Christmas roast chicken – Treat your friends and family to this roast chicken! It’s incredibly aromatic, succulent and packed with the flavours of Christmas that’s sure to please!

Christmas Roast Chicken – Packed with aromatic flavour!

Are you planning to make a roast chicken this Christmas? Look no further! This recipe is for you!

This christmas roast chicken is incredibly, succulent and packed with the flavours of christmas that’s sure to please!

It’s perfect if you’re making a dinner for a smaller gathering or even if you’re having a bigger dinner party! Or maybe you simply want to eat something else other than turkey this christmas! To be honest you could put this mix on a turkey too if you wish!

This chicken is roasted with very christmassy spices such as star anise, cloves and cinnamon along with bay leaf, orange and maple syrup that will make your whole smell of Christmas!

Tip for an extra juicy Christmas Roast Chicken

We all want to have a juicy roast chicken. And whilst the most important thing is to not to overcook it, there are two other things that can help to keep the chicken moist!

When resting, rest it upside down – this may flatten the curvature of the chicken but it will ensure that the chicken is incredibly moist as the juices will flow back into the chicken. If you have larger chicken and roast it for longer you can turn it around a few times during the roasting process.

The recipe is for a smaller chicken, and if you’re using a larger chicken, just up the ingredients so it matches with the size of the chicken and cook it for longer!

WATCH HOW TO MAKE CHRISTMAS ROAST CHICKEN

Name: Christmas Roast Chicken
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 70 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 3 -4
Ingredients: 1,1 kg / 2 lbs whole chicken; 50 g butter, room temperature; Zest from one orange; Orange juice from 1/4 orange (use the zested one); Half an orange (cut in two (use the zested one)); 1 tsp of ground cinnamon; 1 tsp ground cloves; 1 tsp ground star anise; 0.5 tsp bay leaf, finely chopped.; 1 tsp salt; Pinch of pepper; 4 tsp maple syrup

This christmas roast chicken is great to serve with

If you make this recipe, comment and rate it! And take a picture and tag @nutritionistmeetschef on Instagram!

5 from 1 vote

Christmas Roast Chicken

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

1 hr 10 mins

Total Time

1 hr 20 mins

This Christmas Roast Chicken is seasoned with star anise, cloves, cinnamon, orange and maple syrup! Great to make if you're making a christmas meal for a smaller gathering!

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Christmas

Servings: 3 -4

Ingredients

1,1 kg / 2 lbs whole chicken
50 g butter, room temperature
Zest from one orange
Orange juice from 1/4 orange use the zested one
Half an orange cut in two (use the zested one)
1 tsp of ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground star anise
0.5 tsp bay leaf, finely chopped.
1 tsp salt
Pinch of pepper
4 tsp maple syrup

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 200°C fan / 220°C / 428°F
Mix the butter with the spices, salt, orange zest, orange juice and stir until combined.
Rub 2/3 of the butter mix (RESERVE 1/3 of the butter!) under the skin of the chicken and a little over the chicken and inside the chicken .
Place the chicken in a oven proof dish. Rub salt into the cavity and place the 1-2 orange halves + 2 bay leafs inside the chicken.
Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
Whilst the chicken is in the oven, melt the rest of the butter in a saucepan and add the maple syrup. Set aside.
Remove the chicken from the oven and turn it down to 175°C
Brush the melted butter/maple syrup mixture over the chicken and place the chicken in the oven again and bake for an additional 40-50 minutes, or until the juices run clear.
Once cooked, remove from the oven and cover with foil. Leave to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving (read note).

Recipe Notes

For an extra juicy chicken, turn it up side down whilst resting. This may flatten the curvature of the chicken but it will still look good!)
If you want want a gravy you can scrape all the juices from the baking tray and all the juices coming from the bird whilst resting and pour it into a sauce pan. Dissolve a tbsp of cornflour into cold water. Bring the meat juices to a boil and stir the corn flour into the sauce a little at a time whilst stirring until you've reached desired consistency.

Originally posted December 2016. Recipe updated dec-2017 with new pictures, a few changes in the ingredient list and method + video