The whole family will love this easy chicken dinner! The zesty, tart and peppery lemon flavor of this Roasted Lemon Pepper Chicken, paired with the tender, juicy meat, makes this easy recipe an absolute hit. If you’ve always wanted to learn how to cook a whole chicken perfectly, this is the recipe for you!
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Simple ingredients are all that is needed to make this easy chicken dinner perfect for a weeknight dinner and a Sunday supper. Forget about spending hours prepping for this simple roast chicken – there’s no need! The only thing you need to worry about is what side dishes you will make.
I’m all for serving Ranch Pasta Salad with Bacon or this Caesar Salad with Bacon. And for a heartier side, I like these BBQ Green Beans, but the hubby always asks for these Sweet Potatoes with Apples and Cranberries, or these Slow Cooker Roast Potatoes.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- This easy roast chicken recipe makes the perfect juicy chicken.
- You can make homemade chicken stock with the chicken bones. If you haven’t made stock before, it is so easy, and you will be rewarded with an amazing ingredient to make soups and stews or add to rice and noodles.
- Roasting a whole chicken means that there will be plenty of leftovers. Here is how to roast a half chicken for a small portion.
- This recipe can make lemon pepper wings, chicken thighs, and more!
- If you’re not a fan of doing dishes like me, good news – you can cook this lemon pepper chicken all in one skillet.
Ingredients You Will Need
- Whole chicken: For extra flavor, you can use a fresh, never frozen, chicken. I think that this gives the best results.
- Lemon: There’s just something delicious about fresh lemon juice and ripe lemon slices.
- Unsalted butter: This helps to keep the seasonings on to make that undeniable lemon chicken flavor.
- Garlic minced: This adds the best flavor!
- Lemon pepper: You can use your own homemade lemon pepper seasoning or one from the grocery store.
- kosher salt: For flavor.
- Fresh thyme chopped: For taste.
How To Make Roasted Lemon Chicken: Step-By-Step
I absolutely love a good ol’ roasted chicken! There’s just something so comforting and cozy about cooking up a whole chicken. And when it’s done right, you get the juiciest and most flavorful meat ever.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Add oil to a cast iron skillet. (avocado oil, coconut oil, olive oil, peanut oil, etc.)
- Remove and discard anything in the chicken cavity. Drain the liquid and use clean paper towels to soak up extra liquid.
- Place the prepared chicken into the skillet.
- Mix the lemon juice, lemon zest, minced garlic, and melted butter in a bowl.
- Brush half of the mixture over the top of the bird.
- Season the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon of the lemon pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Sprinkle with one teaspoon of the thyme.
- Roast the prepared chicken for 25 minutes. Take it out of the oven, brush it with the rest of the butter mixture, and then add 1/2 teaspoon of the lemon pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt.
- Bake the chicken for 25-35 minutes or until the internal temperature of the cooked chicken is 165 degrees.
- Remove from the oven and garnish with whatever is left of the thyme.
- Rest the chicken for 10 minutes before serving. Spoon some extra juices over the top of the chicken to add juiciness.
Storage
Leftovers of this roasted chicken recipe can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. You can then use it to make a chicken salad or reheat and enjoy it just like it is now!
Be sure to reheat the chicken thoroughly before eating. For the best results, eat leftovers within 3-4 days.
- To avoid overcooking, using an instant-read thermometer is your best bet. Insert the tip of the thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken, away from the bone. Make sure that the reading is at least 165 degrees.
- To make clean cuts into the chicken, use a sharp knife. Once you cut it, you can then place chicken on a serving platter or dinner plate.
- If you want to make this simple recipe in a roasting pan, you can. Just be sure to use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature.
- You can turn the last few minutes of baking in the oven to a higher temperature to get a bit of crispy skin on the outside of the bird.
Seasoning Variations
You can use many other seasonings to flavor chicken. I like to experiment with the spices I have in my cabinet. Try these for a change.
- Chili powder and lime
- Basil, rosemary and lemon
- Coriander and cumin
- Garlic powder and paprika
Recipe FAQ’s
There’s a reason that people add lemon juice to chicken recipes, and that is because it can help tenderize the meat. Fresh lemon slices might look pretty, but they serve a function as well.
Equipment needed
Leftover Chicken Recipes
Most of the time, I have leftover chicken, which is great because it allows me to prepare more recipes. Give these a try with your leftover chicken for another meal.
- This Easy BBQ Chicken Flatbread Pizza takes 1 1/2 cups of chopped chicken.
- If you love a good casserole, bake this Cheesy Chicken And Rice Bake, you could even use leftover turkey.
- This Chicken and Corn Noodle Soup is deliciously hearty and totally comforting.
- Use leftover chicken to make this Chicken Cobbler Casserole for supper.
More To Make And Eat
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Whole Roasted Lemon Pepper Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- 5 pound whole chicken
- 1 lemon
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1½ teaspoons garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoon fresh thyme chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425℉ degrees F. Lightly grease a large cast iron skillet and set aside.
- Remove and discard the bag of innards from the chicken cavity. Drain any liquid from the chicken and use paper towels to soak up excess moisture on the skin.
- Place the chicken in the prepared cast iron skillet.
- In a small bowl, add lemon zest, lemon juice, melted butter and minced garlic. Stir to combine. Brush half of the mixture over all exposed areas of the chicken.
- Season the chicken with ½ teaspoon each of lemon pepper seasoning and salt. Then sprinkle with one teaspoon of freshly chopped thyme.
- Place the chicken in the oven to roast for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and brush on the remaining lemon butter mixture. Add ½ teaspoon of lemon pepper seasoning and salt to the chicken.
- Place the chicken back in the oven to bake for 25-35 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 165℉.
- Garnish with the remaining teaspoon of freshly chopped thyme.
- Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before carving. Spoon excess juices over chicken and serve warm with your favorite sides.
Notes
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Notes:
- Bake time may vary depending on the size of the chicken used. Plan on 15 minutes per pound of chicken at the temperature listed.
- The drippings add a lot of additional flavor – don’t discard! To use, strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer. Discard the solids and drizzle onto chicken, mashed potatoes, or make gravy.
- Any large oven-safe skillet or roasting pan may be used in place of a cast iron skillet.
- If the top of the chicken starts to brown too much, simply add a loose foil tent over the chicken and place it back in the oven until it is completely cooked through.
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Nutrition
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Hello there, I’m Jere’
From learning to cook on a farm in Indiana to culinary school in California, my passion for food is never-ending. Turning on my oven to bake something for friends and family is my happy place, and I am glad to be here at One Hot Oven sharing sweet and savory family-friendly recipes for your cooking and baking inspiration.
The recipe sounds wonderful …I am going to print it out and try it.