Recipe: Roast Chicken with Garlic, Lemon, and Herbs

Every Thursday on the Good Food Blog we share a recipe from our archives.

Joyce Goldstein spoke about cooking for one. She is a cookbook author of “Saffron Shores: Jewish Cooking of the Southern Mediterranean” and “Small Suppers”. She first shared this recipe this recipe for Roast Chicken with Garlic, Lemon, and Herbs on September 21, 2002.

photo: conskeptical on Flickr

Roast Chicken with Garlic, Lemon, and Herbs

I know that boneless, skinless chicken breasts are the answer to the question of what a solo cook should prepare for dinner. After all, they are fast, easy, and come in individual portions. But they are not my first choice when I have a craving for chicken. Nothing pleases me more than a succulent whole roasted bird. It is juicier, tastier, and comes with crackly skin. The payoff is that I will have glorious leftovers for another meal and maybe even two. And the smells in the house are worth the wait. I try to find a kosher chicken because they have been brined and are especially tasty. If my market is out of them, I buy a local free-range bird and rub it with salt and lemon. If I have time, I might put it in a brine solution, but more often than not, I pick one up and get cooking with little preparation.

1 roasting chicken, about 3 to 4 pounds

1 juicy lemon, cut in quarters

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 cloves garlic, 2 crushed and 2 minced

1/4 cup pure olive oil

2 teaspoons dried oregano or chopped fresh rosemary or tarragon

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon coarsely cracked black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Rub the bird inside and out with the lemon quarters, salt, and ground pepper. Place the lemon quarter, 2 crushed garlic cloves, and 1 teaspoon oregano inside the cavity. To prepare the basting mixture, in a small saucepan, combine olive oil, lemon juice, the remaining teaspoon of oregano, and the salt and the cracked pepper. Bring to a simmer over low heat and simmer 3 minutes, then remove from the heat.

Brush the chicken with basting mixture and place, breast side up, on a rack in a roasting pan. Roast, basting occasionally with the olive oil mixture, until the skin is crisp and the juices run clear when the leg is pierced with a skewer, about 1 hour. (Some cooks recommend starting the chicken on its side, turning it after 20 minutes to the other side, and finally turning it breast up for the last 20 minutes for more even browning.)

Remove chicken to carving board. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes, then carve, drizzling with the pan juices if you like.

Suggestions for Leftovers:

Add to tortilla soup, chicken noodle soup, chicken and bread soup, risotto, or a salad. And don’t forget a chicken sandwich with good mayonnaise or aioli, sliced tomato, and lettuce.