You love the rotisserie chicken sold in the stores. It’s moist and flavorful. But you want to make it at home.
This chicken will be moist and flavorful and yet have the distinct flavor of oven roasted garlic.
You’ll need to soak it for about an hour and then it will take a little over an hour in the oven. It’s perfect chicken your way.
Table of Contents
How to Roast the Chicken
1 whole chicken, 3 1/2 to 4 pounds in weight
2-3 tablespoons butter, melted
salt and pepper
1/2 cup salt for brining or use an infuser
For the garlic paste
8 to 10 cloves of roasted garlic or 2 or 3 cloves of raw garlic.
1/4 cup softened butter.
Directions
Roast chicken can be very dry and nearly unpalatable. To avoid dry chicken, you need to soak it in a brine solution for an hour. The saltwater will permeate the bird so that the chicken retains water prior to roasting.
If you use a brine soak, dissolve one-half cup of salt in 8 to10 cups of cold water and soak the bird for an hour in the refrigerator just prior to roasting.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Make the garlic paste by mincing the garlic and then mixing it in a small bowl with the softened butter until you have made a paste. Set aside.
- Wash the chicken and pat it dry. Salt and pepper the body cavity. Place the chicken on a baking rack.
- Use a pastry brush to brush the skin of the chicken with the melted butter. Use a spoon to lift the skin away from the breast meat. Spoon the garlic paste into the pockets and press on the skin to spread the paste onto the breasts.
- Place the chicken in the center of the oven and roast it until it is done, one hour to an hour and 15 minutes. Test for doneness with an insta-read thermometer. (See below.)
Cook’s notes: Do not overcook. Use an insta-read thermometer to tell when your chicken is cooked. The thermometer should be inserted deep into the meat but not against the bone since the bones tend to reach a higher temperature than does the meat. The breast meat should test 165 degrees and the thigh meat, 170.
Do not set the chicken in a baking pan to roast. The liquids will drain out of the chicken into the pan and permeate parts of the chicken to make it soggy and greasy. A rack allows the grease to drip away from the chicken.
Pasta, Rice, or Potatoes?
Twice Baked Potatoes
Since you have the oven going, why not make twice-baked potatoes? It’s simply mashed potatoes in their skins with a bunch of goodies and then baked again in the oven.
See how to make twice baked potatoes.
Oven Fries
Put the chicken on the top shelf and the potatoes on the bottom. Season them any way you like. (I love them with shredded cheese on them.)
Crockpot Potatoes
Crockpot potatoes are trouble free. Load up your crockpot before starting the chicken. Flavor them and mash them just like they were boiled.
See how to make crockpot potatoes.
Perfect Rice
Rice goes with everything. A microwave rice cooker makes it easy.
Garlic Pasta
This garlicky, Italian pasta is perfect . . . and authentic. It’s called Spaghetti Aglio E Olio.
Learn how to make garlic pasta.
More Resources
- How to Make Great Garlic Bread in About 15 Minutes
- How to Roast Garlic
Make restaurant chicken gravy like they do in restaurants. Boil the water and add the mix.
Easy Make Ahead Meals. Save time in the kitchen with easy make-ahead meals like calzones, quiche, and French toast. Get recipes, variations, tips, and more. See the Pigs, Dogs, and Toads collection.
Bread Mixes. We know breads! To get innovative ideas for breads and regular special offers on bread mixes, join our bread interest group. Our bread mixes are suitable for both bread machine and oven.
Share this with your friends who love to cook and bake!
