This Garlic and Ghee Roasted Chicken with Carrots recipe is perfect for two if you want to have leftovers and make them into chicken salad or soup, or it can feed a small family. Save the carcass to make bone broth from once you've finished the meat.
I'm pretty obsessed with roasting whole chickens. I think they're the perfect comfort food that make any weeknight special, and don't require much prep time at all. The chicken is easy to prepare with some simple spices along with veggies for roasting, and citrus if you like it – and that's it.
I used rainbow carrots here, but you can certainly use all orange carrots if that's what you have on hand. Or, alternatively, you can roast onions, celery, and carrots together with the chicken, or any vegetables you like that are heartier since they'll be roasting for quite some time.
For an excellent, ready-made ghee, check out a few of my favorites here or you can make your own using this recipe.
This recipe also contains one of our Balanced Bites Spice Blends - SAVORY - which you can shop here!
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons ghee
- 10-12 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon SAVORY Spice Blend or use 1 teaspoon each of sea salt, black pepper & dried rosemary or oregano
- 8 large carrots, sliced into sticks
- 1 whole chicken
- 1 lemon, quartered
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
In a small bowl, combine the ghee and garlic with all of the spices. Place the carrot sticks into a large roasting pan and toss to combine with 2 tablespoons of the ghee mixture. Place a roasting rack inside the pan and place the chicken onto the rack and place 2-3 of the lemon quarters inside the cavity of the chicken.
Brush the chicken with the remaining ghee mixture to coat it evenly. If necessary, tie the chicken drumsticks together with string. Squeeze the remaining lemon over the chicken and carrots.
Roast for 60 minutes (15-20 minutes per pound) or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165ºF when inserted into a meaty part of the leg, avoiding the bone. Let the chicken rest on a cutting board for at least 10 minutes before serving. Remove the roasting rack from the pan with the vegetables.
While the chicken rests, place the vegetables back into the oven to continue to roast and caramelize for an additional 10 minutes or more to your preference, giving them a stir to ensure they're evenly coated with any drippings from the chicken.
Serve the roasted carrots with the chicken.