This garlic herb roasted whole chicken with tender root vegetables is as classic and comforting as it gets! The chicken is perfectly crispy and juicy while roasted vegetables cook at the same time in one easy recipe. Great for Sunday family dinners and cozy winter nights! (gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free)

whole roasted chicken on top of root vegetables on a white platter.

Roasting a whole chicken is one of those things that seems very intimidating until you actually do it. I have to stick my hand where? Which side faces up? How long do I cook this thing? What temperature? What if it's too dry? What if it's not done? Oh my god I'm going to give people salmonella! Take a breath. I promise it's not complicated. Once you've roasted a chicken a couple of times, it will become second nature, and you'll be picking up whole chickens like it's nothing for your new go-to Sunday dinner!

Why You'll Love This Roasted Chicken

Whole chickens are great because you only have to cook once to yield a lot of meat, they're affordable, and the bones are great for making homemade bone broth. This recipe is full of flavor from a garlic, rosemary and thyme rub, while an easy brine and subsequent drying session in the refrigerator yields a perfectly juicy texture with crispy skin. Hearty, comforting root vegetables roast right alongside the chicken in the oven - and even get the VIP treatment via basting in the chicken drippings - for a complete, flavorful meal that cooks together in the oven all at once!

roasted root vegetables on a white platter with rosemary sprigs.

Optimal Temperature For Roasting A Whole Chicken

For crispy skin and an evenly cooked chicken, place the chicken in the oven at 425°F for about 20 minutes, then lower the temperature to 400°F to finish cooking, about 30-35 more minutes (or about 15 minutes per pound). If you're skipping the root vegetables, you can even lower the oven to 375 or 350 if you'd like.

The Ingredients

overhead view of ingredients needed to make roasted chicken with root vegetables.

Whole Chicken
Fresh herbs - Thyme and rosemary
Garlic - Fresh is always best!
Lemon - Save the spent half after squeezing to stuff in the cavity.
Root Vegetables - I used potatoes, beets, carrots and onion. I've also used fennel and sweet potato at times.
Salt, Pepper and Olive Oil - The usual suspects. I always use kosher salt or coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

How To Make a Whole Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables

3 image collage showing steps how to making garlic herb roasted chicken.

Make The Chicken

Make the brine. In a large bowl, combine the salt, sugar and about 2 cups of lukewarm water. Stir to dissolve the salt and sugar. Remove any bits from the cavity of the chicken and add it to the bowl. Add cool water until the chicken is completely covered. Place the chicken in the refrigerator to brine for 2 hours or more.
About an hour before cooking, remove the chicken from the brine and pat dry with paper towels. Place in a rimmed dish in the refrigerator so the skin can dry. Heat the oven to 425°F.
Chop 2 cloves of garlic, thyme and rosemary and add to a small bowl with the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Rub all over the the outside of the chicken and under the skin. Place the squeezed lemon, remaining garlic clove, and any herb stems in the cavity.
Place the chicken in a roasting pan or large cast iron skillet and roast at 425°F for 20 minutes, then lower the temperature to 400°F and roast for about 15 minutes per pound (30-45 minutes) until the thickest part reaches 165°F.
Allow the chicken to rest 10-15 minutes before carving.

four image collage showing steps for roasting root vegetables.

Make The Root Veggies

Cut the root vegetables to uniform size, about 1 inch pieces. Add to a large bowl with thyme, salt, pepper and oil. Toss to coat.
Spread the vegetables on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone baking mat.
Once you lower the oven to 400, spoon some of the drippings from the chicken onto the vegetables and stir. Place the vegetables in the oven and roast until tender, about 30-40 minutes.
Baste the veggies with chicken drippings a couple of times throughout cooking.

