Our perfect roast chicken recipe is quite simple, but employs some very clever techniques that ensure moist meat and crisp, beautifully browned skin.
By Amy Traverso|Oct 11 2022|
Coffee By Design | Portland, Maine
Photo Credit : Katherine Keenan
We have been getting so much enthusiastic feedback from our readers about our Marjorie Druker feature on how to make perfect roast chicken that we’ve decided to bring it to you here in a step-by-step format. This roast chicken recipe is quite simple, but employs some very clever techniques that ensure moist meat and crisp, beautifully browned skin.
How to Make the Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe in Photos
Marjorie comes by her chicken wisdom honestly. She’s the owner of Modern Rotisserie in Newton, Massachusetts, as well as the New England Soup Factory, and she got her start developing recipes for Boston Chicken, which later became Boston Market. So follow along as we demonstrate her time-honored method.
How to Make the Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe | Step-by-Step
The genius of Marjorie’s chicken boils down to a few key ingredients and techniques. First, she rubs the bird all over with lemon. “It’s like an antiseptic,” she says. “Plus, it imparts flavor, and the acid breaks down the fiber, which helps make the chicken more tender.” She then brushes the skin all over with butter. “Butter browns the bird,” she says, “and gives it that shiny golden look that we all expect from the perfect roast chicken.” Finally, she coats the chicken in a blend of kosher salt, spices, and sugar (the surprise ingredient). “That little bit of sugar creates this wonderfully rich crust, sort of like those honey hams so many of us love,” she says. The perfect roast chicken recipe spice mix. Photo Credit : Amy TraversoNote: Having taste-tested every kind of chicken, Marjorie says the best chickens for roasting are organic, free-range birds. But any natural chicken, raised without antibiotics, is good. “Most supermarkets now have their own brands of all-natural chickens,” she says.
Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe Ingredients
One whole chicken, preferably organic (see Note), about 5 pounds
1 lemon, halved
3 tablespoons salted butter
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon Hungarian sweet paprika
1 teaspoon granulated onion powder
1/2 to 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
The perfect roast chicken recipe setup. Photo Credit : Amy Traverso
Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe Method
1. Preheat the oven to between 425º and 440º and set a rack to the lower third of the oven.
A hot oven ensures a juicy, crisp-skinned bird. Photo Credit : Amy Traverso
2. Unwrap the chicken, remove the giblets, and set it in a roasting pan. Rub the skin it all over with the halved lemon.
Lemon juice cleans, flavors, and tenderizes the chicken. Photo Credit : Amy Traverso
3. Melt the butter, then use a cooking brush to coat the entire chicken with it.
Butter adds flavor and promotes browning. Photo Credit : Amy Traverso
4. Stir the spice mixture together, then sprinkle all over the bird. If you prefer to truss your chicken or simply tie the legs together, feel free to do so. However, this step isn’t necessary. It does make for a prettier presentation, but leaving the legs untrussed promotes better air circulation, allowing them to cook faster. I trussed the legs here because I knew I’d be photographing them, but normally I don’t.
Ready for the oven. Photo Credit : Amy Traverso
5. Transfer the chicken to the lower rack of your preheated oven. Roast until a meat thermometer reaches 165° when inserted into the meaty part of the leg, 1 hour, 30 minutes to 1 hour, 40 minutes. Your house will smell amazing.
Testing our roast chicken for the right internal temperature. Photo Credit : Amy Traverso
6. This next step is essential if you truly want the perfect roast chicken: Let the meat rest at least 20 minutes before you carve and serve it. “If you cut into it right away, the juices will just come pouring out,” Druker explains. “You want them to settle into the chicken and get comfortable. That’s what will keep it nice and juicy.”
The finished chicken. Photo Credit : Amy Traverso
Ready to follow our perfect roast chicken recipe for yourself? Be sure to let us know how it turns out!
This post was first published in 2015 and has been updated.
Never heard of taking a chicken temperature in the leg. 165 should be for breast meat, while dark meat should be at 180 at the thickest part of the thigh. Curious about this. Recipe looks good, going to try it tonight.
