Our #1 Chicken Recipe of All Time Will Change Your Dinner Routine—and Maybe Your Life!

Few things deserve the comfort food label more than a simple roast chicken, especially when paired with hearty potatoes and root vegetables. We've got a lot of excellent chicken recipes, so why is this one hands-down our most popular? Readers return to this recipe all the time for several good reasons. It's perfect for every occasion, from entertaining to an any-night dinner. It is satisfying to eat and simple to prepare. It's also a one-pan meal that requires little cleanup and even less hands-on effort—and it's budget-friendly. The whole family will be happy to see this substantial roast chicken and vegetable dish grace your table week after week.

Our Best Chicken Recipe

Readers seem to agree. Our Roast Chicken With Vegetables and Potatoes ticks all the boxes; it's a five-star recipe and one of the most sought-after dishes in the Martha Stewart collection. This is why it's a winner:

• Crowd-pleaser: Weeknight dinners are where an easy roast chicken dish really shines. While it takes some time for the chicken to cook, it's totally worth it. It feels special and hungry kids and parents can choose between light and dark meat and fill their plate with perfectly tender vegetables that roast in the chicken drippings. Dinner party guests will be pleasantly surprised when you serve this as a main dish. Oftentimes, we expect something over-the-top, but a simple chicken dinner is always a welcome treat. 
• One-pan wonder: We love a one-dish dinner and so do you. Anything that doesn’t require many extra dishes is a lifesaver, no matter the occasion. With our best chicken recipe, everything roasts together in the same baking dish–even the lemons that are squeezed over the top of the dish for serving. 
• Hands-off cooking: The only prep you really have to do for this recipe is cut up the vegetables and season the chicken. Surround the bird with the carrots, shallots, and potatoes, then place the pan in the oven. Set it and forget it–all you have to worry about is slicing the meat once it’s cooked. 
• Versatile: The simplicity of this dish is its greatest gift. It’s so easy to experiment and try new things. With this recipe as a template, vary the meat, the combination of vegetables, serve it with different sauces—the options are endless.

Variations

Let’s start with the chicken itself: If you don’t want to bother with a whole chicken, feel free to use chicken breasts, thighs, or a combination of parts. Whichever you chose, we recommend using bone-in, skin-on pieces since they will retain their moisture much better. And, keep in mind that individual pieces will cook much faster than a whole chicken, so roast the vegetables for a good 20 to 30 minutes before adding the meat. 

Other vegetables to use: This recipe uses carrots, shallots, and fingerling potatoes, but you can use any vegetables you like.

• Instead of carrots, try parsnips, beet wedges, or halved Brussels sprouts—or use your other favorite root vegetables.
• Replace the shallots with wedges of equally sweet red or Vidalia onions.
• Swap the fingerling potatoes for halved baby potatoes or 1-inch chunks of russet, Yukon gold, or red potatoes.

4 Tips for Perfect Roast Chicken

Once you know how, roasting a chicken quickly becomes one of the easiest kitchen tasks. Here's how to get it right every time. 

1. Brine the chicken: This recipe utilizes a technique known as dry brining, where the chicken is seasoned generously with salt and left in the refrigerator overnight. This way, the salt slowly permeates every layer of the meat, so each bite will be perfectly seasoned. A wet brine works, as well. 
2. Bring the bird to room temperature: For a more even cook, the best thing you can do is let the chicken come to room temperature before roasting. When a cold bird hits a hot oven, the outside will inevitably cook more quickly than the inside, resulting in either parts that are dry or parts that are undercooked. 
3. Pat it dry: Before roasting, pat the outside of the chicken dry with a paper towel. The drier the skin, the crispier it will become. 
4. Let the meat rest: The vegetables will take a bit more time to cook than the chicken, so let it rest for a few minutes on the cutting board while they finish up in the oven. Letting the meat rest will keep it more moist; if you cut into it right away, all of the juices will spill out, leaving you with dry chicken.