Consider the iconic, sublime roast chicken for weekday supper - easier than you might think, this culinary archetype will fill your home with the fragrances of browned chicken mingled with garlic and bright lemon. This is one of our “go to” meals during our month long whole30 endeavor, especially with a fresh green salad or mashed potatoes and green beans.
ROAST CHICKEN WITH LEMON AND GARLIC
Serves: 4 | Cook Time: 1 Hour
INGREDIENTS
1 whole lemon
1 head of garlic
3 sprigs of fresh rosemary
1/4 cup of ghee
1 (approximately) 4 pound whole chicken
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
TECHNIQUE
Preheat oven to 425 degrees; cut lemon i half and discard any seeds; cut head of garlic in half. Melt ghee in a sauce pan with rosemary sprigs.
Pat chicken dry with a paper towel; this is an important step since this will help ensure perfect browning. Next, make incisions where the thigh meets the body of the bird, about 3 inch cuts through the skin down to the joint that connects the thigh to the body. It’d an easy cut…don’t be intimidated.
Season the entire bird with kosher salt and pepper; across every surface area, all the nooks and crannies around the wings and legs, and definitely the inside of the bird.
Set chicken in roasting pan or cast iron skillet; add garlic and lemon cut side down to the pan, nestled against your seasoned bird. Cover the bird with the melted rosemary ghee.
allow to roast for approximately 45 minutes, or until the chicken is golden brown and reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer, another sure sign of doneness is when the juices run clear, and the wings pull loose from the body.
Remove from oven, allow the chicken to rest for about 5 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter (or serve straight from the cast iron skillet like I do) - pour the lemon, garlic dripping from the pan over the chicken and serve immediately along with the roasted garlic and lemon.
