Roasted Lemon Butter Chicken

2.5+ HOURS/A LITTLE MESSY BUT EASY/SERVES 4

nutrition per serving:

530 calories, 35g protein, 3g carbs, 12g fat

ingredients

• 1 whole chicken
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 2 lemons
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium onion, cut into quarters
• salt & pepper to taste
• thyme or rosemary leaves optional

directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Zest the yellow rind of 1 lemon.
3. Cut the lemon in half and juice the entire lemon into a small bowl.
4. Add the olive oil, rind, butter, garlic, salt and pepper.
5. Stir well, making a thick paste.
6. Gently lift the skin from the chicken breasts and place 1 tablespoon of the butter paste under the skin.
7. Spread the paste evenly onto the chicken breasts.
8. Cover the skin of the chicken with the remaining butter paste.
9. Sprinkle salt and pepper all over the chicken.
10. Slice the 2nd lemon and the onion and place it inside the chicken.
11. Tie the legs together with cooking twine.
12. Insert meat thermometer into thigh of chicken.
13. Place the chicken in a shallow pan breast side up and place in oven.
14. Turn oven down to 375 degreesF and bake for at least 1.5 hours or until the inner thigh reaches 165 degreesF.
15. Remove from oven when the chicken reaches 165 degreesF and let it rest for 15 minutes before carving.

notes

Use a meat thermometer to roast the chicken to the correct temperature. Chickens come in various sizes, so it’ll be difficult to just guess if your chicken is completely cooked thru. I use this AWESOME meat probe, called MEATER. It’s cordless and works over Bluetooth so you can tend to your cooking on your phone! I used it for my meatloaf recipe, which I mention here.

Whichever probe you use, just USE one! Bluetooth, instant read, your choice.🙂

You can add more herbs to your dish, depending on what you like. Some people like to add thyme or rosemary to the dish while roasting, but it’s up to you. Whatever you add, keep the herbs on their stems so you can easily remove them after roasting.

Serve your chicken with mashed potatoes (garlic parm mash is my favorite) or delicious baked potatoes. Your choice of vegetables or a nice salad will round out this tasty meal. And a nice loaf of bread! And if you are a lemon fan, you MUST try this recipe. It’s pretty easy! One of these days I’ll add some videos of me cooking these recipes and I’ll SHOW you how easy it is. THAT’ll be a hoot!