5 Ingredients or Fewer
30-Minute Roast Chicken
Popular on Food52
13 Reviews
Paula S.
February 18, 2019
This is a great recipe. We first tried this while vacationing with a group of friends. It was such a hit we did it several times that week. We browned the backbone, neck, wingtips and any entrails except liver with some onions and wine to make a sauce, which we poured over the carved chicken. Excellent sguff!
gcooks
May 26, 2018
perfect. juicy & tender. i used a 4.5 pound bird the butcher prepped, pulled out it of the fridge 2 hrs before it went in the oven. cooked 36 minutes total. thank you!
Lois S.
March 29, 2018
This is by far the best roast chicken ever. I used a 6lb. Chicken and preheated a cast iron roasting pan. We were licking our fingers. Absolutely, superb.
DJ C.
February 20, 2018
Re my previous comment about oven smoking.
I know how to spatchcock and roast a chicken, or anything else for that matter. Thanksgiving is a smokefest too. Perhaps it has something to do with living at 7,000 (Santa Fe). That's the only other thing I can think of. I have a range oven, which I use for roasting since it's under the hood fan, and a wall oven, which I have never roasted in because it's not under a fan. I have found that the more exposed pan surface you have, the more smoke is created. In frying or sauteeing on the stove as well. A full pan spits grease on the stove much less if it's full of food, versus a smaller amount with edges exposed. BTW roasting a whole chicken or prime cut of meat at altitude takes at least an hour longer, on the average. I envy you your quick dinners!
I know how to spatchcock and roast a chicken, or anything else for that matter. Thanksgiving is a smokefest too. Perhaps it has something to do with living at 7,000 (Santa Fe). That's the only other thing I can think of. I have a range oven, which I use for roasting since it's under the hood fan, and a wall oven, which I have never roasted in because it's not under a fan. I have found that the more exposed pan surface you have, the more smoke is created. In frying or sauteeing on the stove as well. A full pan spits grease on the stove much less if it's full of food, versus a smaller amount with edges exposed. BTW roasting a whole chicken or prime cut of meat at altitude takes at least an hour longer, on the average. I envy you your quick dinners!
Manhattan T.
February 17, 2018
I've used this roasting method twice now, both times for a larger bird. The 5.5# chicken took only 35 minutes, as I'd removed it from the fridge well in advance of roasting it, but the 6.5# chicken took a solid 45 min; I'd not removed it very far in advance and it was hefty! Chef John (foodwishes) has a terrific, brief video on how to spatchcock; it's worth 3 minutes of your time to watch. I use only 1 full teaspoon of salt, lots of black pepper and some dried or fresh rosemary and thyme.
The skin was crispy but doesn't stay crispy through a second helping... The chicken does have terrific flavor and texture. For larger birds a thermometer is a must.
I had zero trouble with a smoking oven.
I'll keep using this method. I even bought new kitchen shears for the spatchcocking (don't even bother with your old dull shears...)!
The skin was crispy but doesn't stay crispy through a second helping... The chicken does have terrific flavor and texture. For larger birds a thermometer is a must.
I had zero trouble with a smoking oven.
I'll keep using this method. I even bought new kitchen shears for the spatchcocking (don't even bother with your old dull shears...)!
DJ C.
February 1, 2018
The bigger the exposed area of the (greasy) pan around the chicken, the more smoke I have in my kitchen and the more grease spattered in the oven. I have a great vent fan but the smoke just rolls out if I don't open the door very slowly, Anyone else have this problem?
Emma L.
February 1, 2018
Hi DJ—some smoking/splattering is normal with an oven temperature this high. The chicken also might have been especially fatty. Trimming any extra skin or fat before roasting can help this!
Matt
January 28, 2018
This recipe seems wrong. Even Kenji Lopez-Alt's recipe calls for 45 minutes to an hour. Thirty minutes seems very short!
Emma L.
January 29, 2018
Hi Matt—I was surprised by the 30 minutes, too! Cook times vary for a lot of reasons: bird size; oven temperature; technique. This recipe uses a 4-pound bird (some recipes use 5 or 6), a high-temperature oven, a spatchcock, and a preheated sheet pan. All those variables, especially the last, yield a quicker-than-usual result. The accompanying article (linked in the recipe headnote) goes into all this in more detail.
See what other Food52ers are saying.