Oven Roasted Whole Chicken with Fresh Herbs

This is probably the easiest oven roasted whole chicken recipe you’ll ever need, for a weeknight dinner or even a holiday get together. Prep time is 15 minutes and this dish goes from oven to table in around one hour and a half. All that roasting time gives you time to relax!

What Makes This Whole Roasted Chicken So Delicious

This best oven roasted whole chicken recipe is a true crowd-pleaser. Infused with garlic and fresh herbs like thyme, rosemary and sage, this chicken is packed full of flavor that permeates every bite. The addition of a homemade pan sauce further enhances the taste, adding a deliciously savory note that complements the chicken wonderfully.

Plus, there are so many things you can do with the leftovers. You can use them to make a hearty chicken stock or shred the chicken and add is as a protein to our broccoli cheese soup.

Ingredients

• 1 large white onion cut into thick slices
• 6 pound whole chicken (or thereabouts)
• sea salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 small container of fresh poultry herbs — thyme, rosemary and sage — rinsed and divided (you can buy these in their own container in the produce aisle of the grocery store)
• 8 cloves garlic, finely minced, divided
• 1 cup organic or homemade chicken broth

Instructions

This recipe calls for two separate steps. One is roasting the chicken. The second is making the accompanying sauce.

Roasting the whole chicken in the oven

Preheat oven to 425 F. Arrange the thick onion slices at the bottom of a large, oven-safe skillet with high sides. You’re using the onions to raise the chicken above the juices as it cooks. This imparts a lovely flavor to the pan sauce.

Remove and discard neck and giblets from chicken and place bird breast-side up on top of onion slices in skillet. Pat the chicken dry, season it generously and place it on top of the onion slices.

Separate out approximately 1/3 of the fresh thyme, rosemary and sage from the bundle. Remove and discard the tough stems from the thyme and rosemary leaves. Combine the leaves with the sage before roughly chopping.

Combine softened butter with minced garlic and chopped fresh herbs, then tuck this mixture evenly under the chicken skin. Massage the remaining minced garlic inside the cavity of the bird before stuffing with the remaining fresh poultry herbs. Secure legs together with kitchen string, and then add the chicken broth to the skillet.

Add chicken broth to the skillet and roast the chicken in a preheated oven for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165 F. Check every 30 minutes while cooking to make sure the skin isn’t becoming too brown. If it is, cover with aluminum foil after 1 hour and check for doneness after another 15-20 minutes. Once cooked, remove the chicken rest and cover loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm and let rest for 15-20 minutes.

Preparing the sauce

Prepare the pan sauce by reducing the leftover liquid. You’ll do this on the stovetop. Be sure you’re using heat proof oven mitts. Remember: that pan just came out of a very hot oven.

Heat the remaining liquid over medium-high heat. Scrape the bottom of the skillet with a spatula or wooden spoon to remove the browned bits. Continue cooking until the liquid is reduced by one half. Once reduced, taste and season with salt and black pepper, if desired.

Serve the whole roasted chicken carved up and topped with a spoonful of the warm pan sauce for an utterly satisfying meal. Remove the onions to save carbs, if you want, as they were there just to provide flavoring for the sauce. However, the nutritional information I’ve provided for this recipe does include the onions. The dish only has three net carbs per serving so it is still quite low.

The Verdict

This Garlic-Herb Whole Roasted Chicken is a delightful dish that’s sure to impress your family and friends. It’s tender, flavorful, and filled with the comforting flavors of garlic and herbs. Plus, it’s low in carbs, making it a great choice for those following a diet. So why not make your next Sunday, holiday or weeknight extra special with this delicious, whole roasted chicken recipe.

Notes

In the instructions I mention using an oven-safe skillet. That’s because you’re putting this chicken in the pan in the oven. You might think that all pans are oven-safe but that’s not true. I recommend this Hexclad 10-inch non-stick pan, which is, in fact, oven safe. You may have seen contestants on the show “Next Level Chef” using them. We have a smaller version of this pan at home and it’s a real workhorse in our kitchen.