Lemon Rosemary Roast Chicken |Cooking With Amanda

Roast chicken is a great way to make your kitchen and house smell fantastic. In fact, I'm not sure if I like eating it or smelling it better. The lemon and herbs in this recipe crank up both the smell and flavor. When there is a roast chicken on my table, everyone in the family is happy.

Since it's citrus season, I can find beautiful Meyer lemons in my grocery store. Regular lemons work fine in this recipe; however I love the sweet juicy Meyer lemon if they are available. I used dried rosemary and parsley just because I didn't have any fresh on hand. If you have the fresh herbs, of course go ahead and use them.

Roast chicken is a simple dish that reminds me of family dinners. It was something my mother and grandmother made often. In my family, everyone liked the darker meat so there was usually a race to get to the drumsticks. A really big roaster was always made, which allowed leftovers the next day. So I also looked forward to having chicken salad.

Depending on the method of roasting, a chicken can take several hours to cook. I like to roast mine in a cast iron Dutch oven. This way I can brown it while it is on the stove and it only takes a little over an hour in the oven. Very little work is involved once it is roasting. It's the perfect amount of time to get some chores done or help the kids with their homework.

Roast chicken is a classic dish that goes with a variety of side dishes. The boys in our family love Parmesan smashed potatoes and I always like to serve a vegetable like Brussels sprouts and a salad. This chicken is great with a variety of different sides.

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Lemon Rosemary Roast Chicken Recipe

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Ingredients

2 teaspoons Minced Garlic
1 tablespoon Dried Rosemary
1 teaspoon Sea Salt, or kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
3 tablespoons Olive Oil, divided
1 Lemon
1 5 pound Whole Chicken, giblets removed
2 teaspoons Dried Parsley

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375°F.
In a small bowl, mix together garlic, rosemary, salt, pepper and 1 Tablespoon of olive oil. Reserve the remaining olive oil. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze in the juice. Rub the mixture all over the chicken, getting some under the skin. Place the lemon halves in the cavity of the chicken.
Add the remaining olive oil to a large cast iron Dutch oven. Place on stove on medium high heat. Brown the whole chicken breast side down. Carefully turn after a few minutes and brown the other side. Sprinkle with parsley.
Cover the chicken and cook for 1 hour. Remove chicken from oven and cook for another 15 minutes or until chicken is browned and internal temperature is at 165°F. Broiler can be turned on for a few minutes if extra browning is desired.
Remove chicken from the oven and wait for 10 minutes before carving.