splattering everywhere. I dried it well but used pam to coat the baking dish. I guess next time I would omit the Pam, use a deeper roasting dish and allow more time because it took longer than expected of about 20 minutes per pound. We ended up giving up and the chicken measured as done temperature wise but when we cut it open, it was bleeding in several places. I admit to be a novice from-scratch cook, but I will not be trying this one again. Too much trouble to be stupid-simple. I was very disappointed. I'm happy to take suggestions if that is possible.
excellent! Added rosemary sprigs in the cavity, otherwise followed. Did take advice from other reviewers, and added water to roasting pan. No smoke!
I feel stupid for not roasting a chicken like this before. It was delicious. Crispy & tasty on the outside & juicy on the inside. A great discovery. Thank you!
I used Zatarain's seasoned salt, lemon, garlic and fresh rosemary sprigs and it was about the best roasted chicken I've eaten.
Elliot, thank you for submitting this. I am making chicken stew, today, and wanted a basic roast chicken without frills. My lemons are kinda old so I'll probably substitute an onion. Prone to cooking extravagantly, most often opting to open Julia's Book, I am giving this five stars before setting out to cook it because I think many cooks are afraid to publish their most basic, most simple recipes and those recipes are excellent precursors for the apprehensive novice as well as for those of us who need to get back to the basics, once in a while. I'll probably loosen the skin, season and butter underneath. I can't help it. Recipes are suggestions, to me, and I find it exteremly difficult to stick to one. I'll need to keep an eye on it as I cook with smaller, organic roasters and organic chicken ALWAYS tastes more ..... chicken-y. Thanks, again, Elliot!
I am going to try this recipe, because it sounds good, and is nice and simple-providing I can find anything close to a 4 lb. chicken-all of the ones I see are about 5 lbs., but I am not, as several reviewers suggested, going to rinse it, and stand it upright to drain in my refrigerator. Rinsing chicken is no longer advisable, and helps spread contamination. I am old enough to remember when chicken was a lot safer, and I NEVER rinse my poultry. I am certainly not going to stand it upright and let it drain in my refrigerator. I'd have to have something to keep it stable and upright, I'd have to have something to catch the water, and I'd certainly have to have something to cover it to keep it from touching anything else. A tub large enough to brine a chicken would work, but I'd have to rearrange my refrigerator. All of which does not make this chicken stupid-simple, but rather, stupid-stupid.
Very simple, and very juicy chicken. This was my second time making it; both times I had to run the exhaust fan because of the smoke, but it was no biggie. This time I tented foil over the chicken when it started to smoke, and that helped a great deal. I also took some advice from the reviews this time and dried the skin, then rubbed olive oil on. I don't use salt until serving as I think it draws moisture out, and I could be wrong, but the skin coated with garlic and onion powder and black pepper was nice and crispy and the whole bird was juicy. I also washed and scored a whole lemon before halving it and stuffing it into a peppered cavity. This made a big difference in flavor - the chicken had a nice lemony flavor, and the drippings made a velvety gravy with just the right amount (not too much) lemon, and pepper, too. I will be using this recipe often!
Fill chicken cavity with sliced oranges! Awesome.
Amazingly simple and amazingly good! The only thing I did different it to tuck a bit of butter under the skin. And used fresh ground pepper. But other than that the idea of using a high temperature to roast a chicken seemed crazy until now. This will definitely be my go to method from now on. And it seems to lend itself to trying different flavors or seasonings to mix it up a bit. Thank you!
Very tasty chicken that set off my smoke alarms, splattered stuff all over the bottom, front and sides of my oven. Would only make again if I have a covered roaster .
Hubby said this was the best tasting chicken ever. Sometimes we tend to over season chicken but plain ole salt and pepper allowed the chicken flavor to come through! I cooked chicken leg quarters instead of a whole chicken.
The best roasted chicken I have ever baked. I had family over so I made two and they just raved about it. Sooo easy too! Follow the recipe.
Simple. Juicy. Fool-proof. I only used half a lemon and baked for 40 min as the chicken is small.
Made this the week before Christmas and my husband said it was the best roast chicken he’s ever had! It was moist and had delicious flavor. Drying it well and adding a half onion with the lemon did it for me. Try this, you won’t be disappointed!
Very good. I did undercook it a bit - I need to be more careful taking its temperature. The chicken was two meals for the two of us.
Considering I overlooked it, it was still very good. Stupid simpleA!
A perfect roasted chicken. With mashed potatoes a very easy weeknight meal. Roasted it with carrots and celery as someone suggested and it added a nice flavor to gravy, as well as provided a vegetable for dinner!
