Rosemary Roasted Chicken (Overnight Citrus Marinade) with Roasted Potatoes
This rosemary roasted chicken recipe is absolutely one of the easiest ways to prepare the tastiest chicken and potatoes with a minimal of fuss!
Today, the UK continues to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee with a bank holiday. I celebrated with a rosemary roasted chicken!
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Roast dinners are part of the British culture and something they do really well. I love roasts, partly because they are so easy, yet delicious, so I’m sharing my favorite roast chicken recipe, however, it isn’t very British, I’m afraid, with lots of rosemary and citrus.
I hope you can see on the pictures how wonderfully juicy this chicken is, because if there’s one thing I cannot stand, is overcooked, dry chicken. It’s so moist and delicious, gravy is truly unnecessary. Rosemary roasted chicken is perfect for a meal that you want to prepare ahead of time which you can just throw in the oven afterwards.
Toss in some partially cooked potatoes in the roasting pan, and a green vegetable as a side, and you have a meal fit for a Queen! (sorry, couldn’t resist!)
Another way to roast potatoes.
Note: start this the day/evening before you want to serve it.
It’s so easy to prep, but if you only want to a few pieces of chicken for two, check out my similar air fryer chicken thighs recipe, or my oven roasted chicken drumsticks recipe.
And now for the main event: rosemary roasted chicken!
Rosemary Roasted Chicken
original recipe by Christina Conte serves 6 people with a 5 lb chicken
FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW
- one roasting chicken, preferably organic (size doesn’t matter, use the size you need)
- 2 or 3 tangerines
- 1 or 2 oranges
- 2 or 3 lemons
- 1 lime
- 1/2 grapefruit
- sprig of fresh rosemary
- 5 or 6 cloves or garlic
- about 3/4 cup (6 oz) white wine
- 2 tsp salt
- black pepper
Note: citrus can be any combination you prefer; for example add more lemon and skip the grapefruit.
Prepare the Chicken to Marinate
Wash the chicken, removing giblets, and any feathers, fat etc. Place in a large glass bowl and squeeze all the citrus juices on to the chicken.
Add the wine.
Pull the rosemary off the stem and scatter in and on the chicken, then sprinkle the salt inside and outside, also.
Slice the garlic and place it on top and inside the chicken, along with some freshly ground black pepper. This ensures the rosemary roasted chicken is flavored inside and out.
Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate overnight, at least 12 hours. I turn the chicken over once during this time.
When you’re ready to cook the birdie, place it in a roasting pan. I trussed (cut a hole in each side of the skin opposite each leg, and pulled the legs through, but it usually opens up while cooking; use string if you want to be sure to keep it tied up properly) the chicken, but it’s not necessary. (Do not add the marinade liquid to the pan.)
Roast the Marinated Chicken
Preheat the oven to 375º F (191ºC)
Prepare the Potatoes
Once the chicken is in the oven. Boil some potatoes in salted water until just partially cooked, drain the water and, with the lid on, shake the pot to “rough up” the potatoes. Add them to the roasting pan, next to the chicken. Taste a little of the potato to see if it needs additional salt, and if so, sprinkle some on.
Continue to roast until the chicken is done (about 2o minutes per lb.).
During the last few minutes of roasting, you can increase the oven temperature a little if you want more browning or crispiness. A thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the bird, between the breast, thigh and leg should read 165ºF or 74ºC when the chicken is ready. By now, it should be golden brown.
Let the chicken cool for about 10 minutes, covered loosely with a tent of aluminum foil, before slicing, to allow the juices to reabsorb into the meat.
Serve the Rosemary roasted Chicken
Juicy, juicy, juicy! I hope you try this rosemary roasted chicken recipe and enjoy it as much as my family and I do! Let me know if you try it in the comments below.
More chicken recipes here.
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I have to share this gorgeous citrus salad recipe with you from my pal, Cynthia, from What a Girl Eats.
Rosemary Roasted Chicken (Overnight Citrus Marinade) with Roasted Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1 roasting chicken preferably organic
- 2 tangerines or 3
- 1 oranges or 2
- 2 lemons medium
- ½ grapefruit
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 6 cloves garlic fresh, not in a jar
- ¾ cup white wine dry
- 2 tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp black pepper freshly ground
- 6 medium potatoes organic, if possible
Instructions
- Wash the chicken, removing giblets, and any feathers, fat etc. Place in a large glass bowl and squeeze all the citrus juices on to the chicken. Add the wine.
