Honey Orange Roasted Chicken Recipe
Honey Orange Roasted Chicken Recipe nestled in grilled spring vegetables and topped it with honey orange gravy.
One of the very first things I learned to cook was roasted chicken. And of course being the over-achiever that I am, I immediately followed my mild success with a roasted turkey that I burnt to a crisp.
Such is life. It’s in failure that we learn.
For instance, I learned very quickly that when cooking a bird, stuffing flavor underneath the skin makes a huge difference in the final results… And so does setting the timer. *wink*
There are few dinners as comforting as chicken and gravy.
My family is never short on excitement when they walk in the door and smell the aroma of roasted chicken wafting from the oven. And if there is to be gravy in the mix? Well then, I might as well pull out my tiara for the evening.
This Honey Orange Roasted Chicken Recipe is one of my personal favorites.
I made a simple honey butter with orange zest and massaged it underneath the skin. That way, while the chicken is roasting in the oven the butter is crisping the skin from below and running down over the meat to saturate it with sweet zesty flavor!
The skin gets dark, even brittle in some places, locking in the juicy goodness.
I roasted the chicken in my Swiss Diamond Saute Pan because it’s non-stick so I don’t have to worry about the chicken sticking to the sides of the pan. Plus, it can go from the oven to the stove top for quick gravy making.
I also used a Swiss Diamond Double Burner Grill Pan to grill some fresh spring asparagus and green beans indoors!
This pan is a great alternative to outdoor grilling, and much faster to preheat.
In this Honey Orange Roasted Chicken Recipe the combination of the succulent chicken and fresh green veggies, smothered in sweet buttery gravy with a hint of orange zest, tastes like a cherished childhood memory.
I could eat this every week and never get tired of it.
And the pans? Incredible!
I was recently introduced to Swiss Diamond Cookware and after trying it, I cannot believe I’ve been without good non-stick cookware this long.
I’d been searching for a safe and eco-friendly non-stick skillet and kept coming up short. I found that if the product was truly healthy, the non-stick surface was sort of a joke.
Then I tried my first Swiss Diamond skillet…
Each piece is formed out of pressure cast aluminum and coated in a PFOA-free non-stick surface made with real diamond crystals. Not only are they non-stick, they are 100% recyclable, as if you would ever want to get rid of these babies.
The diamond coating is a rivit-free surface so bacteria and build-up simply cannot occur. The diamonds also make this cookware a marvelous heat conductor with real lasting-power. Swiss Diamond has won numerous awards for their cookware and is coined the “Rolls-Royce of Nonstick Fry Pans” by the Wall Street Journal.
But I digress, if you are looking for a tantalizing classic chicken dinner to serve this spring, Honey Orange Roasted Chicken Recipe is a sure win!
Honey Orange Roasted Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
For the Honey Orange Roast Chicken:
- 7-8 pound chicken, whole
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 small orange, such as a clementine
- Salt and pepper
For the Honey Orange Gravy:
- Pan juices from chicken
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 2 cups chicken stock
- Salt and pepper
For the Grilled Spring Veggies:
- 12 ounces thin french green beans (haricot vert) trimmed
- 12 ounces thin baby asparagus, trimmed
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Remove the neck and gizzards from inside the chicken. Place the chicken in a small dry skillet and pat the skin dry with paper towels. Slide a regular tablespoon, curved side down, underneath the skin of the chicken. Run the spoon along the breast to loosen the skin on both sides, and down over the drumsticks. Then mix the butter, honey, and the zest of one orange with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Mash the ingredients in a small bowl until well combined. Use the spoon to deposit the butter mixture underneath the skin of the chicken. Place as much of the butter as possible over the breast meat and drumsticks. Then press the skin to smooth. Rub any remaining butter over the outside of the skin and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Slice the orange and place it inside the chicken.
- Roast the chicken for 45 minutes to crisp up the skin, then lower the heat to 350 degree F. If the skin is brown, cover the chicken loosely with foil and continue roasting for another 75 - 90 minutes. (My chicken was exactly 8 pounds and it was finished in 2 hours total.) To test the chicken for doneness, stick a knife down between the drumstick and the breast. If the juices run out clear, the chicken is ready.
- Remove the chicken from the oven and carefully lift it out of the juices. Place it on a platter and cover with foil to keep it warm.
- While the chicken is roasting, place a large grill pan over two burners and turn them both on medium heat. Lay the asparagus and green beans on the grill pan and sear until the color has intensified and grill marks have formed. Flip once and salt and pepper. Cook the veggies until just cooked through, so they are bright green and firm. Approximately 6-10 minutes.
- Place the sauté pan with the chicken juices over another burner. Heat the burner to medium heat and whisk in the flour. Add the chicken stock, then salt and pepper to taste. (You may need as much as 3/4 teaspoon salt, depending on how salty the juices and stock are. Start with a little salt and add more.) Bring the gravy to a boil and whisk. Continue simmering and stirring until the gravy is thick enough to coat a spoon.
- To serve: Cut the chicken into pieces and distribute onto plates. Spoon the grilled veggies next to the chicken and drizzle honey orange gravy over both the chicken and veggies.
Nutrition
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Swiss Diamond Cookware. All opinions are my own.
I like using non stick pans for French toast and eggs
eggs!
I love cooking pancakes when they don’t stick.
Grilled cheese sandwich!
I’ve used just about EVERY type of non stick pan in my many, many years of cooking (I’m 64 BTW so have been cooking forever!) I make an ‘orange chicken’ recipe that is ‘saucy’ but having a roast chicken receipe is great! Thanks for that and enter me in the give away! Thanks
I need a good chicken recipe and this one looks amazing, Sommer!
I’ve tried every cooking pan there is, they all have flaws. It would be nice to have a decent grill pan as I don’t use an outside grill unless i’m camping!
Scrambled eggs..
fried egg!
eggs!! or quesadillas!
(also this chicken is stunning!!!)
lemon chicken
I really love being able to use non stick mans for most things since it is not only easier for the cooking/prep part but also clean up. My favorite thing to use non stick pots/pans for it when i reheat things like pasta and or eggplant parmagiana that has the sauce and cheese on it already and then i usually add lots more cheese anyway which could really be a stuck on mess with regular cookware. Non stick allows the food to pretty much slide out onto the dish without chiseling away at it or loss of the cheese to the pot. Thank you for this opportunity
I cook everything in nonstick! Makes clean up so much easier!
My favorite dish to cook on a non-stick surface is lemon pepper tilapia!
We eat a lot of scambled eggs.
We love to make Reubens on our nonstick griddle.
French toast!
Great chicken recipe!