Don't have a cast iron skillet?

Not a problem! Use a baking dish or a roasting pan instead. Follow the instructions, then, when making the gravy, pour out the chicken fat and drippings and then make the gravy in a small/medium saucepan.

Best kind of chicken to use for roasting:

Some whole chickens in the store will have chickens labeled as "roasters" and others as "fryers". The "roasters" are typically best for roasting, since they are bigger. There are also stewing chickens. Fryers: Chickens 6 to 8 weeks old and weighing 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 pounds Roasters: Chickens less than 8 months old and weighing 3 1/2 to 5 pounds Stewing Chickens: Chickens over 10 months old and weighing 5 to 7 pounds Roasters are the perfect size for roasting. They aren't too small or too big.

Add the garlic at the very end.

If you add the fresh garlic at the very beginning when you season the chicken, the garlic will burn. Adding it at the end, right before it's done cooking, keeps the garlic from burnings and adds a delicious garlic flavor to the chicken.

How to make roast chicken moist and juicy?

1. Don't overcook it. Use an instant read thermometer, and there's no guessing involved. Roast until the chicken reaches 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit in the breast meat and 170-175 degrees Fahrenheit in the thigh meat. If chicken is overcooked, it will be dry, chewy and leathery. 2. Let the chicken rest before carving it. This will allow the juices to redistribute and not all leak out when you cut into it too soon.

Cast Iron Roast Chicken

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Roast a chicken in your cast iron skillet, then make a smooth and flavorful gravy from the pan drippings. This is a simple dinner that is so classic and comforting.

Author: Olga's Flavor Factory
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 75 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Yield: 4-6 1x

Ingredients

Scale

1 whole chicken (3 1/2 – 5 1/2 lbs)

salt, ground black pepper

1 large onion, quartered

1 large garlic head, 3-4 garlic cloves minced and rubbed on the chicken and the rest to be inserted into the chicken cavity

1/2 Tablespoon dry herbs and spices (poultry seasoning, granulated or powdered onion/garlic, dry thyme, parsley, chives, rosemary, etc.) OPTIONAL

Roast Chicken Gravy:

1/4 cup chicken fat (0r butter)

1/4 cup all purpose flour

2 – 2 1/2 cups chicken drippings + broth

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Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Season the chicken on all sides and inside the cavity of the chicken with salt, ground black pepper and any dry herbs and seasonings that you like.
Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the quartered onion and most of the garlic head, leaving a few cloves for later.
Tie the chicken legs (drumsticks) together with kitchen twine and tuck the wing tips behind the chicken. Place the chicken into a cast iron skillet (I use a 12 inch skillet, if you use a smaller chicken, you can use a 10 inch skillet.) You can also use a roasting pan or baking dish instead of the cast iron skillet.
Roast in the preheated oven until the chicken is a few degrees shy of being cooked through completely. Use an instant read thermometer. To be fully cooked, the chicken should be 170-175 degrees Fahrenheit in the center of the thighs and 160-165 F in the breast. Rub the remaining few garlic cloves on top of the chicken, then return to the oven to finish roasting completely. You can also use some of the chicken drippings or olive oil to rub on top of the chicken along with the garlic. It will spread more easily and evenly.
The time will depend on the size of the chicken and your oven. It should be around an hour, but can be less if you are roasting a really small chicken, or sometimes even longer than an hour and a half, if your chicken is large. Mine was about 4.5 lbs and took 70 minutes total.
Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside to rest. Pour out all the chicken drippings into a measuring cup. Set aside for a few minutes. Make the gravy.
The chicken fat should rise to the top. You need about 1/4 cup of fat. Discard the extra fat. If you don’t have enough fat, use additional butter to make up the rest.
Pour the chicken fat/butter into the same skillet and heat up until shimmering. Add the flour and whisk to combine, cooking for just a few minutes, to cook off the raw flour flavor and to give a more concentrated flavor to it.
You need 2 – 2 1/2 cups of chicken drippings. If you don’t have enough, add chicken broth to make up the rest. Pour in slowly into the skillet, whisking vigorously to mix in with the flour, slowly adding more broth. Keep whisking to remove all the lumps. Keep cooking, on medium low heat, until the gravy has thickened and is the consistency that you like. You can use more or less broth, depending on how thick/thin you like your gravy. Add more salt, if needed.
Carve the chicken and serve with the gravy.

Find it online: https://www.olgasflavorfactory.com/autumn-favorites/cast-iron-roast-chicken/