It was super easy, I'll give it that. The skin crisped up pretty nicely. The meat was tender, but flavorless (I even used free-range organic chicken which is supposed to have the best flavor). it was not the best roast chicken I have ever had, but it was good, and the chicken was great to add to a casserole, which was my goal. The recipe didn't state if I should put it on a rack in the roasting pan or not, so I didn't, but I did add a few celery stalks under the bird to elevate it a little...which just added a nice flavor to the drippings. It also was not clear if it should go in breast up or down...
I've made this at least a dz times and it turns out perfect every single time. If I have it, I will put fresh thyme sprigs in with the lemon. It makes the best gravy EVER! Dark, rich and a little salty. I would definitely serve this to company. Thank you Elliott
I followed the direction all the way except I added onion and fresh garlic to the lime inside the cavity. The skin was not as good as I had hoped. It was nice and crispy but it tasted exactly like the skin of a fried chicken wing. So after I removed it. My chicken was delish and tender!
I made this and it was super moist and delicious. I usually buy chicken breasts because I was a little intimidated by a whole chicken. My husband bought a whole chicken because it was so much cheaper. Boy, am I glad he did. I stuffed with lemon and butter as someone suggested. I salted and peppered along with a seasoning blend we love. This was juicy, moist, and super brown and crispy! I will definitely make again. Save money and great taste, what more can you ask for!
Yes, it was tender and juicy, even the breast. It was, however, lacking in flavor. Bland, if you will. I'd suggest mixing garlic and/or onion powders with the Kosher salt. Celery salt might also be a welcome addition. The lemon in the cavity did not seem to impart any flavor at all.
Awesomely simple! I only added black pepper along with the salt and lemon. My husband gave 2 thumbs up and that says a lot especially when he declares himself a chicken connoisseur!
Follow the recipe to the letter. I like how easy this was to prepare and cook in no time easy dinner.
A good roasted chicken recipe! I accidentally used sea salt instead of kosher salt, it was still good. I loved the hint of lemon flavor. I couldn't help but add some of my favorite spices into the cavity, onion and garlic powders, rosemary, and pepper. Took another reviewer's suggestion and roasted the chicken for 30 min., @ 400-degrees, turned over on it's breast. Then right side up @ 350-degrees for another 1 1/2 hrs. It was very good.
So good and simple! I added dried basil along with the course ground salt and used little oranges inside the cavity because I didn’t Have any lemon.
I do this all of the time. It is a great recipe and my family loves it. To change up I salt the cavity with seasoning salt lightly and put in a quartered onion, a couple cloves of garlic with the lemon. Roast at 450 with the legs in first. Other times I season some olive oil with fresh garlic, thyme, Lawry's seasoning salt and a little of basil for an hour. Then just before cooking rub the dry chicken with the oil ol over the chicken; put in the stove legs in first. Delicious!
Extremely simple as is. Moist, tender, delicious...5 seconds of prep time...can't be it!
I made this after it was featured in the Allrecipes magazine. It was easy, but not a whole lot of flavor. I think I will stick to the Rotisserie Style Chicken recipe from this site.
I used the recipe as it was written and it was delicious. I would not change a thing as the chicken is super moist and skin (i know bad) is crispy the way you want it.
I've used this recipe a few times and the chicken is really good. People like the crispy skin too. The only thing I don't like - and why I rate it 4 instead of 5 stars - is because of the amount of smoke produced because of the high cooking temp. Good recipe otherwise. :-)
I have relied on Costco's rotisserie chickens for so long, I honestly can't remember the last time I roasted one myself. I saw this, and decided to give it a try. I rinsed and patted dry my four pound chicken, then put a drinking glass up his insides and put him on a pie plate in the fridge for about six hours. Followed the recipe, verbatim, with outstanding results! The temp of this chicken after it had been in the oven for an hour, was 190 and climbing. In spite of that the meat was extremely tender and juicy, and the skin was SUPER crispy! I didn't get any noticeable extra flavor from the lemon, but it's very possible it had something to do with keeping the bird moist. Anyway, this was a big hit! Easy to do and I'll do it again! Oh! I used a big roasting pan with parchment paper on the bottom, and laid the chicken on a rack inside. Uncovered, the whole time, with no mess, and no trace of overbrowning.
It didn’t cook all,the way through on the temperature the recipe gave.
The chicken has been in and out of the oven 3-4 times so I can use the thermometer to see if it's done. Each time, now up to 1 hour and 45 min. (at 450) is still not quite done. There's either something wrong with my oven or these directions undershot. I rubbed garlic and a smidge of parsley on with the salt, and a teensy bit of season all. I cut the lemon into quarters so more of it is exposed inside the chicken.
Wasn't sure how much salt to use. I sprinkled about three T and used it inside and outside.
Because of time, this recipe has saved me. I rubbed salt and pepper and have it sit for the next day. I've tried it with a 15 pound turkey and an extra 2 handfuls of potatoes around the sides. I uncovered 35 minutes before flipping the bird half way through and before the end of time. I got excellent comments and are surprised how much flavor the bird contains in itself.
