Perfect Roast Chicken

Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2003

Show: The Essence of EmerilEpisode: Roasting

Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (114)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(114)

Cook Time:
50 min
Level:
Easy
Yield:
1 roast chicken, 3 to 4 servings

Times:

Prep: 15 min
Inactive Prep: 15 min
Cook: 50 min
Total:: 1 hr 20 min

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Ingredients

3 carrots, peeled and cut into thirds
3 ribs celery, peeled and cut into thirds
3 onions, peeled and cut into quarters
1 (3 1/2 to 4 pound) chicken, rinsed and patted dry
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons cracked white pepper
1 lemon, halved
2 fresh bay leaves
6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
4 sprigs rosemary, roughly chopped, plus 1 tablespoon for gravy
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons roasted garlic
1 cup dry white wine

Directions

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.

In a 9 by 13-inch roasting pan, add the carrots, celery and onions. Season the chicken both inside and out with the kosher salt and white pepper. Squeeze the lemon halves over the chicken and place the rinds inside the cavity. Place the bay leaves inside the cavity. In a small bowl, combine the garlic, rosemary, olive oil and butter. Rub the chicken both inside and out with the garlic rosemary blend and place in the roasting pan.

Place the pan in the oven and roast the chicken for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the juices run clear. To test this, insert a thermometer in the thickest part of a leg. It should register at 160 degrees internal temperature. Remove the chicken from the oven and allow to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before carving.

Pour off excess fat from pan and return to heat. Whisk in chicken stock, roasted garlic, white wine and chopped rosemary, scraping up the bits on the bottom of pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Reduce gravy by half, until thickened.

Serve chicken with gravy on the side.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Perfect Roast Chicken
Tammy Lees Summit, MO 11-04-2009
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Perfect when the heat is turned down!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I took other reviewers' advice and cooked a 3 pound bird for 35 minutes at 450 degrees, then brought it down to 325 degrees... for 20 minutes. It turned out perfectly, with crisp skin and juicy meat that fell off the bone. The family raved! SInce it was a small chicken, there weren't any pan drippings, except for about 2 tbs. of fat. So I added 2 tbs. flour to the fat to make a roux, then added chicken stock, wine, rosemary (no garlic), and a little cream. It was fantastic. I would highly recommend this dinner - it only took about 10 minutes to put together, and the house smelled delightful all night.Read more
recipe Perfect Roast Chicken
Rick westminster, CO 10-14-2009
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Everyone loved this recipe
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

made for supper tonight and it was great. I did set the oven at 425 and set the timer for one hour and twenty minutes and was... perfect. Will make this again.Read more
recipe Perfect Roast Chicken
ashley monroe, MI 09-14-2009
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a hit with the family
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

my kids are 5 and 3 and a very pickey eater for a husband and they all loved this chicken. i have been making this recipe for... about 2 or 3 years and everytime i make it it comes out amazing. i dont cook it at that high of a temp usually 425 for an 1 1/2 hours it always comes out delicious and i usually put some of the rub under the skin as well. its easy to make and i am by no means a great cook.Read more
recipe Perfect Roast Chicken
Erika Astoria, NY 08-10-2009
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AMAZING- with some tweeks
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I just made this last night. I noticed many concerns with the cooking time. I cooked a 3.45lbs chicken at 450* for 35min and... 325* for another 30min until the thermometer reached 165*. My oven runs a little bit hot however. Skin was perfectly crisp, chicken was very moist, let rest 5-7min before carving as suggested.... To 'BAM' it up a bit, I stuffed garlic under the skin of the breast area, cut lots of carrots and celery and onion, then layed the chicken on top of veggies in the pan. Stuffed chicken with onion and butter and salt and pepper, salt and peppered heavly the outside and then rubbed garlic butter all over the outside. Top off with all the fresh poultry mix herbs (also stuffing some inside). Squeeze lemon on the outside and then stuff inide. I poured about a cup and 1/2 of beef stock to add some savory flavor to the roasted veggies. Pop it in the oven and enjoy. FAMILY LOVED IT!!! I will make this again and again. Served with some wild rice! Read more
recipe Perfect Roast Chicken
Sarah hollywood, FL 07-10-2009
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Lower the temp
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Obviously the first time I made this, I followed the extreme temperature thinking that "Emeril knows best".After freaking out... and racing online to see other reviews AND after my smoke alarm went off several times I lowered it to 400 and it turned out PERFECT. The second time that I made it, I added a little more garlic and I put it in at 375 for 1 1/2 hours (was a 5 pounder). It turned out amazing. This is, by far, my favorite roasted chicken dish. I am not that great at making gravy, so the second time, I made egg noodles and we ate the sauce on that! I highly recommend this!Read more
recipe Perfect Roast Chicken
Ann Athol, ID 04-10-2009
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Definitely a Keeper!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I was concerned that the chicken would not be done. But it was perfect. Having 4 children, 1 chicken is never enough, so I... actually roasted 2 whole chickens. I left them in the oven just a tiny bit longer, while I was preparing a side. It was maybe an extra 5 minutes. Yes the herbs were blackened on the top but we just scraped them off and the chicken was PERFECT!!!! and very juicy. The flavor was amazing. This was definitely a 5 star meal. Thank you! Read more