Name: Roast Chicken with Potatoes and Garlic
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 120 min
Total time: 130 min
Yield: 6 Servings
Ingredients: ¼ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Divided); 5 Pound Whole Roasting Chicken; 6 Bulbs Garlic; 6 Sprigs of Fresh Rosemary (About 2 Ounces); 2 Pounds Petite Red Potatoes; 1 Teaspoon Salt; ½ Teaspoon Freshly Ground Rainbow Pepper; 2 Tablespoons Cream Sherry

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Cozy Roast Chicken with Potatoes and Garlic is a whole meal in one pan. No one would ever guess it takes just 10 minutes to prepare!

Side View of Roast Chicken with Potatoes and Garlic on a Cutting/Serving Board

A roast chicken with potatoes dinner always makes me think of home and what “home cooking” means to me. Growing up my mom used to make a Sunday dinner that was slow cooked or slow roasted. While a pot roast would take most of the afternoon after church to cook, a roast chicken dinner was just as easy to bring together to go into the oven and took about half the time. That time, while the chicken was roasting, was when we could catch up with each other with what was happening in school and at work.

In this age it is hard to image, just having time to sit and talk. My best memories are of the times gathered at the dining table with some coffee, tea, or juice and a small snack. There was no tv in the background. No cell phones to distract and for our community, it was common courtesy not to telephone on Sunday unless it was urgent. Those were truly the days of “mindfulness” and really learning about each other and yourself during the quiet times.

I have found that this dinner is a perfect way to bring balance back into my life. Not just because I have fond memories of roasted dinners, but because during the 2 hours it takes to roast, I have quiet time for myself to read or journal.

this really is a simple preparation

Honestly! I’m saying that, even if you are a beginner at cooking, you will find this roast chicken dinner very easy to make. Think of it as putting the chicken in the middle of the pan and then building the rest of the dinner around it.

So, let’s start by taking a look at the ingredients for this dish:

A whole fresh chicken, a large silver toned pepper mill, cream sherry, olive oil, salt in a salt box, tiny red potatoes, garlic, and fresh green sprigs of rosemary.

I generally already have in my pantry the pepper, cream sherry, extra virgin olive oil, and salt. So this means I only have to purchase the fresh ingredients: the whole chicken, tiny red potatoes, bulbs of garlic, and sprigs of fresh rosemary.

And now…let’s look at the basic steps of making this delicious roast chicken with potatoes dinner:

Roast chicken process photo #1 - a baking pan is drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

Roast Chicken with Potatoes and Garlic process photo #5 - everything is ready to go into the oven

1. Drizzle the baking pan with olive oil.

2. Cut the tops off bulbs of garlic. I like to have at least one bulb per person.

3. Place the prepared chicken in the center of the prepared baking pan and put bulbs of garlic around the chicken.

4. Scatter tiny red potatoes and tuck sprigs of fresh rosemary between chicken, potatoes, and garlic.

5. Drizzle more olive oil over everything and season with salt and pepper.

6. The dinner is now ready for the oven and all that is left to do is roast it and drizzle everything with cream sherry toward the end of the roasting time.

& these are my special tips…

♥ Let your chicken and any refrigerated ingredients sit at room temperature for at least 20 minutes before you begin to prep your meal. The roasting time will be more accurate.

♥ All meat will brown easiest when it is dry. Make sure you dry the bird thoroughly before it goes onto the baking sheet.

my husband loves this dinner!

It’s hard for me to say what my husband loves most about this dinner. One of the things is the juiciness of the chicken. Roasting the chicken slowly is essential for the best flavor and texture of the chicken. So, I always start the roast at a higher temperature to get a nice color on the bird and then turn the heat down for a slow easy roast.

But then he also absolutely loves the roasted garlic! I always have crusty French bread sliced and ready to serve with this dinner. He likes to spread a little salted butter on the bread and then spread a roasted garlic clove over the butter.

Roasted garlic with salted butter and french bread is on a white plate. The stem of a wine glass is in the background.

As if that wasn’t enough, he raves about the tiny, roasted, red potatoes. They are tender, sweet, and have just enough salt to make your mouth water for more.

For us, this roast chicken dinner is perfect for a home date night. We love to spend time quietly chatting and sipping red wine, while eating this home style meal of roasted chicken, potatoes, and garlic.