Thanks for your reply. Look at the government’s food safety website, http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/charts/mintemp.html. 165 is the correct temperature for thighs, too. And remember that the temp will go up another 5 to 10 degrees after it comes out of the oven, further ensuring safety. Hope that helps!
Love this recipe the chicken turns golden brown, and yummy. I have made this many times. Thank you Yankee Magazine for printing this Perfect Roasting Chicken recipe.
I tried recipe last night and, like some others, skin was black not golden after 1 hour. Is the high oven temperature for preheating and supposed to be reduced when placing bird in oven???
I made this chicken recipe today. Went precisely by the provided directions. The chicken came out looking blackened and charred. The meat is tasty but the appearance is appalling. I wont do this recipe again.
If the chicken is dressed and placed in the oven immediately after being taken from the refrigerator you will get the exterior burn because the internal temperature is colder longer. You need to let it ambiently acclimate a reasonable time and I stress reasonable due to the presence of salmonella.
This is the only way I roast chicken since this recipe first appeared in Yankee. However, I had some maple sugar on hand at the time and used that for the sugar. It was amazing and now I always use it. Also I only had smoked paprika once and used that. Also amazing. You will never ever have a juicer chicken with perfect skin!
This was delicious! Followed the directions as written . Did not truss, baked at 425 for a little over an hour. The skin was golden crisp with just a few little black spots. Wonderful recipe!
I learned from a Christmas dinner episode of “Two fat Ladies”, that scalding the bird with boiling water before preparing it ensures a tight crispy skin. I tried it and, indeed, it works!
If your chicken leg moves freely, the chicken is done. I personally like roasting mine until the meat starts falling off the bones. I’ll use a mixture of olive oil and lemon juice, along with dried tarragon. I let the bird rest an hour outside the refrigerator before roasting, and if it browns too fast, I’ll set a loose tent of foil over it.
I just want to say that this did begin blackening after 45 minutes, but I covered it loosely with a piece of foil and cooked it for the next 45 minutes. It was delicious and very tender. No one left the skin uneaten!
I commented on 2019 and will again as this is still the best! Remember to take chicken out of fridge for at least one hour before cooking. I still use the maple sugar and smoked paprika in my rub and tent lightly for the 1st hour to prevent over browning. Then remove tent and let that skin carmelize and crisp. Absolutely let stand for 20 min. It will still be hot and so juicy! You will never cook a chicken any other way ever again!
I copied and eliminated all the pictures. You can cut and paste from here. 🙂
Note: Having taste-tested every kind of chicken, Marjorie says the best chickens for roasting are organic, free-range birds. But any natural chicken, raised without antibiotics, is good. “Most supermarkets now have their own brands of all-natural chickens,” she says.
Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe Ingredients
• One whole chicken, preferably organic (see Note), about 5 pounds
• 1 lemon, halved
• 3 tablespoons salted butter
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon Hungarian sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon granulated onion powder
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
The perfect roast chicken recipe setup.
Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe Method
1. Preheat the oven to between 425º and 440º and set a rack to the lower third of the oven.
A hot oven ensures a juicy, crisp-skinned bird.
2. Unwrap the chicken, remove the giblets, and set it in a roasting pan. Rub the skin it all over with the halved lemon.
Lemon juice cleans (seriously??), flavors, and tenderizes the chicken.
3. Melt the butter, then use a cooking brush to coat the entire chicken with it.
Butter adds flavor and promotes browning.
4. Stir the spice mixture together, then sprinkle all over the bird. If you prefer to truss your chicken or simply tie the legs together, feel free to do so. However, this step isn’t necessary. It does make for a prettier presentation, but leaving the legs untrussed promotes better air circulation, allowing them to cook faster. I trussed the legs here because I knew I’d be photographing them, but normally I don’t.
5. Transfer the chicken to the lower rack of your preheated oven. Roast until a meat thermometer reaches 165° when inserted into the meaty part of the leg, 1 hour, 30 minutes to 1 hour, 40 minutes. Your house will smell amazing.