- Pull the rosemary off the stem and scatter in and on the chicken, then sprinkle the salt inside and outside, also.
- Slice the garlic and place it on top and inside the chicken, along with some freshly ground black pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate overnight, at least 12 hours. I turn the chicken over once during this time.
- When you're ready to cook the birdie, place it in a roasting pan, I trussed (cut a hole in each side of the skin opposite each leg, and pulled the legs through, but it usually opens up while cooking; use string if you want to be sure to keep it tied up properly) the chicken, but it's not necessary (do not add the marinade.)
- Preheat the oven to 375º F (191ºC)
- Once the chicken is in the oven. Boil some potatoes in salted water until just partially cooked, drain the water and, with the lid on, shake the pot to "rough up" the potatoes. Add them to the roasting pan, next to the chicken. Taste a little of the potato to see if it needs additional salt, and if so, sprinkle some on. Continue to cook, until the chicken is done.
- You can increase the oven temp by a bit if you want more browning or crispiness, the last few minutes (thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the bird, between the breast, thigh and leg should read 165ºF or 74ºC.) The chicken should be golden brown.
- Let the chicken cool for about 10 minutes, covered loosely with a tent of aluminum foil, before slicing, to allow the juices to reabsorb into the meat.
Notes
- Citrus can be any combination or solely lemons, lemon/lime; lime mix and match any you like-I like this combination.
- Nutrition info is for a 3 lb chicken and about 6 medium potatoes.
Nutrition
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What setting u cook the chicken on convection broil bake or roastierre? Got my all marinate and going to cook the bird tonight. Just want to know what will be the best setting. Thank!
Hi Mamat, sorry, I just flew from Australia so that’s the reason for my delay in responding. I like to cook my chicken on convection roast (definitely don’t broil). Hope it turned out well! CC
Did you use Yukon gold potatoes?
Hi Linda, I love Yukon gold, but sometimes use Russets, too. CC
I have never marinaded a whole chicken overnight before. What a time saver for dinner. Looks stunning.
Really? You should try it, it’s so good!
I can’t wait until dinner! So, i started marinating this morning, it won’t be 12 hours, more like 8. Approximately, how long does a 4.5 lb chicken take to cook?
I have my thermometer, but this is my 1st roast chicken. Haha
Just to plan our dinner time. It looks amazing!
Thank you,
Michelle
Hi Michelle! I’m excited for you because you’re going to love this roast chicken! I’d say it’s probably about 1.5 hours for a chicken that size. Don’t forget to let it sit for a while before digging in! Bon appetit! Let me know how it turns out! CC
Hi, I’m going to be using my oven rotisserie to cook your recipe maybe tomorrow night. I am going to smear a garlic-herb butter rub between the skin and chicken, my mum normally does that on the outside, but I want to break with tradition and adapt it, then follow your recipe.
Not sure if I’ve misread and please don’t misread as criticism, I have chronic fatigue syndrome and read the recipe a few times, but step 1 mentions pour citrus marinade over chicken and then add wine (as in pour the wine over chicken? Or just add wine to pan marinade juices?).
Anyway, I’m thinking you meant add wine to the citrus marinade in the pan? Also I think you mean ‘retain the marinade in the pan with raw chicken while marinating in fridge’, but discard it when chicken goes in the oven.
As I’m using the rotisserie, I might add a metal rack in the pan to raise the potatoes off the base and leave the juices in the pan, then use them to baste the chicken a couple of times.
Have you got any stuffings that pair well with your recipe?
Thanks for your recipe too. Appreciate the effort and time that went into putting it online and replying to comments.
Hi Jess, I could almost guarantee you used the JUMP TO RECIPE button, right? If you go to the body of the recipe you will actually see photos of the process. I really don’t like the JUMP TO RECIPE button, but lots of people complain if it’s not there (however then I have to answer questions, which I already covered). Let me know if you still have questions after seeing my step by step with photos, as I think those are what will help you.
I honestly wouldn’t stuff this marinated chicken myself, but if you did I would keep it as simple as possible (I don’t have any stuffing recipes on my site).
Thank you for your kind words, most people don’t realize just how much work goes into just one recipe post. (This one definitely needs updated photos and a face lift as I wrote it in 2012)! Enjoy the chicken, wish I could taste some!
I will confess that I am not really a chicken fan, but whole roast chickens always look so beautiful and so perfect to serve for company with the beautiful browned crispy skin. I love the idea of pairing rosemary and citrus – such a great flavor combination.
Thanks, Julie! I agree.