The paleo diet

ROASTED LEMON CHICKEN

I try to make a roast chicken every weekend—it’s a great way to make sure you have leftovers for the week, and I always make bone broth with the carcass (see the Chicken Soup recipe here). For so long, a roast chicken seemed really intimidating, like it was the holy grail of housewives everywhere; but I soon learned there’s nothing particularly complicated about cooking a whole chicken. It’s actually quite easy, and super flavorful, and once you get the hang of it, the whole thing just becomes a nice habit. SERVES 4

PREP TIME: 10 minutes

COOK TIME: 1 hour, 40 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 2 hours

1 (5 to 6 pound (2722 g)) chicken

Pinch dried oregano

Pinch red pepper flakes

Pinch celery seed

Pinch dried parsley flakes

Pinch dried sage

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 lemon, halved

1 garlic bulb, cut in half widthwise and outer skin removed,

1 clove reserved

1 dried bay leaf

1 tablespoon (15 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

½ onion, quartered

2 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
2. Place the chicken on a large plate or a plastic cutting board. Make sure the giblets have been removed from inside the bird, and pat the skin dry with a paper towel.
3. Season the chicken with the oregano, red pepper flakes, celery seed, parsley flakes, and sage, season with salt and pepper, and stuff the inside of the bird with the lemon, garlic bulb, and bay leaf.
4. In a large pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Sauté the onion and the reserved garlic clove until translucent while searing the bird breast-side down in the pan to brown the skin, about 5 minutes. Flip the bird over, and transfer it and the onion and garlic to a roasting pan (or leave it in the Dutch oven, if using).
5. Add the carrots, and transfer the pan to the oven. Roast for 1½ hours, or until the juices run clear when the thigh is poked with a knife.
6. Remove the bird from the oven, and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before carving.
7. Keep the drippings, leftover veggies, and chicken carcass to make broth (see here).

VARIATION 1 ROSEMARY-LEMON CHICKEN: Use fresh oregano instead of dried, and stuff the bird with several fresh rosemary sprigs, reserving a tablespoon or so of the leaves for garnish (see photo below).

VARIATION 2 CRISPY BUTTER CHICKEN: Before roasting, slather the bird with plenty of grass-fed butter for an extra-crispy skin. Cut up 1 or 2 tablespoons (30 ml) butter, and stuff it underneath the skin of the breast.

PALEO PAIR: Serve with Bacon Brussels Sprouts (here) for a complete dinner.

More Recipes You'll Love

• Pickled shrimp
• TEN TOMATO KETCHUP
• Strawberry shortcakes

This roasted lemon chicken stuffs a whole bird with lemon, garlic, and a bay leaf, sears it breast-side down for golden skin, and roasts over carrots and onion until the juices run clear. It is the weekend habit that feeds the whole week. Save the carcass for broth.

Pro Tips

• Pat the skin completely dry with paper towels before seasoning. Dry skin browns; wet skin steams.
• Sear the bird breast-side down in the Dutch oven for about 5 minutes before flipping and roasting. That step is what gives you golden skin.
• Stuff the cavity with the halved lemon, garlic bulb, and bay leaf. They perfume the meat from the inside as it roasts.
• Roast about 1 1/2 hours at 375°F until the juices run clear when the thigh is poked, then rest the bird 10 minutes before carving.
• Keep the drippings, leftover vegetables, and the carcass to make bone broth. It is half the reward of roasting your own chickens.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is roasted lemon chicken paleo?

It is - just a whole chicken, lemon, garlic, onion, carrots, herbs, and olive oil. Nothing else required.

How do I know when the chicken is done?

The juices run clear when the thigh is poked with a knife - about 1 1/2 hours at 375°F after the initial sear.

How do I get the skin crispier?

Slather the bird with grass-fed butter before roasting, and tuck 1-2 tablespoons of butter underneath the breast skin.

What should I do with the leftovers?

Shred the meat for weekday lunches and save the carcass and drippings for bone broth - that is the whole point of roasting your own birds.

Recipe Card

Stav Kogan

ROASTED LEMON CHICKEN

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 2 hours hrs

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

• 1 (5 to 6 pound) chicken
• 1 lemon, halved
• 1 garlic bulb, cut in half widthwise and outer skin removed,
• 1 clove reserved
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ onion, quartered
• 2 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces

Method

 

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Place the chicken on a large plate or a plastic cutting board.
3. Make sure the giblets have been removed from inside the bird, and pat the skin dry with a paper towel.
4. Season the chicken with the oregano, red pepper flakes, celery seed, parsley flakes, and sage, season with salt and pepper, and stuff the inside of the bird with the lemon, garlic bulb, and bay leaf.
5. In a large pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil.
6. Sauté the onion and the reserved garlic clove until translucent while searing the bird breast-side down in the pan to brown the skin, about 5 minutes.
7. Flip the bird over, and transfer it and the onion and garlic to a roasting pan (or leave it in the Dutch oven, if using).
8. Add the carrots, and transfer the pan to the oven.
9. Roast for 1½ hours, or until the juices run clear when the thigh is poked with a knife.
10. Remove the bird from the oven, and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before carving.
11. Keep the drippings, leftover veggies, and chicken carcass to make broth (see here).

Tried this recipe?

Let us know how it was!