6. This next step is essential if you truly want the perfect roast chicken: Let the meat rest at least 20 minutes before you carve and serve it. “If you cut into it right away, the juices will just come pouring out,” Druker explains. “You want them to settle into the chicken and get comfortable. That’s what will keep it nice and juicy.”
425° alone will not blacken and burn the chicken skin in an hour. But if your oven has a coil on the top that comes on during baking, the direct heat from the coil will indeed blacken the skin. Most electric ovens have that coil on top. Gas ovens do not. Convection ovens usually have a roast setting and a bake setting, one of which keeps the top coil off. Check your oven instructions. If there is no way to keep the top coil off, cover the bird loosely with foil once the skin is brown.
I used to stuff my birds but eventually I didn’t think it was that necessary or sanitary. Then came the time for putting it in a casserole and baking until heated through and brown on top. No one complained and it was actually very good. I would put and onion, salt and pepper in the bird to give it that little extra. Hope this helps!
While I enjoy reading the Comments, might NETF add a warning to all baked product recipes that one’s gas or electric stoves need to be calibrated? It would go a long way to warn the home cooks to have their appliances checked annually since some oven will run hot, aka burned food comments or take longer than indicated (cold oven,) thus needing an adjustment. It used to be that both services offered free checks. If not, then invest in a quality oven thermometer. I read the hanging ones are better physically and more accurate.
Never heard of taking a chicken temperature in the leg. 165 should be for breast meat, while dark meat should be at 180 at the thickest part of the thigh. Curious about this. Recipe looks good, going to try it tonight.
Hi John-
Thanks for your reply. Look at the government’s food safety website, http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/charts/mintemp.html. 165 is the correct temperature for thighs, too. And remember that the temp will go up another 5 to 10 degrees after it comes out of the oven, further ensuring safety. Hope that helps!
I was wondering if the chicken can be rub with olive oil instead of butter..
If I can use the olive oil would I still rub with lemon
I tried this and followed the directions exactly.Excellent results….Juicy and cooked perfectly.
Love this recipe the chicken turns golden brown, and yummy. I have made this many times. Thank you Yankee Magazine for printing this Perfect Roasting Chicken recipe.
Cooked at 435 degrees for one hour. Skin was burned terribly, but meat was tender and juicy. Not going into my recipe folder.
I tried recipe last night and, like some others, skin was black not golden after 1 hour. Is the high oven temperature for preheating and supposed to be reduced when placing bird in oven???
I made this chicken recipe today. Went precisely by the provided directions. The chicken came out looking blackened and charred. The meat is tasty but the appearance is appalling. I wont do this recipe again.
Let your chicken sit on the counter in the baking pan/rack for a few hours. Cold will make it burn
Poultry should not be left on the counter for a few hours
If the chicken is dressed and placed in the oven immediately after being taken from the refrigerator you will get the exterior burn because the internal temperature is colder longer. You need to let it ambiently acclimate a reasonable time and I stress reasonable due to the presence of salmonella.
This is the only way I roast chicken since this recipe first appeared in Yankee. However, I had some maple sugar on hand at the time and used that for the sugar. It was amazing and now I always use it. Also I only had smoked paprika once and used that. Also amazing. You will never ever have a juicer chicken with perfect skin!
I want to try this recipe, but the track-record of comments is not exactly what I expected. Is there any response from the authorities?
This was delicious! Followed the directions as written . Did not truss, baked at 425 for a little over an hour. The skin was golden crisp with just a few little black spots. Wonderful recipe!
Wow yummy all the way just keep an eye on it thanks ????
I learned from a Christmas dinner episode of “Two fat Ladies”, that scalding the bird with boiling water before preparing it ensures a tight crispy skin. I tried it and, indeed, it works!
If your chicken leg moves freely, the chicken is done. I personally like roasting mine until the meat starts falling off the bones. I’ll use a mixture of olive oil and lemon juice, along with dried tarragon. I let the bird rest an hour outside the refrigerator before roasting, and if it browns too fast, I’ll set a loose tent of foil over it.
