Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken is a main course everyone should know how to make! A whole chicken is stuffed with lemon, garlic, and rosemary, then seasoned with a fresh herb rub and roasted to tender perfection. Pair it with all your favorite sides for a wholesome mouthwatering meal.
Perfectly cooked, tender, juicy chicken filled with flavorful, fresh herbs? Yes, please! You can serve roast chicken with just about any of your favorite side dishes.
Pair it with a potato side dish like these Cheesy Smashed Roasted Potatoes or this Slow Cooker Roast Potatoes recipe with a handful of Baked Parmesan Zucchini Sticks. Some more great choices for veggie lovers are Roasted Parmesan Broccoli or these tasty Maple Bacon Brussels Sprouts!
Most of the time, we just toss together a simple green salad or Strawberry Spinach Salad and rolls with this chicken, and we’ve got a simple meal the whole family will love!
SAVE THIS EASY ROASTED CHICKEN RECIPE TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!
This is a perfect recipe for learning how to roast a chicken too!
Once you master this method (it’s easy) you can experiment with your favorite blends of herbs and spices.
Ingredients for Herb Roasted Chicken
Here’s what you need to make this delicious lemon chicken dinner:
- whole chicken (5 – 6 pounds is perfect)
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 onion, quartered
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh marjoram (sage also works here)
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons canola or olive oil
See the recipe card below for detailed amounts and instructions.
How to Roast a Whole Chicken
Before you get started preparing your chicken, heat oven to 450 degrees F.
STEP 1. Clean out the chicken
Now, it’s time for the fun part: cleaning out the chicken!
Remove everything from the cavity of the chicken. You know, the heart, liver, etc. It’s not the most pleasant part of the process but it only takes a minute!
Now, rinse the chicken well and give it a good pat down with some paper towels. You want to make sure the skin is dry so that the canola oil will give the skin a good browning.
STEP 2. Stuff the chicken
Place the chicken on a cutting board. Insert one clove of garlic, followed by a quarter of both the onion and lemon into the cavity. Place a sprig of rosemary in as well.
Repeat with remaining onion, lemon, garlic, and rosemary until you can’t fit anything else. You might use it all, you might not. It’s ok.
Now, it’s okay to be creative with this part. You can put the ingredients in the chicken in any order. We’re using the ingredients to add flavor to the bird as it cooks.
STEP 3. Rub the chicken with herbs
In a small bowl, combine chopped marjoram, rosemary, and thyme; add lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Add canola oil and thoroughly combine.
Separate the skin from the chicken breasts by gently sliding your fingers in between the skin of the chicken and the meat. With your hands, distribute a couple of teaspoons of herb mixture all along the outside of the chicken.
Give that bird a good rubdown all over with the remaining herb mixture. Make sure you cover the bottom with it as well.
STEP 4. Roast
Transfer chicken to a rack placed in the bottom of a roasting pan. Bake the chicken for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a meat thermometer shows an internal temperature of 165 degrees F and the skin is a nice golden brown.
Remove from oven and allow your bird to sit for 10-15 minutes before slicing. This will help to keep the meat tender and moist.
How to Store Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken
Store your leftover chicken in the refrigerator within 2 hours of serving. Keep it in an airtight container and it should last 3-4 days!
Can you freeze Roasted Chicken?
Freezing your lemon roasted chicken is a great way to use it for those busy days when you don’t have time to cook a huge meal.
Once the chicken cools to room temperature, cut the chicken into pieces, depending on what you might use your chicken for. Flash-freeze the chicken pieces on a baking sheet for one hour, then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag.
Roasted chicken lasts up to six months in the freezer when stored properly. Thaw it in the refrigerator overnight before using it in your recipes as desired.
Leftover Recipes with Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken
One huge reason to make a whole roast chicken for dinner: you’ll have leftovers for the rest of the week! This delicious chicken recipe is flavorful but not spicy or overpowering. That makes the leftovers perfect as a starter for other quick and easy meals like these:
- Easy Chicken Salad – a perfect fast and filling lunch! Serve it on bread or butter lettuce for a low-carb option!
- Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup – warming and comforting on a chilly day, this classic soup is a winner!
- Loaded BBQ Chicken Nachos – amazing for game day or a family appetizer.
- Greek Quinoa Chicken Salad – packed with protein and greens, this is one of my favorite versions of chicken salad!
- Chicken ‘N’ Dumplins – the ultimate comfort food, made easy!
- Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole– a twist on a classic with lots of chicken, ham, noodles and a savory cheese sauce.
Chicken Recipes
Never have a boring chicken dinner again with these deliciously easy family-friendly recipe ideas.
- Chicken Enchilada Bites
- Artichoke Tomato Chicken
- Chicken Noodle Casserole
- Roasted Chicken and Vegetables
- Buffalo Chicken Spinach Alfredo
- Pesto Chicken Pasta Salad
- Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli and Rice Casserole
FOLLOW ME
FACEBOOK ~ PINTEREST
INSTAGRAM ~ TWITTER
YOUTUBE
Keep an eye out for more of my easy recipes each week!
Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken
Equipment
- cutting board
- roasting pan
Ingredients
- 5 lb. whole chicken
- 2 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 onion quartered
- 1 lemon
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh marjoram sage can be substituted
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Take the chicken out of its' packaging, and remove the giblet package from the inside cavity if there is one. Rinse the inside and outside of the chicken, and pat it dry with a paper towel.
- Place the chicken on the cutting board. Place one of the crushed garlic cloves deep into the chicken followed by a quarter of both the lemon and onion. Put in a sprig of the fresh rosemary, and continue stuffing the chicken with the lemon and onion until full. Note, you may not be able to use all of the pieces.
- In a small bowl, combine the rosemary, marjoram, thyme, salt, and pepper, and mix well. Add the canola oil and mix together.
- By gently sliding your fingers between the breast meat and skin of the chicken, loosen the skin from the meat. Evenly distribute a couple of teaspoons of the herbs in between the skin and the breast. Then coat the rest of the chicken with the remaining herbs, covering the bottom with it as well.
- Place the chicken on a rack in a roasting pan and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165°F, and the skin is a nice golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and let sit for 10-15 minutes before slicing. This will help to keep the chicken moist.
Nutrition
This post has been updated in format and with photos on 8/9/21 and republished on 4/3/24. It was originally published 1/6/12.
Comments & Reviews
The Slow Roasted Italian says
That’s one beautiful bird! I love that you have a giant rosemary bush in your yard. I am planting herbs this year and was worried my favorites like rosemary, basil, etc wouldn’t survive.
Carrie's Experimental Kitchen says
It looks delicious. With lemon and herbs, you just can’t go wrong. 🙂
Cindy B. says
It look sooooo delicious! I pinned it on Pinterest.
Lynne @ 365 Days of Baking says
Thank you, ladies!!
Mary Jo Stresky says
I make this chicken … and add 2 cups uncooked white or whole grain rice, and 2 small cans of chicken stock to the same pan. When it’s all said and done you have chicken and rice.
Or instead of water to add to the pan, add chicken stock. Adds a bit of oomph to the drippings. Excellent recipe!
Marsha Spiva says
I bet it was the gizzard, your fourth item removed. Hope you made giblet gravy. Loved the recipe, fixing as we speak. The house smells yummy. Thanks.
Lynne says
Thanks, Marsha. It most certainly was! You can bet that will never happen again. 😉
Hope you enjoyed it!
Lettie Brunswick says
This might be a dumb question, but it says preheat oven to 450 and cook the chicken for an hour and 15 minutes? Is the oven temp right? Thanks- looks delicious- got it ready to go in the oven!
Lynne says
Lettie, it’s not a dumb question. 🙂
I’ve made it multiple times with the oven temp. at 450 degrees F. I found the recipe here on Ree Drummond’s website: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/08/roast-chicken/. She heats her oven to 400 if it’s convection and 425 degrees F. if it’s a standard oven. If you feel more comfortable lowering the temperature then by all means do so. I highly recommend when cooking any meat that you fully cook it and use a meat thermometer to make sure it’s done. Enjoy!