One Pan Roasted Whole Chicken and Vegetables
Budget Friendly Cheap Dinner Idea
This is definitely a winner, winner chicken dinner! Feed your family for under $15 with this One Pan Roasted Whole Chicken and Vegetables meal. It’s juicy and delicious with a garlic butter flavor and hints of lemon and rosemary. The inspiration all started with a trip to the grocery store. High prices and deflated products are what you find nowadays when walking the isles trying to check off your grocery list. I always have an idea of what I want to prepare for dinner, but everything changed when I got to the poultry section. As I stared at the choices before me, there was a small 2-pack of chicken breasts for $8 that would only feed two, and down at the bottom the whole chickens were on sale, and I could buy one to feed our entire family with leftovers for under $7.
Needless to say, I grabbed the whole chicken, along with some russet potatoes, onion, garlic bulb, lemon and a pack of baby carrots and was on a mission to make those ingredients work for a tasty dinner. Along with using some pantry staples I already had, I created this One Pan Roasted Whole Chicken and Vegetables budget friendly dinner recipe idea and wanted to share with you in case you need to feed the family on the cheap.
Let’s begin!
Ingredients:
5-6 lb. whole chicken, giblets removed
3 large russet potatoes, largely cubed
1 small bag baby carrots
1 medium yellow onion, quartered
1 head of garlic, cut in half
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Also needed for outside and inside chicken:
2 1/2 tsp salt, divided (for sprinkling 1/2 tsp inside and 2 tsp on outside of chicken)
3/4 tsp pepper, divided (sprinkle 1/4 tsp inside, 1/2 tsp outside)
2 tbsp butter, melted (I used plant butter)
1 med lemon, halved
How to roast a whole chicken one pan dinner
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 425℉ and you will need a large, deep roasting pan for oven.
First, prepare your vegetables:
In a large bowl, add potatoes, carrots, chopped onion and half of the garlic bulb. Next, add olive oil, rosemary, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper and give it a toss so everything is coated.
Prepare the chicken:
Make sure the giblets are removed (discard or make giblet gravy!) Pat chicken dry inside and out with paper towels and place in a deep roasting pan. Using the 2 1/2 tsp salt and 3/4 tsp pepper, season chicken inside and out then stuff with the other half of garlic bulb and lemon halves.
Next, brush the melted butter all over skin, even under wings and legs.
Place the prepared vegetables all around chicken evenly in roasting pan.
At this point if you want to get all fancy and tie the chicken legs together with cooking twine, go right ahead. My kids and husband could give a flip, so I didn’t waste my time and energy. (It's going to get cut up anyway before serving.) I did tuck the wings underneath to prevent them from overcooking though.
Place roasting pan in preheated oven, uncovered, and bake for 90-100 minutes or until internal temperature reaches at least 165℉ when checked in the thickest part of the thigh (or when juices run clear when cut in thigh.)
This digital meat thermometer was gifted to me by my parents and such a wonderful and useful gadget for cooking and grilling.
Find a similar digital meat thermometer by clicking HERE.
When chicken has reached proper temperature, remove from oven and transfer vegetables to a serving dish and cover with tented foil or a lid. (Or optionally you can put in an oven safe dish and place back into the warm oven until chicken is ready to serve.)
Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
Why does chicken need to rest before slicing? After removing chicken from oven, it continues to cook during the resting period. It is critical that you do not slice chicken during this time to allow it to finish and seal all the juices and moisture in. Normally, for smaller chicken cuts, the resting period would be shorter, but this is a large whole chicken that needs to rest longer. If you are worried about it getting cold on the outer parts, place a loose piece of aluminum foil around chicken during the resting period.
Dinner is DONE!
I opened a can of green beans to go along with everything, or you could serve a simple salad beforehand. Like my dad always told us “Eat something green with every meal!”
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Enjoy!
💜Julie
One Pan Roasted Whole Chicken and Vegetables
Ingredients
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425℉ and you will need a large, deep roasting pan for oven.
- First, prepare your vegetables: In a large bowl, add potatoes, carrots, chopped onion and half of the garlic bulb. Next, add olive oil, rosemary, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper and give it a toss so everything is coated.
- Prepare the chicken: Make sure the giblets are removed (discard or make giblet gravy!) Pat chicken dry inside and out with paper towels and place in a deep roasting pan. Using the 2 1/2 tsp salt and 3/4 tsp pepper, season chicken inside and out then stuff with the other half of garlic bulb and lemon halves.
- Next, brush the melted butter all over skin, even under wings and legs.
- Place the prepared vegetables all around chicken evenly in roasting pan. At this point if you want to get all fancy and tie the chicken legs together with cooking twine, go right ahead. My kids and husband could give a flip, so I didn’t waste my time and energy. (It's going to get cut up anyway before serving.) I did tuck the wings underneath to prevent them from overcooking though.
- Place roasting pan in preheated oven, uncovered, and bake for 90-100 minutes or until internal temperature reaches at least 165℉ when checked in the thickest part of the thigh (or when juices run clear when cut in thigh.)
- When chicken has reached proper temperature, remove from oven and transfer vegetables to a serving dish and cover with tented foil or a lid. (Or optionally you can put in an oven safe dish and place back into the warm oven until chicken is ready to serve.)
- Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
Why does chicken need to rest before slicing? After removing chicken from oven, it continues to cook during the resting period. It is critical that you do not slice chicken during this time to allow it to finish and seal all the juices and moisture in. Normally, for smaller chicken cuts, the resting period would be shorter, but this is a large whole chicken that needs to rest longer. If you are worried about it getting cold on the outer parts, place a loose piece of aluminum foil around chicken during the resting period.
Can I switch up vegetables? Absolutely! If you want to use a different variety of potatoes, like sweet potatoes of fingerling, go right ahead. If you don't like carrots, use broccoli, cauliflower, or squash, however you may want to add those about halfway through because they don't take as long to roast.
