Dutch Oven Roast Chicken with Vegetables

This is a one-pot meal that every home cook should master! Dutch oven roast chicken is as simple as seasoning the chicken, chopping some vegetables, and letting the cast iron pot do it’s magic.

*Today I’m partnering with Misen, a company who creates high-quality, beautiful cookware. I choose Misen because of their beautiful designs and commitment to toxin-free cooking.

The Best Roast Chicken Recipe

There is something about a whole roast chicken that never gets old. It’s the kind of meal that feels special enough for a Sunday dinner but simple enough that you’ll find yourself making it on a Tuesday just because you had the ingredients and an hour to spare.

Cooking a chicken in a Dutch oven, with a lemon compound butter tucked under the skin and a pile of vegetables roasting in the drippings underneath — it becomes something else entirely.

This is the recipe I come back to more than any other. Not because it’s complicated or impressive in a show-off way, but because it is genuinely, reliably delicious every single time. The Dutch oven is the secret. That heavy lid traps steam during the first part of the cook, which means the meat stays incredibly moist and the flavors concentrate in a way that open-pan roasting just can’t replicate.

Then you pull the lid off at the end and let the heat work on the skin — and that’s when the magic happens. Golden, crackling, deeply flavored skin over juicy, herb-scented meat.

This is whole food cooking at its most satisfying — real ingredients, a straightforward technique, and a result that tastes like you spent far more time and effort than you actually did. Make it once and you’ll understand why a good Dutch oven is one of the most valuable things you can own in a kitchen.

What You’ll Need

Kitchen Equipment:

• Misen Enameled Dutch Oven

Lemon Roasted Chicken:

• Whole Chicken
• Lemon (cut in half – half use for lemon zest and lemon juice for the butter, half is sliced and added to the top)
• Butter
• Olive Oil
• Kosher Salt (the best salt for roasted meats!)
• Black Pepper
• Sage (ground or fresh herbs, both work!)
• Vegetables – I used red potatoes, leeks, and carrots for a spring combo. Other root vegetables, like yellow onion, russet potatoes, or similar varieties will work!

How to Roast a Chicken in a Dutch Oven

Step 1: Preheat oven to 425º F. In a small bowl, combine softened (room temperature) butter, and olive oil. Zest half of a lemon into the butter mixture, then cut the other half of the lemon into slices. Juice the zested side of the lemon into the butter mixture. Stir the lemon butter mixture until smooth and creamy.

Step 2: Add a whole chicken to a dutch oven breast-side up. Season the chicken liberally with kosher salt, black pepper, and ground sage (or chopped fresh sage).

Step 3: Gently pull the skin away from the breasts, and using fingers, spread some of the lemon butter under the skin directly onto the chicken. Use the rest of the butter to coat the entire chicken.

Step 4: Add chopped vegetables around the chicken and top the chicken with lemon slices.

Step 5: Add the lid to the cast iron dutch oven, and roast the chicken for 60-75 minutes. Use a meat thermometer to check on the chicken until the internal temperature reaches 155º-165º F. Remove the lid from the pan, and continue to cook the chicken for 10-15 minutes, until the skin is golden brown. *The actual cooking time will depend on how large your chicken is, and how many vegetables added to the pot, so its important to use a meat thermometer.

Step 6: Remove the chicken from the oven, and allow to rest for 10-15 minutes prior to slicing. Serve the hot chicken with the roasted vegetables.

Tips & How to Store Leftover Chicken

Once the chicken has cooled to room temperature, remove it from the pot, and scoop the vegetables out to store in a separate container. Drain the excess cooking juices from the pan (this can be used to make gravy, if desired!).

If the refrigerator has enough space, the chicken can be stored directly in the dutch oven. Otherwise, find a large airtight container, and refrigerate the chicken for up to 4 days.

Save the chicken carcass to make homemade chicken stock! I highly recommend making this Chicken Enchilada Soup with the leftovers.

Variations

I made this roasted chicken in the spring, so I added leeks and new potatoes along with my carrots. The vegetables will roast for a long time, so they need to be denser vegetables.

Feel free to use yellow onions and russet potatoes if desired.

Other Vegetables to Add:

• Parsnips
• Turnips
• Brussels Sprouts
• Celeriac

Other Chicken Recipes Baked in Cast Iron

• Lemon Greek Chicken and Rice
• Chicken Scarpariello
• Moroccan Baked Chicken

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