This is the easiest Whole Roasted Chicken recipe ever! This tutorial for How to Roast a Whole Chicken is healthy, delicious and makes the juciest and most flavorful chicken. Naturally gluten-free, paleo, Whole30, low carb, keto and goes perfectly with any side dish.
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Updated March 2023
Juicy Garlic Herb Whole Roasted Chicken
Whether you’re celebrating Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas or simply want to make a hearty and delicious dinner for your family, this whole roasted chicken recipe is just what you need for smaller gatherings. It’s juicy, tender, crispy on the outside and flavored to perfection with lemon & classic chicken seasonings.
Want to keep your oven free? Try our Instant Pot Whole Chicken or Air Fried Chicken instead.
Why we love this easy dinner recipe
- Works perfectly for meal prep and is budget friendly!
- We buy a whole chicken every week since it can easily feed an entire family of four.
- It cooks alongside fresh veggies for a main dish and a side dish all in one! Talk about convenience.
- This versatile dish only takes 10 minutes to throw together. After roasting in the oven for an hour, dinner is ready to be served. Your whole house will smell like a 5-star restaurant!
- If you want to make an additional side for this garlic chicken, it’ll go with just about anything.
Recipe Ingredients
You don’t need much to make this Whole30, paleo and keto dinner besides the chicken, veggies, butter and some staple seasonings. And you can easily make it dairy-free, if necessary.
- Coarse Sea Salt: Kosher salt also works.
- Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
- Whole Chicken: Pat your chicken dry, trim the fat and remove the giblets.
- Lemon
- Garlic
- Fresh Herbs: we love using fresh thyme to make the best roasted chicken but you can also use sage, rosemary or any other herbs you like.
- Unsalted Grass-fed Butter: You could also use ghee. Use extra virgin olive oil for dairy-free chicken.
- Onion
- Carrots
How to Roast a Whole Chicken
Roasting a whole chicken isn’t as much work as you’d think. In fact, it’s quite simple! All you have to do is season it, tie it with kitchen twine, bake it and add the finishing touches.
- Heat Oven: Preheat the oven to 425°F
- Season Chicken with Salt & Pepper: Liberally season the inside and outside of the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Add Lemon, Garlic & Thyme: Squeeze half of the lemon on the outside of the chicken and stuff the chicken with the other half of the lemon along with garlic and 10 sprigs of thyme.
- Add Butter: Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle it again with salt and pepper.
- Tie Chicken: Tie the legs together with kitchen twine or string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.
- Add Veggies & More Seasonings: Transfer the chicken, breast side up, to a large oven-safe cast iron skillet or pan. Arrange the onions, carrots and fennel under and around the chicken. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle salt, pepper and thyme over top.
- Roast: Roast the chicken until it’s evenly golden brown and the internal temperature is at 160°F, about 50-60 minutes, making sure the juices run clear when you cut through the leg and thigh.
- Let Rest: Remove the skillet/pan from the oven and allow the chicken to rest for at least 15 minutes, tenting with foil before carving.
- Serve & Enjoy: Transfer the chicken to a platter and drizzle it with the pan juices. Serve with roasted lemon and garlic.
How Long Should the Chicken Be Roasted?
Your chicken should take around 50-60 minutes to roast to perfection. To make sure it’s done, check its internal temperature with an instant read thermometer. If the chicken registers at 160°F, it’s good to go. It should take on a beautiful golden brown color as it finishes baking.
Tips for the Juiciest Chicken
- Apply Salt & Pepper Generously: Salt doesn’t just act as a seasoning for your chicken, but it also helps trap the moisture to leave you with a super juicy roasted chicken.
- Don’t Overbake: A common reason chicken comes out dry is because it spent too long in the oven. As soon as your chicken’s internal temperature reaches 160°F, it should be taken out.
- Consider Size of Chicken: If your chicken is heavier than 4 pounds, it will take longer to cook, and if it’s under 3 1/2 pounds, it will roast quicker. Keep this in mind when cooking your chicken and adjust the bake time accordingly.
- Season Inside & Outside: In order to get the most juicy and flavorful roasted chicken, you have to season both the inside and the outside of the bird.
What Goes with Roasted Chicken?
There are tons of different side dishes you can pair with garlic roasted chicken. Here are some of my favorite sides to serve mine with:
- Potatoes: Chicken and potatoes go together like a dream. These Crispy Smashed Potatoes are on a whole other level!
- Pasta Salad: Try serving your chicken alongside this fresh and healthy Caprese Pasta Salad.
- Green Beans: My easy Sauteed Green Beans are a tasty side dish you can whip up in 15 minutes. And they pair so well with this roasted chicken!
- Sweet Potato Fries: These crispy and delicious Sweet Potato Fries are another quick and easy side dish that tastes amazing with roasted chicken.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
Once your chicken has completely cooled, store it well-covered in the fridge. Leftovers will stay fresh for up to 4 days. There are so many yummy ways to use your leftover roasted chicken! It tastes great in sandwiches, salads, quesadillas and more. Bring the chicken to room temperature before serving it or heat individual portions in the microwave, if desired.
More easy chicken recipes:
Instant Pot Lemon Chicken with Garlic
This is the easiest Whole Roasted Chicken recipe ever! Better yet, it makes the juciest and most flavorful chicken with a built-in side dish of roasted onions and carrots.
- coarse sea salt or kosher salt
- freshly cracked black pepper
- 3.5-4 lbs whole chicken patted dry, fat trimmed & giblets removed
- 1 lemon halved
- 1 head of garlic cut in half, cross-wise
- 20 sprigs fresh thyme divided
- 1/4 cup unsalted, grass-fed butter or ghee (sub with extra-virgin olive oil if dairy-free)
- 1 medium onion chopped into quarters
- 2 carrots cut into 2-inch chunks
Preheat the oven to 425°F
Liberally season the inside and outside of the chicken with salt and pepper.
Squeeze half of the lemon on the outside of the chicken and stuff the chicken with the other half of the lemon along with garlic and 10 sprigs of thyme.
Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle it again with salt and pepper.
Tie the legs together with kitchen twine or string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.
Transfer the chicken, breast side up, to a large oven-safe cast iron skillet or pan. Arrange the onions, carrots and fennel under and around the chicken. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle salt, pepper and thyme over top.
Roast the chicken until it's evenly golden brown and the internal temperature is at 160°F, about 50-60 minutes, making sure the juices run clear when you cut through the leg and thigh.
Remove the skillet/pan from the oven and allow the chicken to rest for at least 15 minutes, tenting with foil before carving.
Transfer the chicken to a platter and drizzle it with the pan juices. Serve with roasted lemon and garlic.
Serves 4-6.
eleanor -
This was so good and easy to make! thanks for another great healthy meal!
patricia u -
made this for my family last night and it came out delicious! Thanks for the great recipe. subscribed and can’t wait for more