Mom's was always perfect in appearance, beautifully browned with flavors that were fabulous in every juicy bite of chicken and after all these years, I finally aced her technique of roasting the perfect Italian-flavored chicken.
These instructions will teach you to clean a whole chicken, what herbs and spices are the best (for an Italian-style flavor of course!), and carving tips.
The bird is perfectly cooked when its internal temperature reaches 165 degrees, so we urge you to invest in that little tool, it's quite handy.
I always remembered mom tenting the bird first to release the inner juices and then roasting it to a moist juicy fork tender chicken that everyone raved about.
After making our version, you'll be an expert on roasting the best whole chicken you ever had and did I mention leftover roasted chicken is awesome in so many recipes?!
Cleaning the Chicken for the first time Story!
Somewhere along the way,I didn't notice when mom cleaned the chicken, that there was a bag of giblets, gizzards, and other items that needed to be removed before cooking, I was around 18 then when I first married.
What a big surprise when carving it up, to see this bag of yuckiness inside my beautiful chicken when I served it, embarrassed was beyond words.
I am here to tell all new cooks, don't attempt to cook the chicken in a frozen state, there is a bag inside to remove.
The bags can also be used to make great soup, the neck and inner parts make a very rich chicken soup!
So to end my terrible cooking story, remove that inside bag guys and gals, remove the bag!!! don't forget about that, cut off the ends (which is the flap of its butt!) and either toss it or set it aside for soup!
Cooking and Carving a Whole Chicken:
- Always preheat the oven to very high heat and lower to cook the chicken for around 1 hour and 20 minutes
- If you’re doing roast potatoes and veggies, I place them into the oven for the last 45 minutes of cooking
- Baste the chicken halfway through cooking and add more water if it evaporated
- When cooked, let the chicken rest for at least 15 minutes and place it on a board
- Carving the Chicken:
- To carve your chicken
- Take off the wings
- Carefully cut down between the leg and the breast
- Cut through the joint and pull the leg off Repeat on the other side, then cut each leg between the thigh and the drumstick so you end up with four portions of dark meat
- Place these on a serving platter
- You should now have a clear space to carve the rest of your chicken
- Angle the knife along the breastbone and carve one side off, then the other
- When Cooking the Bird:
- Preheat oven to 500 degrees first
- Use an instant-read thermometer and a roasting meats
- For easier cleanup, line the pan with parchment paper it won't stick!
- Tent it for 30 minutes with foil to release the juices and fat from the bird
- Gravy is wonderful with the juice so save it for another time
Herbs to Use When Cooking Chicken or other Meats:
- Sage: Found in Yugoslavia, Italy, Greece, and Spain. A shrub in the mint family, a slightly bitter taste. Good with pork, sausages, poultry, and hamburgers. Available leaf, powdered, and in rubbed form.
- Fennel: Found in India, France, and Argentina. In the parsley family but tastes like licorice with tiny yellowish-brown seeds. Taste good in soups, fish, sauces, sweet pickles, bread, and rolls. Available whole or ground.
- Tarragon: Found in France, U.S. A flower top plant that has a pungent flavor resembling licorice. Good with fish sauces, eggs, cheese dishes, green salads, pickles, vinegar, chicken, tomatoes, and sauces for meats and vegetables. Available whole or ground.
- Thyme: Found in France and Spain. It is a member of the mint family. Good in soups, chowders, stuffings, beef, lamb, veal, pork dishes, oysters, eggs, cheese, bean and vegetable soups, and fish. Available whole or powdered.
- Parsley: Found in U.S. and Europe. Tiny green leaves grow in clusters on the low plant, a mildly tangy flavor. Good with meat, vegetables, sauces, soups, eggs, and cheese. Available whole, ground, flakes.
- Dill: Found in India and U.S. Parsley family with a delicate caraway flavor. Taste good with fish, cream, cottage cheese, fish, vegetables, pickles, tomatoes, and potatoes. Available whole and ground
- Basil: Found in India, Western Europe, and the U.S. Member of the mint family, sweet flavored like licorice taste. Taste good with tomatoes, peas, squash lamb, fish, eggs, salads, cheese, duck, and potatoes, Available whole and ground.
- Bay Leaf: Found in Turkey Yugoslavia, Portugal, and Greece. Green from the leaf of the laurel tree, has a pungent flavor. Good with vegetable and fish soups, tomato sauces, tomato juice, poached fish, and meat stews. Available in whole-leaf form.
- Chervil: Found in France and the U.S. Member of the parsley family. Mild flavor. Good with cheese dishes, chicken, peas, spinach, green salads, and cream soups. Available whole, ground.
- Oregano: Found in Mexico, Italy, Chile, France, U.S. Member of the mint family. Slightly bitter taste.Good with tomato sauces, pizza, chicken, pork, beef, veal, vegetables, fish salads, and chili. Available whole and ground.
