Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken and Potatoes
Tender crispy-skinned chicken with roasted potatoes and crunchy chickpeas with a flavorful lemony gravy to drizzle over everything.
Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken and Potatoes
Serves 4 - 6
Having a good roasted chicken recipe in your arsenal is an important tool. It is one I especially love to pull out now that it is spring. I have a base recipe that I use and modify endlessly to fit whatever mood I’m in. What’s great is that the rub and marinade are made out of pantry staples, so a roasted chicken is always within reach. These days, I’m partial to spatchcocking my chicken but, you can always cook it whole and adjust the cooking times as needed.
On to the good stuff. The chicken is marinated in a mixture of the rub mixed with soy sauce and mirin. The marinade is rubbed under the skin of the chicken and allowed to sit in the fridge, uncovered overnight. The marinade deeply penetrates and flavors the meat while also making it super juicy. The skin dries out a little so that when baked, it becomes extra crisp. The potatoes and chickpeas are seasoned with the remaining rub and placed under the chicken where they absorb the chicken juices and get crisp.Finished with a gravy made of doenjang, lemon and the juices from the rested chicken. Add a few vegetables sides and you have a super tasty meal.
Ingredients
Lemon Herb Rub
1 T kosher salt
1 T dried oregano
2 t gochugaru
1.5 t dried parsley
1.25 t garlic powder
1.25 t onion powder
1 t ground black pepper
0.50 t dried thyme
0.50 t ground coriander
0.25 t ground ginger, heaped
Zest of 1 lemon
Chicken Marinade
2kg (4.4 lb) whole chicken, butterflied or bone in skin-on chicken thighs
4 t soy sauce
4 t mirin
Vegetables
908g (2 lbs) potatoes, cut into large chunks
439g (1 – 15.5 oz can) cooked chickpeas, drained
350g (1 large) onion, cut into large chunks
1.5 T olive oil
Remaining lemon herb rub
Chicken Finishing
2 t olive oil
Sauce
0.50 t vegetable oil
Zested lemon from the rub, cut in half
400ml (2 c) chicken broth
4 garlic cloves, chopped
3 dried chilis - optional
3g piece of dashima
1 T doenjang
0.75 t ground black pepper
0.50 t kosher salt
Slurry
2 T water
1 T potato starch
Recipe Know-how
1. In a small mixing bowl, combine the rub ingredients mixing well.
Place a little more than 1/3 of the mixture into a separate small mixing bowl.
Cover the remaining 2/3 of the rub and set aside.
Add the soy and mirin to the 1/3 spice mix mixing well.
Rub the mixture under the skin of the breasts, legs and thighs of the chicken.
Try to ensure that none of the seasoning gets onto the skin.
Place on a plate and refrigerate uncovered overnight.
The chicken can marinate for a minimum of 2 hours.
Cooking
2. Preheat your oven to 190 C / 400 F.
Take the chicken out of the fridge.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
3. Place the baking sheet into the oven and heat for 5 minutes.
4. In a large mixing bowl toss the vegetable ingredients so everything is coated well.
Carefully remove the baking sheet from the oven and pour the vegetables onto it.
Place into the oven and cook for 10 minutes.
Place the marinated chicken on top of the vegetables and rub the skin with the olive oil.
Roast for 20 minutes.
Reduce the oven temperature to 180 C / 350 F.
Roast for 40 – 60 minutes longer or until the chicken is cooked through.
To test for doneness, place an instant read thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken. It should register 74 C / 165 F in the thickest part of the breast and 85 C / 185 F in the thickest part of the thigh.
Alternatively, cooked chicken will have the juices from the leg/thigh run clear.
Remove the chicken to a board to rest.
Increase oven to 190 C / 400 F again.
Place the baking sheet in the oven again for 10 – 15 minutes longer to brown and crisp the vegetables.
Make the sauce while the chicken rests and the vegetables brown.
5. In a medium sauce pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat.
Add the lemon halves cut side down.
Cook 1.5 – 2 minutes or until golden brown and well caramelized on the cut side. Remove to a plate and set aside.
Add the remaining sauce ingredients and bring to a boil covered.
Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
The vegetables should be ready to remove from the oven at this time.
In a small bowl, combine slurry ingredients and set aside.
Remove and discard the dashima and chilis.
Add the lemon juice and any from the caramelized lemons to taste.
Add any collected juices from the resting chicken.
Stir the slurry well.
Working in a slow stream, add the slurry to the sauce and cook stirring constantly until thickened to your liking.
You may not need all of the slurry.
Taste for seasoning adjusting salt, pepper and lemon as necessary.
6. Serve with the vegetables on the bottom and topping with the chicken and sauce.
I love to serve this with Oi muchim - Spicy Cucumber Salad (recipe here).