I just want to say that this did begin blackening after 45 minutes, but I covered it loosely with a piece of foil and cooked it for the next 45 minutes. It was delicious and very tender. No one left the skin uneaten!
I commented on 2019 and will again as this is still the best! Remember to take chicken out of fridge for at least one hour before cooking. I still use the maple sugar and smoked paprika in my rub and tent lightly for the 1st hour to prevent over browning. Then remove tent and let that skin carmelize and crisp. Absolutely let stand for 20 min. It will still be hot and so juicy! You will never cook a chicken any other way ever again!
Sounds delicious!! Thank you!
Is there a way to print out just the recipe? I really don’t need a photo of rubbing lemon on the chicken or how to turn on the oven. Thanks
I copied and eliminated all the pictures. You can cut and paste from here. 🙂
Note: Having taste-tested every kind of chicken, Marjorie says the best chickens for roasting are organic, free-range birds. But any natural chicken, raised without antibiotics, is good. “Most supermarkets now have their own brands of all-natural chickens,” she says.
Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe Ingredients
• One whole chicken, preferably organic (see Note), about 5 pounds
• 1 lemon, halved
• 3 tablespoons salted butter
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon Hungarian sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon granulated onion powder
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
The perfect roast chicken recipe setup.
Perfect Roast Chicken Recipe Method
1. Preheat the oven to between 425º and 440º and set a rack to the lower third of the oven.
A hot oven ensures a juicy, crisp-skinned bird.
2. Unwrap the chicken, remove the giblets, and set it in a roasting pan. Rub the skin it all over with the halved lemon.
Lemon juice cleans (seriously??), flavors, and tenderizes the chicken.
3. Melt the butter, then use a cooking brush to coat the entire chicken with it.
Butter adds flavor and promotes browning.
4. Stir the spice mixture together, then sprinkle all over the bird. If you prefer to truss your chicken or simply tie the legs together, feel free to do so. However, this step isn’t necessary. It does make for a prettier presentation, but leaving the legs untrussed promotes better air circulation, allowing them to cook faster. I trussed the legs here because I knew I’d be photographing them, but normally I don’t.
5. Transfer the chicken to the lower rack of your preheated oven. Roast until a meat thermometer reaches 165° when inserted into the meaty part of the leg, 1 hour, 30 minutes to 1 hour, 40 minutes. Your house will smell amazing.
6. This next step is essential if you truly want the perfect roast chicken: Let the meat rest at least 20 minutes before you carve and serve it. “If you cut into it right away, the juices will just come pouring out,” Druker explains. “You want them to settle into the chicken and get comfortable. That’s what will keep it nice and juicy.”
425° alone will not blacken and burn the chicken skin in an hour. But if your oven has a coil on the top that comes on during baking, the direct heat from the coil will indeed blacken the skin. Most electric ovens have that coil on top. Gas ovens do not. Convection ovens usually have a roast setting and a bake setting, one of which keeps the top coil off. Check your oven instructions. If there is no way to keep the top coil off, cover the bird loosely with foil once the skin is brown.
Could this skin preparation be used on a turkey but adjust the cooking time?
Any guidelines for using this recipe but stuffing the bird? My family loves the stuffing!
I used to stuff my birds but eventually I didn’t think it was that necessary or sanitary. Then came the time for putting it in a casserole and baking until heated through and brown on top. No one complained and it was actually very good. I would put and onion, salt and pepper in the bird to give it that little extra. Hope this helps!
While I enjoy reading the Comments, might NETF add a warning to all baked product recipes that one’s gas or electric stoves need to be calibrated? It would go a long way to warn the home cooks to have their appliances checked annually since some oven will run hot, aka burned food comments or take longer than indicated (cold oven,) thus needing an adjustment. It used to be that both services offered free checks. If not, then invest in a quality oven thermometer. I read the hanging ones are better physically and more accurate.