This One Hour Whole Roasted Chicken is a simple weeknight dinner that the whole family will love. Made with just a few ingredients, paleo, whole30 & tasty!
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I’ve been trying to get this One Hour Whole Roasted Chicken recipe up on the blog for about a year now and it’s FINALLY happening. I make whole chickens all the time for dinner, and love to show how I do it on Instagram stories. I always get a ton of questions, so I knew it was something that deserved it’s own blog post. I know that roasting a whole chicken can totally be intimidating, but it is way easier than you think! Once you read through my tips and tricks, you’ll be good to go!
There really is no ‘wrong’ way to roast a chicken, per say. As long as your stuffing it with veggies + spices and coating it in spices/olive oil.. you’ll be good. I’ve found that my favorite way to roast a chicken is by using celery, carrots, thyme, rosemary, garlic, onions, and lemon (and obviously salt and pepper.. because everything needs salt and pepper!
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Tips for Cooking a Whole Chicken
-Don’t be afraid of it. People seem to be so grossed out or nervous about cooking it… it’s really not that different than regular boring chicken breasts! If you’re really grossed out by it (I mean, I get it.. sticking your hand in a chicken is weird and unpleasant), you can wear disposable gloves
-Make sure to clean out the inside of the chicken. Many chickens will come with the insides pre-cleaned. Sometimes they leave the organs inside in a little bag or pouch. You want to toss those (this is where those gloves come in handy.
-Always pat your chicken dry before spraying, stuffing and seasoning it. I think this allows the skin to get really crispy + full absorb the flavors
-Have patience. An hour might seem like a long time, but it is SO worth it
Once you try this One Hour Whole Roasted Chicken, you’re going to wish you had done it earlier. In addition to being incredibly delicious, whole chickens are amazing because they are so affordable! The chicken itself is usually significantly cheaper per pound then chicken breasts or thighs, and I usually get 4-5 meals out of a 3 lb chicken (we don’t love the dark meat, but you’d probably get even more if you did).
Then, I save all of the bones and make this amazing easy crockpot bone broth that is SO yummy. When you do the math on what regular bone broth costs in the store compared to making the chicken + the broth… you’d be SHOCKED. Even if you don’t make the broth.. you will 100% love having this for dinner!
Things we used for this recipe:
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This chicken goes with virtually any side dish, but I love how perfectly it pairs with my Healthy Green Beans Almondine and Paleo Maple Whipped Sweet Potatoes. This would be amazing for serving as a fancy date night dinner at home, but it’s also great for when you want something cheap and yummy! If you don’t have time to roast the chicken in the oven, you can also follow this recipe for Whole 30 Lemon Rosemary Crockpot Whole Chicken. (The crockpot does all the work!) Make sure you also visit this Easy Crockpot Bone Broth recipe so you can use up those scraps!
One Hour Whole Roasted Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 lb whole roasting chicken
- 1 cup carrots, quartered
- 1 onion (medium)
- 1 cup celery, quartered
- 1 lemon, sliced in segments
- 2-4 sprigs thyme
- 2-4 sprigs rosemary
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup chicken stock
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400
- Pat chicken dry, and place in a baking dish or roasting pan.
- Stuff chicken with carrots, onion, garlic, celery & lemon. Leave extra vegetables and lemon around the chicken in the dish. Pour chicken stock into base of the baking dish.
- Spray the chicken with olive oil. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper
- Cover the chicken with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove foil from chicken + bake for an additional 30 minutes uncovered
- Use a meat thermometer to check internal temperature - it should be 165. Allow to cool + enjoy!
Sheila
This is perfect and very timely. My parents are visiting us this weekend and requested roasted chicken. I am so excited to try this recipe. It looks so delicious plus, I super love the presentation. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe.
The Clean Eating Couple
This is the perfect meal to serve – it’s SO simple + your whole family will love it!
Bethany Williams
Hi Liz! I’m new to the blog but let me tell you this recipe did not disappoint! Can’t wait to check out more posts!
The Clean Eating Couple
Hi Bethany, I’m so happy to hear that!! We have tons of different recipes and ways to use up the chicken leftovers so be sure to look around the site!