I’d always heard how is easy it is to roast a chicken, but I honestly spent years undercooking and overcooking chickens to the point of deciding Costco was my answer to the perfect roasted chicken – haha!  Well, I’m happy to report that I’ve finally cracked the code and am so excited to share it with all of you!

The Perfect Herb Roasted Chicken starts by salting the chicken overnight in the fridge, followd by an herb butter rub, a quick sear in a skillet before going in the oven, and finished with an optional sprinkling of Parmesan cheese to make the skin extra crispy and flavorful (by this point you’ve probably realized that if I can put Parmesan cheese on something, I’m going to!).

I based this recipe off a brilliant roasted chicken recipe from the book “Date Night In” by Ashley Rodriguez.  It’s an excellent cookbook if you’re looking for a good one to add to your collection!

Dry Brine

Let’s all admit that soaking poultry in an overnight brine is a huge hassle, that can also result in a huge mess in your refrigerator if the bag springs a leak.  This recipe starts with a dry brine, where the salt is applied directly to the outside of the chicken and is left to rest, uncovered, overnight in the refrigerator.  This method dries out the skin of the chicken, so that it bakes up crispy, and also tenderizes the meat to keep it moist and juicy while baking.

This is a 5 pound chicken and I used 3 teaspoons of kosher salt on it.  This may seem like a lot of salt, but I promise your chicken will not taste overly salty.

Here’s the chicken after the overnight rest in the fridge.  See how it has absorbed the salt and the skin has dried out?  This dry skin is going to result in crispy, flavorful skin after it bakes!

Herb Butter

The next step is to preheat the oven while you make some herb butter for the chicken.  For my herb butter I used butter, garlic powder, dijon mustard, and equal parts of fresh sage and parsley.

I shared this recipe with a few people before publishing it and one of the recipe testers told me that she liked to make a double batch of this herb butter and set aside half of it to use on her mashed potatoes that she served with the chicken.  Yum!!

Apply this mixture all over the outside of the chicken and under the skin of the breasts and thighs.  As it melts, it will baste the chicken while it cooks and make the meat extra juicy and flavorful. I only add the herb butter to the top of the chicken because the bottom will cook in the butter as it melts (see next step).

Next, sprinkle both sides of the chicken with freshly ground pepper.

Skillet

Heat a 12″ cast iron skillet on high heat (can also use an ovenproof stainless steel skillet, but do not use a non-stick skillet because that will burn the crust of the chicken).  Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable or canola oil and add the chicken to the skillet, breast side down.

Cook for several minutes until the skin starts to crisp and the chicken releases easily from the pan.  At this point, flip the chicken back over with the breast side facing up.

Place the chicken, still in the skillet, into the preheated oven and cook until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 F.  This can be as short as 45 minutes, or as long as 90 minutes depending on the size of your chicken (my 5 pound chicken took about 90 minutes to roast).  But the best way to tell when your chicken is cooked to a safe temperature is by using a probe thermometer.

Optional Parmesan Crust

If you want to get the skin as crispy and flavorful as possible, about 10 minutes before the chicken has finished baking, sprinkle a generous layer of parmesan cheese over the surface of your chicken.

And then return to the oven to finish baking to 165 F.

Let the chicken rest 10 minutes before carving.  You’ve got to believe me when I say this is the juiciest, most flavorful roast chicken you’ve ever had!!  I hope you can try it very soon!

Perfect Herb Roasted Chicken

Dry Brine:
1 whole chicken (5 pounds max)
Kosher Salt (I used 3 teaspoons on a 5 pound chicken)

Herb butter:
4 tablespoons salted butter, softened
4 tablespoons freshly chopped herbs (I do equal parts of sage and parsley)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 squeezes of Dijon mustard (about 2 teaspoons)

Parmesan Crust:
1/3 c Parmesan cheese, grated (optional)

Directions:

Generously sprinkle the chicken all over with kosher salt. Place on a tray and refrigerate overnight, uncovered.

Preheat oven to 400.

Make garlic butter by combining butter, herbs, garlic, and mustard. Spread the mixture under the skin of the chicken and across the top of the bird. Set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a cast iron skillet. Place the chicken breast side down in the skillet until the skin is browned and releases easily from pan.

Flip chicken and immediately place in the preheated oven.

10 minutes before the chicken finishes roasting, sprinkle the top of the chicken with Parmesan cheese. Roast until the thermometer in the thickest part of the thigh reads 165.

Let rest for 10 minutes and carve.