You will love this simple, healthy and delicious Lemon, Chilli and Garlic Roast Chicken. Flattening a whole chicken before roasting speeds up the cooking process, and also ensures it's super juicy and flavoursome! This recipe is gluten free, dairy free and nut free.
1small whole chickenbutterflied - around 1.5kg chicken
3tbspextra virgin olive oil
3-4clovesgarlic
2tspchilli flakes - add more if you want it spicy
2tbsphoney
2lemons
salt and pepper to season
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180˚C (350F). Line a roasting tray with baking paper.
Make the chicken marinade. Peel and finely chop the garlic, or crush in a garlic press. Combine the olive oil, honey, garlic and chilli flakes in a small bowl. Cut one lemon in half and squeeze the juice into the bowl. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and then stir it all together. Set aside. Cut the second lemon into wedges. Set aside.
Butterfly your chicken if it hasn’t been done already (this is sometimes called “spatchcocked” chicken). This means cutting into the chicken along either side of the backbone, removing the backbone, and then flattening it. It’s easiest done with kitchen scissors but a large sharp knife can do the job too.
Place the butterflied chicken, skin side up, into a roasting tray. Pour the olive oil mixture all over the chicken, then use your fingers to massage it all over the bird. Arrange the lemon wedges in the tray on top of and around the chicken.
Roast chicken until juices run clear and the skin of the chicken is starting to caramelise/blacken. For a 1.5kg chicken this will take about 1 hour and 10 minutes.
Serve hot with your favourite sides. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Notes
*if you have a nice butcher, you could always ask them to butterfly the chicken for you!*run out of fresh garlic? Substitute around 3 tsp of minced garlic (from a jar).
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