Spicy Roasted Chicken
How many times have you been at Publix or Costco and just grabbed a roasted chicken to serve for dinner because it’s easy? I’ve done it countless times. Several years ago, I was looking in my freezer to find something easy to cook and I saw a whole chicken. I thought I’d give making my own roasted chicken a try. I came across a recipe on www.allrecipes.com that I loved for two reasons. 1) it seemed very easy 2) it has SPICE!
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: Prep Time – 15 min; Cook Time – 1 hour
Ingredients:
1 (3 pound) whole chicken
1 T. olive oil
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. ground black pepper
1/4 t. dried oregano
1/4 t. dried basil
1/4 t. paprika
1/8 t. cayenne pepper
Preparation of Spicy Roasted Chicken:
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Yes, you might have to put your hands in the cavity to make sure you get all of the insides of the chicken out. Don’t laugh, but before I would touch the nasty parts of a chicken I would just spread the opening of the cavity really wide and shake the chicken over a trash can until everything came out (I bet my sister is laughing right now because she can totally see me doing that). Well, it worked! Ok…pat the chicken dry with paper towels.
Put the chicken in a small baking pan and rub with olive oil. Mix the salt, pepper, oregano, basil, paprika and cayenne pepper together in a small bowl and then rub all over the chicken. Separately salt and pepper the inside of the chicken too.
Roast the chicken for 20 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 400 degrees and roast for an additional 40 minutes or until the temperature in the meatiest part of the thigh reaches 170 degrees. Let the chicken sit for at least 10-15 minutes before carving.
Important Tips:
If you need to wear gloves in order to even touch the outside of the chicken, go ahead and do it. It’s important to make sure the olive oil gets everywhere on the chicken and the spicy mixture is evenly distributed. The only way to really do this is to touch the chicken.
Don’t have an instant read thermometer, just cut a small opening in one of the thighs, if the juices run clear, then it is done.
Variations:
Adjust the spice to fit your tastes. You can also just do a chicken with kosher salt, pepper and rosemary for a non-spicy, more kid friendly version.
Meal Ideas:
You really can serve just about any side with roasted chicken. I usually serve mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables. This combination makes everyone happy!
Got Leftovers?:
Whether the leftover chicken is homemade or store bought, I will shred the chicken and freeze it. The next time I make chicken noodle soup, I have delicious chicken ready to go! Also, see What to do with Shredded Chicken.
Well, your sister may not be laughing at that image of you shaking the chicken, but, wow! I can totally see you doing that! On a side note, I like to add a bunch of garlic cloves and a lemon cut in half on the inside of the chicken cavity too. Great flavor and moisture added. I’ve never done one spicy though, I’ll try it this weekend. -Melissa
Love it! You’ve come a long way! This looks
Delicious!
Yes I have, thanks to you!
That looks delicious, might have to try that tonight. I have no problem sticking my hand in the chicken to clean it out but I do have a problem carving it after it is done. Mine always looks like I got mad at it and tore it apart. I would love to know how to carve it and have those neat little pieces looking so appetizing on the serving plate. Maybe a post on this in the near future?
Great idea, Emily! We are on it! Let us know if you try the chicken and how it turns out!!
Don’t throw that inside stuff away! Its tasty 🙂