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Home - Chicken - Marry Me Roast Chicken – A Recipe For Every Girl & Guy

Marry Me Roast Chicken – A Recipe For Every Girl & Guy

Win their heart with this foolproof, simple recipe for roast chicken with lemon and herbs.

Marry Me Roast Chicken

Glamour Magazine’s cult recipe for Engagement Chicken has made the rounds over the years.

I saw a promo for the book, 100 Recipes Every Woman Should Know, which includes this “iconic” roast chicken.

Reputedly this chicken is the impetus for dozens upon dozens of proposals as well as what I’m guessing is an infinite number of unreported but nonetheless passionate, chicken-fueled moments.

Kimberly Bonnell, a former editor at Glamour, takes credit for the popular dissemination of the recipe.

Here’s the thing: I noticed right away that the recipe was almost the exact replica of an unbelieveably simple, ultra-classic one from the Italian cooking teacher and author, Marcella Hazan.

I first came across it in 1992, when it appeared in the Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, a book I’d most certainly grab on the way out of my house if it was burning down.

I cut my chicken-roasting teeth on Marcella’s foolproof chicken.

It’s undergone an evolution in my own kitchen, still very true to the basic original but tweaked to my taste.

Over the years, I’ve added garlic and handfuls of fresh herbs to the chicken, and reversed the oven temperature steps.

Marcella starts her chicken in a preheated 350 oven, but I like to get my bird nice and hot right away to ensure crisp, golden skin – 425 degrees – before turning it down to finish roasting.

The smell that comes out of the oven while this little bird is cooking will draw everyone into the kitchen, if not begging for your hand, then at least drooling for a bit of juicy leg.

Yield: 2 - 4 servings

Marry Me Roast Chicken with Lemon, Garlic and Herbs

Marry Me Roast Chicken with Lemon, Garlic and Herbs

A classic roast chicken recipe, a/k/a Engagement Chicken, is simply seasoned with lemon, garlic and herbs. They'll love you forever!

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 (3-4 pound) whole chicken
  • 4 teaspoons kosher salt (I use Diamond brand) or coarse sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 small head garlic, sliced in half
  • 1 small lemon, punctured about a dozen times with a skewer
  • 1 handful mixed fresh herb bunches - rosemary, thyme, tarragon and/or lavender are good

Instructions

  1. Pat the chicken dry with towels and place on a small rack on a shallow casserole or roasting pan. I use a quarter-sheet pan, which is the perfect size.
  2. Put 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 the pepper, garlic, lemon and herbs into the cavity. Rub the remaining salt and pepper all over the skin; front, sides and back. Tie the legs together firmly with a piece of kitchen string.
  3. Turn the chicken breast side down, and let it sit out at room temperature while you preheat the oven to 425 degrees, for at least 20 minutes.
  4. When the oven is hot, put the chicken in and roast for 25 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven and carefully turn it so the breast is facing up. Put it back into the oven, turn the temperature down to 350 and roast for about 25 more minutes. The chicken will be sizzling and spitting, the legs joints will wiggle and skin should be golden and crisp. You can take its temperature if you're unsure - 160 -165 degrees before resting is my preference.
  5. Take the chicken out of the oven and let it rest, loosely covered with a piece of aluminum foil for 15 minutes. Carve and serve with reserved juices from the pan and the inside of the chicken.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 55 Total Fat: 2g Saturated Fat: 1g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 13mg Sodium: 375mg Carbohydrates: 5g Net Carbohydrates: 0g Fiber: 2g Sugar: 1g Sugar Alcohols: 0g Protein: 5g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by Nutritionix. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee accuracy. If your health depends on nutrition information, please calculate with your favorite calculator.
© Familystyle Food
Cuisine: american

Chicken lemon, rosemary

About Familystyle Food

Hi there, I’m karen.

Home chef, food photographer, certified holistic nutritionist.

I’m a mom of two living and working in the NYC suburbs. When I’m not creating recipes, you can find me snuggling with my dog, Poppy and eating homemade popcorn.

Learn more here.

Get all the recipes here.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. JMarie White says

    March 21, 2016 at 4:21 pm

    Should the chicken be placed on a rack?

    Reply
    • karen Tedesco says

      March 21, 2016 at 10:38 pm

      With or without a rack will work just fine.

      Reply
  2. rhonda jean says

    June 7, 2011 at 5:34 pm

    Wish me luck going to try baking this for my awesome boyfriend. Rhonda in Anchorage Alaksa

    Reply
  3. Liza says

    May 10, 2011 at 3:53 pm

    Scott’s been making me this chicken (more or less) every week for the past few months! And I married him!

    Reply
    • Karen says

      May 19, 2011 at 8:08 am

      Yes, it must be the chicken! Even though you married him way before poultry came between you…

      Reply
  4. Debbie says

    May 9, 2011 at 8:51 pm

    We spend our winters in Arizona, not only is there an abundance of sunshine but there is also an abundance of lemons (some are the size of grapefruits)! We were ready to plant a lemon tree in our yard when we realized all our neighbors have them. I’ve made this recipe many times (can’t remember where I got it from – possibly Good Housekeeping magazine). First time I made this, I was in love…..and everyone who eats it feels the same way. We’re back in NYS for the summer, and I need to make this for my family. Thanks for reminding me how much I love this chicken.

    Reply
    • Karen says

      May 19, 2011 at 8:09 am

      Debbie, thanks for sharing that! Sometimes we forget how the simplest food can be the most satisfying, that we turn to again and again.

      Reply
  5. Kristy Wendt says

    May 9, 2011 at 9:47 am

    My mom gave me an herb garden for mother’s day and this recipe will definitely put it to good use. Yum!

    Reply
  6. Smalltown Mom says

    May 8, 2011 at 10:52 pm

    Well, I’ve cooked chicken with similar flavorings for the 30 years my husband and I have been together. Most recently last Friday. It’s always been a hit.

    I have not, however, done the ultra hot oven and the turning bit, so I think the next time I bake chicken I will mix it up/turn it like this and who knows, we’ll probably be good for another 30.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. baked creamy chicken pasta with spinach and fontina | familystyle food says:
    February 9, 2018 at 3:55 pm

    […] need about a cup of cooked chicken — Use shredded leftover roast chicken (here’s one of my go-to recipes) or you can make the process even easier and use  shredded store-bought rotisserie […]

    Reply
  2. spinach, chicken and pasta al forno | familystyle food says:
    March 11, 2015 at 1:21 pm

    […] enough of a chill in my house that cooking things in the oven seems like a good idea. I usually roast a chicken at least once a week, throughout the year and into the summer when instead of heating up the house […]

    Reply
  3. venetian chocolate walnut cake |familystylefood|recipe says:
    May 27, 2013 at 9:57 am

    […] read the recipe title for Roast Chicken with Two Lemons (a version of that chicken appeared here as Marry Me Roast Chicken) to be reminded that no matter how discouraging a day seems, a person can always replenish the soul […]

    Reply

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