Dutch Oven Whole Chicken is an easy weeknight dinner treat! It's a succulent, mouthwatering chicken recipe with all your favorite veggies. Perfect to serve for an elegant night in or for as a tasty, crave-able meal prep recipe for the week!
Prep Chicken: Remove the chicken from the fridge 30 minutes prior to roasting in the oven. On a large sheet pan, prepare the whole chicken by removing the giblets and patting the entire chicken dry with paper towels.
Season Chicken: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a small bowl whisk together 2 tbsp olive oil, melted butter or ghee, rosemary, paprika, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Rub the seasoning mixture all over the chicken and carefully underneath the skin.
Stuff Chicken: Stuff the chicken cavity with lemon quarters and crushed garlic cloves. Truss the chicken by tying together the legs with kitchen twine and tucking wings underneath to prevent burning.
Prep vegetables: Place onions, potatoes, and carrots into the bottom of the dutch oven. Drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and season evenly with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.
Roast Chicken: Place the whole chicken on top of the vegetables with the tressed side/breasts facing upwards. Roast the chicken, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Then, turn the oven temperature down to 350 degrees F and continue roasting the chicken, uncovered, for an additional 15 minutes per pound (i.e. 4 lb chicken = 60 minutes additional roasting time). The internal temperature of the thickest part of the breast should be 165 degrees F.
Broil Chicken (optional): If you want your chicken to be a bit crispier you can broil the chicken, uncovered, for 5-7 minutes. Just watch it carefully as it will burn quickly!
Rest and Serve: Remove the chicken and let rest for 10 minutes before carving. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with roasted vegetables.
Notes
Store leftover chicken and veggies in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.