Greek-Style Whole Roast Chicken

Those who have followed along for a bit will know that I’m a huge fan of a good, Monday night roast chicken. For me, roast night is all about sitting around the table and sharing your day. It doesn’t need to be fancy, just a simple meal with your besties. An oven-baked chicken with lemon and oregano is exactly that. A simple roast dinner that you can whip up from a few dried herbs, a lemon, some butter, olive oil, and some fresh rosemary from the garden. This easy Greek-style whole roast chicken recipe is about to become your new roast night favorite!

If you’re new here, you might not know I also run a small online store where I keep many of the tools I cook with every day, along with a few timeless homewares for good, slow living…

Why Monday night roast and not Sunday roast?

As kids, Monday night was always roast night. A cracking dinner with all the roast vegetables to start the week back at work. Makes complete sense, doesn’t it? A weekly ritual at the dinner table in between the chaos of soccer training, night shifts, swimming lessons, and late nights at the store. We do roast night most Mondays. Sometimes it’s a full roast dinner with duck fat roast potatoes, pumpkin, sweet potato,  carrots, and whole garlic, served with steamed greens and lashings of made-from-scratch chicken gravy. My Herbs de Provence Roast Chicken recipe is perfect for this! And then there are the more casual flavored chicken roasts that work alongside a salad and maybe some creamy mashed potatoes. That’s where this Greek-style roasted chicken really shines!

What you’re going to love about this Greek-style roasted chicken

Roast dinners have a bit of a bad rap because they are time and labor-intensive. I’ve always found them to be a super easy way to feed many mouths. With this oven-baked chook, it’s only a handful of ingredients, and once the prep is done (always in under 30 minutes with me!), It’s a matter of pouring a glass of wine and waiting for it to come out of the oven!

The leftover lunchmeat is a real bonus, as is any leftover roast vegetables you bake. I love having enough leftovers that can easily be made into sandwiches, a wrap, or added to a simple salad the next day.

You don’t need any fancy equipment to make a baked Greek chook. A small cutting board, a roasting pan, a cast-iron skillet, or even a Dutch oven is all you require. If I’m ever unsure if the center of the bird is fully cooked, you can use a meat thermometer to test the internal temperature.

Why I Love Cooking Greek Roast Chicken in a Dutch Oven

Prefer cooking in enamel cast iron cookware? My Dutch Oven Roast Chicken walks you through the process step-by-step and uses many of the same techniques that make this Greek chicken so juicy and flavorful.

Dutch Oven Tip: A 24cm or 28cm enamel cast iron Dutch oven is the perfect size for a 1.5kg chicken. If your bird is larger, simply move up to a larger Dutch oven and give it a little more room to roast.

Fallen in love with your Dutch oven?

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Here’s what you need to get started

• A whole organic chicken – the average size I use is 1.5kg. Ensure you’ve run the cavity of the bird underwater (to make sure there are no giblets left in) and pat the chook dry before you get started.
  
  
• Butter – I use unsalted butter; however, in this case, it really doesn’t matter too much whether it’s salted or unsalted.
  
  
• Greek Spice Rub. I love Mediterranean flavors and my Greek chicken marinade is a great addition to a Summer BBQ. Just rub over chicken pieces or lamb and grill.
  
  
• Half a fresh lemon for the bird cavity. The lemon juice keeps the chicken really moist while cooking and adds a hint of lemon to your roasted Greek chicken
  
  
• Fresh Herbs – Parsley, a sprig of rosemary to go into the cavity of the bird alongside the lemon.
  
  
• Extra virgin olive oil to baste the whole chicken before roasting
  
  
• sea salt and pepper to season

The nitty gritty

1. Heat oven to 200°C/400°F
   
   
   
2. Chop your butter into 12 pieces. Roll the butter in the salt rub. With the chicken legs pointed towards you, gently place your fingers under the chicken breast skin and loosen the skin from the breasts. Take 1/2 of your butter and push it under the skin. I tend to put 2 pieces of butter on each breast and 1 each on the top of the leg (still under the skin). I then pop one bit of butter in the crevice of each chicken leg (where the leg meets the breast)
   
   
   
3. Pop the remaining butter in the chicken cavity along with the lemon and fresh herbs. Drizzle the entire chicken with olive oil and rub with all the remaining Greek salt rub. Give it a bit of a massage to ensure the whole chicken is basted and seasoned.
   
   
   
4. Pop into a preheated oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Baste your chicken every 20 minutes with the pan juices. The chook will be cooked when you can insert a skewer into the thickest part of the meat and the juices run clear as well as a lovely golden, crispy skin.
   
   
   
5. Remove the roast chicken from the oven. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes. Carve & serve
   

Ok, so let’s now make this roast chook into a meal

So we’ve got the start of the show, our Greek roast chook… Now what to serve with it? Let’s add some greens. This Mediterranean-style freekeh and fava bean salad is a great option. As is a simple Caprese salad or an easy Greek salad. All of these side salads just ooze that warm evening, laid-back dinner vibe. And because I have a potato-loving Irishman to feed, let’s throw in a side dish of some colcannon. Winner winner easy roast chicken dinner!

Don’t forget the leftovers! On busy weeks, I’ll roast two chickens, so we’ve got one just for the leftovers. Think pizza toppings, chicken toasties and wraps, torn up and tossed through salads, and my favorite at the moment, a quick chicken, herb, and chickpea salad on top of half an avocado for lunch!

Storage

A cooked chook will last 3 days in the fridge if you have any leftovers. Just pop it into a container, cover, and use it for the next day’s lunch!

Here are some more roast night recipes you might like…

• Apple and Walnut ANZAC Crumble
• Black Garlic Roast Chicken
• The BEST Potato Salad
• Slow-Cooked Lamb Shoulder with Herbs de Provence
• Smashed Duck Fat Roast Potatoes with Truffle Salt

Let me know in the comments your favorite roast night dish

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