Pro Tips For Perfect Roasted Chicken

The best way to tell when a chicken is done is with a thermometer. It's the only reliable way to consistently cook meat and poultry to a safe temperature without overcooking. When the chicken reaches 165°F, it is done. You'll want to check both the breast and thigh to be sure.
Just like with meat, allow chicken to rest for 10-15 minutes after cooking to allow the juices to settle back into the meat to avoid dry chicken.
If you don't have time to brine the chicken, no worries. Just skip it and let the skin dry in the refrigerator for a little bit.
If you have a very large roasting pan (such as for a turkey), you can spread the vegetables in the bottom of the pan with the chicken to roast once you turn the oven down to 400. Give the veggies a stir every 15 minutes or so.

overhead view of sliced roasted chicken breast and roasted root vegetables on a plate with a gold fork.

What To Serve It With

Since you've got your beautiful protein, carbs, and roasted veggies cooked altogether, there's no need to make anything else if you don't want to! Although if you want to, you can add a salad (like a spinach salad, Pine Room Salad or Kale Caesar).

For a wine pairing, roast chicken is super versatile. I suggest a dry, medium body white, such as Chardonnay, Viognier, Chenin Blanc or White Burgundy, or a light to medium red such a Pinot Noir or Côtes-du-Rhône.

If you made this recipe, please leave a star rating in the comments!

Perfect Roasted Chicken and Root Vegetables

Print Recipe

Author: Kaleigh
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Brine Time: 2 hours
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
Category: main dish
Method: roasted
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

For the Brine:

¼ cup sugar
¼ cup salt
water to cover chicken

For The Chicken:

4 sprigs thyme, leaves removed (or 2 tsp dried thyme)
2 sprigs rosemary, chopped (or 2 tsp dried rosemary)
3 cloves garlic
½ lemon
½ tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
2 tsp olive oil

For veggies:

8 cups root veggies, diced evenly into 1 inch pieces (any combination of potatoes, sweet potatoes, beets, carrots, and onions)
1 tbsp thyme leaves (or 1 tsp dried thyme)
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 tsp olive oil

Instructions

Brine the chicken (optional): In a large bowl, combine salt, sugar, and about 2 cups of lukewarm water. Remove any bits from the cavity of the chicken and chicken and place in the bowl, adding enough water to completely cover the chicken. Let chicken brine in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
Remove chicken and discard brine an hour before you are ready to cook. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and place on a plate in the refrigerator. This will help the skin crisp.
Heat oven to 425° F.
In a small bowl, combine thyme, rosemary, 2 chopped garlic cloves, juice from ½ lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper. Rub the mixture under the skin of the chicken and all over the outside. Stuff the cavity with remaining clove of garlic, the spent lemon, and additional springs of herbs, if you have them.
Place chicken in a large cast iron skillet or roasting pan, breast side up.
Roast chicken at 425° F for 20 minutes, then turn the oven down to 400° F and continue to cook until done (about 30-45 minutes or 15 minutes per pound), checking often. A thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast should read 165° F when it is completely cooked.
Meanwhile, dice your root vegetables evenly. Toss them in a bowl with the thyme, salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon oil.
Spread vegetables evenly onto a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone baking mat. Once you turn the oven down, baste vegetables with drippings from the chicken and place vegetables in the oven with the chicken. Baste once or twice with chicken drippings throughout cooking, stirring each time.
Once chicken is done and veggies are cooked, remove from the oven and let the chicken rest for 10-15 minutes before carving.

Notes

Time is never a good indicator of doneness, especially with large proteins such as whole chicken. I highly recommend investing in a meat thermometer to ensure your chicken is done without it drying out. Chicken is done when the internal temperature of the thickest part (I usually check both the breast and thigh) reaches 165°F.
If you have a very large roasting pan (such as for a turkey), you can spread the vegetables in the bottom of the pan with the chicken to roast once you turn the oven down to 400. Give the veggies a stir every 15 minutes or so.
I like to serve the roasted vegetables with a sprinkle of feta cheese for extra flavor.
Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Keywords: roasted chicken and root vegetables, garlic herb roasted whole chicken, roast chicken with root vegetables

This post was originally published February 2018 and has been updated.