How to Cook a Whole Roast Chicken

When I used to look at a whole chicken at the grocery store I would turn the other way because it seemed like far too big of an ordeal for me. I reserved whole animals for thanksgiving alone. This Saturday when I was doing my weekly grocery haul at Whole Foods and they had marked down whole chickens to $1.96 WHAAAA?! For this price… I can tackle a whole roast chicken. I came to realize cooking a whole chicken is a breeze and really makes you look like a pro. Not to mention, I used the bones for delicious bone broth and any leftover chicken from the parts that we don’t eat for dog treats. Low $, win! No waist, win!

How Do you Make a Whole Roast Chicken?

This recipe is a spin off of Ina Garten’s “Perfect Roast Chicken” recipe so you know it’s got to be good…

I’m telling you once you stuff this little chicken and throw it in the oven for an hour and a half you have a beautiful meal for a lot of people and your entire house smells like you just stepped into Ina’s house at the Hamptons. This is a great dinner party meal or batch cooking meal on a Sunday because it produces lots of meat and leaves you with rich bones, perfect for Sunday night bone broth.

Nutrition 1-0-1 on Whole Roast Chicken

Chicken is a lean animal protein, lower in fat and calories than red meat or pork. Roasting your chicken allows excess fat to drip away from the meat, and the American Heart Association recommends it as a cooking method for lower cholesterol and heart health. Roast chicken contains protein and some fat but no carbohydrates (1).

Chicken Skin: The skin is essential in cooking the chicken because it keeps the meat moist. However, if you’re looking to cut fat, consider removing the skin before eating.  For example: if you eat four ounces of chicken, leaving the skin on adds 60 calories and 4 grams of fat.

Nutrients: Chicken is not a good source of most vitamins, except niacin, or of minerals, except selenium and phosphorus.

• Niacin is a B vitamin that’s made and used by your body to turn food into energy. It helps keep your nervous system, digestive system and skin healthy (2).
• Selenium is an essential trace mineral that is important for many bodily processes, including cognitive function, a healthy immune system, and fertility in both men and women (3).
• Phosphorous is the second most plentiful mineral in your body. The first is calcium. Your body needs phosphorus for many functions, such as filtering waste and repairing tissue and cells (4).

Hope you enjoyed this post & the one pot meal!

xx,

Jess

Sources:

(1) https://getfit.jillianmichaels.com/nutrition-whole-roasted-chicken-1794.html

(2) https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-niacin/art-20364984

(3) https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/287842.php

(4) https://www.healthline.com/health/phosphorus-in-diet