Roast Chicken with Crispy Potatoes

I have often mentioned I feel the most wonderful thing to cook is a roast chicken.  Inexpensive, versatile, easy and makes the house smell wonderful!  After two days of red meat I was ready for something light.  I haven't been to the fish monger in awhile so I settled on a chicken I had in the freezer.  It was a chilly Fall day, so, perfect for turning on the oven for a few hours.  Not only did I have the chicken, I had some new potatoes from the garden and the lovely dried rosemary I dried a few weeks ago.  (I talk about the food trifecta-easy clean up + inexpensive + delicious, well add to that no trip to the store and it is a jackpot!)  Remember this when you have a 'to-do' list or binge TV watching, yet you want your family to believe you befriended Julia Child in your kitchen!  SO easy!


Roast Chicken with Crispy Potatoes
printable recipe

1 5-6 lb. chicken, cleaned and excess fat and tail removed
olive oil
kosher salt and course pepper
2 T. dried Rosemary
4 large new potatoes, cut in half or 8 small, if using Russet potatoes, peel them

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place cleaned chicken in a roasting pan.  Brush outside with olive oil.  Season inside and out with half of the rosemary and pretty heavily with salt and pepper.

Roast for an hour.
Add the potatoes around the bird, tossing them to coat with the pan drippings.  Sprinkle with remaining rosemary.

Continue to roast until done (internal temp. at the thickest part of the thigh 165)
Set chicken on a platter and rest for 15 minutes.  Remove potatoes.  Drain pan drippings into a bowl and allow the fat to rise.  Remove the fat and pour the remaining drippings into a small saucepan.  Heat on medium-high and allow to reduce to half.  Serve on the side with the sliced chicken and potatoes.