Slow Roasted Whole Chicken

Indulge in the comforting flavors of this slow roasted whole chicken recipe. Tender meat with garlic, thyme, and fennel.

Jump to:

• Why You Will Love This Slow Roasted Whole Chicken Recipe
• Cooking Time
• Slow Roasted Whole Chicken Ingredients
• Ingredient Notes
• How To Make Slow Roasted Whole Chicken
• Tips For The Best Slow-Roasted Whole Chicken
• What To Serve With Slow Roasted Whole Chicken
• Storage
• FAQ
• More Chicken Recipes You'll Love
• Recipe
• Reviews

Why You Will Love This Slow Roasted Whole Chicken Recipe

A classic roast chicken is a healthy comfort meal you can make any time of the year. The slow-cooked method is not only easy but produces fall-off-the-bone tender meat with golden skin, without the need to baste or rotate in the oven. Here are more reasons why you will love this slow-roasted whole chicken recipe.

• Incredible flavor with tender meat: Slow roasting produces an incredibly tender juicy chicken, packed with so much flavor. The last-minute broil helps brown the top of the chicken and creates the crispiest skin.
• Simple ingredients:  A simple healthy recipe packed with so much flavor, perfect for weeknight family meals or special occasions.
• No basting! The chicken is cooked undisturbed, and no basting or covering is required. Cooking with high heat can sometimes dry out the chicken breasts quickly, but slow roasting produces an even bake, with less moisture evaporating, creating an ultra-moist bird. It's one of the easiest methods to make a perfectly roasted chicken.

Cooking Time

Roasting a chicken at a low temperature produces an amazing outcome! The chicken comes out tender and evenly cooked, but keep in mind that the cooking times vary depending on how hot your oven runs.

I've made this recipe several times and because our oven runs hot, it only takes 1 hour and 45 minutes for the chicken to cook to temperature, but it can take up to 3 hours depending on your oven. Therefore, I recommend checking the internal temperature of the chicken with an instant-read thermometer after 90 minutes of cooking to estimate how much longer it needs.

Slow Roasted Whole Chicken Ingredients

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this amazing slow roasted chicken recipe.

Ingredient Notes

• Whole Chicken: Look for a high-quality chicken, organic and around 4-5 pounds in weight. If it’s smaller or larger, you’ll need to adjust the cooking time.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Helps to brown and crisp the skin while maintaining the chicken's moisture.
• Fresh Thyme: Fresh herbs add so much flavor. You'll use the fresh thyme in both the rub mixture and inside the cavity. Another great option would be fresh rosemary. If using dried herbs, remember for every tablespoon of fresh herbs, use only a teaspoon of dried herbs.
• Garlic: Slice the head of garlic in half and run 3 cloves through a garlic press for the rub mixture. Stuff the remaining bulb inside the cavity, don't worry about peeling.
• Ground Fennel: Mild, sweet flavor with notes of licorice.
• Red Pepper Flakes: Just a pinch of spice to help balance the sweetness.
• Salt + Black Pepper: There's plenty of salt and pepper to help enhance all of the flavors.
• Lemon: A few sliced lemon wedges inside the cavity add a ton of flavor to the chicken and pan juices, which can be used for gravy. 

How To Make Slow Roasted Whole Chicken

Prepare The Whole Chicken

1. Bring the chicken to room temperature. One hour before cooking, remove the chicken from the refrigerator. Discard the neck and giblets inside the cavity, and pat the chicken dry with paper towels. You want the chicken to be as dry as possible. Place the chicken on a large plate to rest at room temperature.
2. Create the rub mixture. Preheat the oven to 300ºF. Cut the garlic bulb in half crosswise. Squeeze out 3 garlic cloves and run them through a garlic press. Place the pressed garlic into a small bowl. Add the olive oil, minced thyme, ground fennel, red pepper flakes, 1 ½ teaspoons of salt, and black pepper. Stir the rub mixture together with a spoon and set the bowl aside.
3. Evenly coat the chicken and stuff the cavity. Place chicken in a cast iron skillet or roasting pan, chicken breast side up. Salt and pepper the inside of the cavity. Grab the rub mixture. Evenly coat the chicken spooning the mixture on both the back and front of the chicken, inside the cavity, and under the skin of the breasts. Make sure to really get under the skin to coat the breasts for maximum flavor.
4. Stuff the cavity and truss the legs. Slice the lemon in half and stuff one-half of the lemon inside the cavity along with the remaining garlic bulb (peel included), and several sprigs of thyme. Pull the wing tips back and truss the legs with kitchen twine.

Slow Roast The Whole Chicken

5. Slow roast the chicken. Place the chicken in the oven, on the middle rack, and roast for a total of 1 hour and 45 minutes or up to 3 hours. After 90 minutes, check the internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer placed in the thickest part of the thigh. It should read 165°F and the juices should run clear. *Optional* Once the chicken reaches 165°F, broil for 2-3 minutes to ensure extra crispy deep golden brown skin. Watch carefully to avoid the chicken from burning.
6. Let the chicken rest. Remove from the oven and allow the chicken to rest in the skillet for 15-20 minutes. On a large cutting board, carefully carve the chicken and then transfer it to a serving platter.

Tips For The Best Slow-Roasted Whole Chicken

1. Bring the chicken to room temperature. This will help the chicken to cook more quickly and evenly.
2. Pat the chicken dry. Removing excess moisture from the chicken will crisp up the skin.
3. Rub the mixture under the skin. Make sure to get under the skin to coat the breasts for maximum flavor.
4. Use a meat thermometer. Every oven is different and it may take a longer or shorter time to cook your chicken fully. To ensure cooking safety I recommend inserting a meat thermometer into the chicken, similar to a turkey, for reliability.
5. Broil at the end. Slow roasting a chicken produces less crispy skin than cooking at a higher heat, but a quick broil at the end gives a last-minute crisp and golden brown color.
6. Rest before carving. The chicken will continue to cook internally for several minutes after it is removed from the oven. The resting period will allow the cooking process to complete, and to seal in the savory chicken juices. 

What To Serve With Slow Roasted Whole Chicken

Here are some of our favorite side dishes to pair with this slow-roasted whole chicken recipe.

• Mashed White Sweet Potatoes with Brown Butter
• Rainbow Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary
• Honey Roasted Rainbow Carrots
• Gluten-Free Corn Casserole
• Parmesan Roasted Acorn Squash Recipe With Sage Brown Butter.

Storage

To store: You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

FAQ

More Chicken Recipes You'll Love

I hope you love this slow-roasted whole chicken recipe as much as I do! If you make it, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below. Your review will help other readers in the community.

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