Perfect roast chicken recipe | Jamie Oliver Christmas recipes (2024)

FAQs

What temperature does Jamie Oliver roast chicken at? ›

Cook for 1 hour at 225˚C/425˚F/gas 7. Use any excess fat that drips off into the roasting tray to roast your potatoes, or cook the potatoes in the tray with your chicken. The skin should be really crispy and the herbs will flavour the flesh – this really must be the best roast chicken.

There's no need to cover your chicken for roasting, as the time it takes to cook means the skin should brown just enough to be perfectly crispy.

It's lovely served with steamed green broccoli and peas – delicious. You can make a quick one by skimming off the fat in the roasting tray, then placing the tray on the hob.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

A little bit of water in the bottom of the roasting pan, with the chicken on a rack so it isn't sitting in the water, will keep the drippings from smoking. Other than that, no water is needed.

You can roast or bake anywhere between 325 and 450 degrees F. When roasting a whole chicken, a nice rule of them is to start at 400 to 425 degrees F and then turn the oven down to 350 after 15 minutes and cook until the internal temp of the chicken is 165 – 175 degrees F on an instant read thermometer.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C) and cook whole (thawed) chicken for 10-15 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and roast for 20 minutes per pound.

Key Differences Between Roasting & Baking

Temperature: Typically, roasting requires a higher temperature (400°F and above) to create a browned, flavorful “crust” on the outside of the food being cooked. Baking generally occurs at lower oven temperatures, up to 375°F.

Covered or uncovered

Often, a dish described as roasted is one that's cooked on a rack or in an uncovered pan—allowing it to be exposed to the heat to become browned and crispy. When a dish is cooked in the oven covered, it's usually described as baked.

Should you flip a roast chicken? ›

By turning over the chicken, you are allowing for more even juice distribution, thereby ensuring that the breast meat will not dry out before the rest of the bird is finished cooking. The timing on this is important because you don't want the bird to be flipped for too long, lest you sacrifice the ultra-crispy skin.

Tenderizing the Meat: Lemon juice can help tenderize the chicken by breaking down the fibers in the meat.

It acts as a glue for spices

In this case, mustard is the perfect binder for spices to adhere to chicken or any meat for that matter. The tanginess tends to dilute during the cooking process, allowing the condiment to do its job without overpowering.

Place the onions, carrots, and fennel in a roasting pan. Toss with salt, pepper, 20 sprigs of thyme, and olive oil. Spread around the bottom of the roasting pan and place the chicken on top. Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.

Chicken is done cooking when its internal temperature reaches 165ºF (75ºC). 165ºF is the safe internal temperature regardless of cooking method, cooking temperature, and cut of meat—including white meat like chicken breasts and wings, and dark meat like drumsticks and thighs.

And most people know that the recommended safe internal temp for chicken is 165°F (74°C). The mistake most people make is not bothering to check the actual temperature of their chicken!

Otherwise, follow this general formula: Cook large, boneless, skinless chicken breasts for 20 to 30 minutes in a 375-degree-F oven. Cook large, bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts for 35 to 40 minutes in a 375-degree-F oven.