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Roast chicken with root vegetables is one of the most perfect meals I can think of. Its simple, rustic, fairly healthy, and mouthwatering. It might be one of my favorite meals of all time, actually. What I love most about it is that you can interchange ingredients for completely different flavors. As long as you have a good base recipe you can use whatever you want or have to enhance the flavors and make it a complete meal. This recipe for garlic roast chicken is one of those variations, but still perfectly simple.
Eat this roast chicken & vegetables with a few pieces of buttered crusty bread and chocolate chip cookies or brownies with a glass of milk for dessert. I can’t imagine a more perfectly simple, homey meal.
Recipe Rundown
Taste: The pungent garlic flavor is cut by the lemon halves resulting in a subtle yet delicious taste. Roasting really brings out of the flavors in this dish, especially of the vegetables.
Texture: Is there anything better than perfectly crisped skin covering juicy, tender meat? Or caramelized root vegetables that are crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside?
Ease: For me the most difficult part was carving the bird since I don’t have much experience carving any meat. Other than that, I would say that while this recipe isn’t as easy as picking up a whole chicken from the grocery store, it is definitely doable.
Appearance: The bird surrounded by vegetables would look impressive on a platter (unfortunately I don’t have one!).
Expense: This all depends on the cost of the chicken. I would look out for sales and know that the best chicken (organic, cage free, local, etc) is going to cost more.
Pros: I had enough meat leftover after my boyfriend and I ate this for dinner to make sandwiches the next day.
Cons: Dealing with raw chicken, especially gizzards, is never quite fun. Also, the chicken does need to roast for a long time (but its worth it).
Would I make this again? Yes, or at least a variation of it!
*Note: I doubled the amount of vegetables based off the recommendations of Food Network reviews on this recipe. I’m glad I did.
Garlic Roast Chicken
From Ina Garten
- 1 (5 to 6-pound) roasting chicken
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 heads garlic, cut in 1/2 crosswise
- 1 lemon, halved
- 1/2 (1)* large Spanish onion, thickly sliced
- 4 (8)* carrots cut diagonally into 2-inch chunks
- 2 (4)* large Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 6 pieces
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
This is a great recipe, thanks for sharing it! My husband and I absolutely loved it for dinner tonight. 🙂 I really appreciate how you walk us through the steps, great for someone who has never roasted a chicken before!
Mmm – I love roast chicken. I agree that it is a very homey and comforting meal! This sounds absolutely fabulous and yours looks perfect!