- Mint: Found in all parts of the world, this can grow anywhere and also spread. It is a dried leaf of peppermint or spearmint plant with a strong sweet odor and a tangy cool taste. Taste good in jellies, juices, candies, frosting, cakes, pies, lamb, ice cream, potatoes, peas, and chocolate desserts. Available, whole, dried, sprigs, and flaked.
- Rosemary: Found in France, Spain, and Portugal. It is the leaf of an evergreen shrub. Curved pine needles with a piney taste. Taste good with poultry stuffing, veal and lamb roasts, potatoes, cauliflower, fish, and duck. Available whole and ground.
- Marjoram: Found in France, Germany, and Chile. A member of the mint family. Good with chowders, vegetables, soups, eggs, cheese dishes, stews, roast chicken, beef, lamb, and pork stuffings. Available whole and ground.
Cooking a Whole Chicken From Scratch
Through trial and error, I learned a great deal on how to cook the perfect chicken bursting with fantastic flavors throughout even slice.
Cooking a whole chicken is super easy to do with our easy methods, give it a try, whole chicken is great in sandwiches leftovers, chili, stews, and much more.
You may want to check out our Chicken Waldorf Salad with Rotisserie Chicken there are many recipe ideas for using leftover roasted chicken!
How To Roast a Perfect Italian Whole Chicken
Yield: 12
Prep time: 25 MinCook time: 1 H & 30 MTotal time: 1 H & 55 M
This is a step-by-step how-to roast whole chicken Italian style from start to finish with easy instructions.
Ingredients
- 1 - (3 1/2 to 4 pound) chicken removes inside package cut the bottom of the overlapping skin off, rinse and pat dry, remove all the inside and rinse in cold water till everything inside is cleaned out. ( save the necks and gizzards to make soup later if you wish!)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
- 2 teaspoons black pepper(you can also use white pepper and a dash of cayenne if you like it with heat )
- 1 lemon, halved and seeded (oranges are a nice change also)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon dried or fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary chopped
- 1 teaspoon thyme (ground) or fresh
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup chicken stock (or use bouillon mixed with water)
- 1 cup dry white wine or dry Marsala
- Note: use all fresh herbs when in the season if possible
- Optional: Stuff the cavity with onions, carrots, and celery for even more flavor
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 500 degrees
- Clean the chicken, rinse and pat dry.
- Preheat the oven to 500 degrees and oil spray the pan you're using.
- Note: Use a large roasting pan (big enough to fit the chicken).
- Season the chicken both inside and out with salt and black pepper evenly.
- Squeeze the lemon halves over the chicken and place the rinds inside the cavity.
- Place the garlic inside the chicken and any vegetables you decide to stuff it with.
- Drizzle the top with olive oil
- In a small bowl add all the herbs and the rest of the spices and stir together.
- Sprinkle the chicken inside and out with the herb and spice mixture.
- Lower the temperature to 400 degrees.
- Pour the wine into the pan with chicken stock.
- Place an aluminum foil tent over the chicken for 30 minutes then remove it.
- The rule of thumb is to roast the bird for 20 minutes per pound,
- Roast the chicken until the thickest part is 165 degrees using an instant-read thermometer.
- Tip: wiggle the leg if it tears easily the chicken is done cooking.
- Cool for 10 minutes before carving.
- Gravy Option:
- This makes excellent gravy.
- Just remove around 2 cups of juice from the pan.
- Whisk in 3 tablespoons of cornstarch.
- Bring to a boil
- If it gets too thick or it's too thin add some water to make thinner or more cornstarch for a thicker gravy.
- Salt, and pepper to taste.
Notes
Tips for Carving the Cooking Whole Chicken:
- Always preheat the oven to very high heat and lower to cook the chicken for around 1 hour and 20 minutes
- If you’re doing roast potatoes and veggies, I place them into the oven for the last 45 minutes of cooking
- Baste the chicken halfway through cooking and add more water if it evaporated
- When cooked, let the chicken rest for at least 15 minutes and place it on a board
- Carving the Chicken:
- To carve your chicken
- Take off the wings
- Carefully cut down between the leg and the breast
- Cut through the joint and pull the leg off Repeat on the other side, then cut each leg between the thigh and the drumstick so you end up with four portions of dark meat
- Place these on a serving platter
- You should now have a clear space to carve the rest of your chicken
- Angle the knife along the breastbone and carve one side off, then the other
- When Cooking the Bird:
- Preheat oven to 500 degrees first
- Use an instant-read thermometer and a roasting meats
- For easier cleanup, line the pan with parchment paper it won't stick!
- Tent it for 30 minutes with foil to release the juices and fat from the bird
- Gravy is wonderful with the juice so save it for another time
Serving Suggestions and Side Dishes: