Lemon Pepper Roast Chicken Recipes

LEMON-PEPPER ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Pulse the butter, lemon zest and juice, garlic, thyme, paprika, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 tablespoon pepper in a food processor until smooth.
• Put the chickens on a rimmed baking sheet. Loosen the skin on the breasts and legs with your fingers. Rub about three-quarters of the lemon-pepper butter under the skin, then rub the rest all over the chickens. Refrigerate, uncovered, 2 hours or up to 8 hours before roasting.
• Tie the chicken legs together with twine and tuck the wings under the body; place breast-side up on a rack in a large roasting pan. Pour the wine into the pan and transfer to the oven; roast until the chickens are golden and crisp and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 170 degrees F, about 1 hour, 50 minutes. (Tent with foil if the skin browns too quickly.)
• Let the chickens rest 10 minutes before portioning (see below). Season with salt.
• Grab one of the legs with tongs and pull it away from the body; cut through the skin with kitchen shears.
• Pull the leg out and back to pop the joint; remove the leg with the shears. Repeat on the other side.
• Separate the drumsticks from the thighs with the shears.
• Cut off the wings as close to the body as possible.
• Insert the shears into the tail end of the chicken and cut along the breastbone.
• Pull back one of the breasts and cut it off the backbone. Repeat on the other side.

LEMON PEPPER ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Puree all ingredients except chicken in blender until smooth.
• Put roasting chicken in glass baking dish and pat dry.
• Baste in the pureed sauce and cook in preheated 450 degree oven until golden brown, about 1/2 an hour.

ROAST CHICKEN WITH BELL PEPPERS, LEMON, AND THYME

Steps:

• Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 425°F. Heat a large ovenproof skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high. Cook bell peppers in skillet, turning every minute or two, until blistered in several spots, about 5 minutes. (You aren't trying to cook them, just get some color on them.) Transfer bell peppers to a cutting board and let cool slightly; reserve skillet. Stand a pepper upright and slice off sides, working your way around stem in 3 or 4 cuts. Pull out ribs and seeds; discard along with stems. Repeat with remaining peppers.
• Return peppers to skillet and add shallot, chile, and 3 thyme sprigs. Season generously with salt and black pepper and drizzle 1/4 cup oil over. Season chicken all over with salt and black pepper and set on top of peppers. Place a lemon half and remaining 2 thyme sprigs in chicken cavity and rub skin all over with remaining 1 Tbsp. oil. Roast in oven until skin is golden brown and crisp all over and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of breast registers 160°F, 60-80 minutes. Remove from oven (be careful; handle is hot!) and let rest 15 minutes before transferring chicken to a cutting board and carving.
• Just before serving, squeeze remaining lemon half over chicken and bell peppers.

LEMON-PEPPER ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Combine lemon-pepper, garlic salt, black pepper, thyme, and salt in a bowl. Set aside. Slice 2 lemons into rounds for stuffing; reserve 1 for juice.
• Place both chickens in a roasting pan, not touching. Squeeze 1 lemon over both chickens, making sure juice coats evenly. Split sliced lemons, celery, green onions, and garlic in half and stuff each chicken. Use cooking string to tie legs together, making sure legs are facing up. Pat dry rub all over chickens.
• Bake, uncovered, in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Rotate the pan and baste chicken with juices. Continue to bake, basting often, for 50 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) and continue to baste and bake until juices run clear and chickens are no longer pink in the centers, about 40 minutes more. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone, should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).