Chicken is such a wallet-friendly ingredient. But, it can get kind of boring it you serve it the same way every time. For some easy dinner ideas using chicken, check out our list of Budget-Friendly Chicken Recipes.

Dutch Oven Whole Roast Chicken Recipe

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Dutch Oven Whole Roast Chicken Ingredients:

You can get the full list of ingredients with measurements in the recipe card below.

• Onion – Either a white onion or yellow onion works. You really need this to provide a bed for the chicken to rest on so it doesn’t get stuck to the pan.
• Whole chicken – A 4- to 6-pound chicken is what I always aim for because that fits best in a Dutch oven.
• Unsalted butter – You can substitute half unsalted butter and half olive oil.
• Salt – Salt helps to get the crunchy skin.
• Garlic powder
• Fresh thyme – Fresh thyme gives a really good flavor that you don’t get from dried herbs.

How To Make A Dutch Oven Whole Roast Chicken:

Pre-heat the oven to 425 F.

Cut the onion into slices and put them in the bottom of the Dutch oven.

You’ll want to do this to raise the chicken off the bottom of the Dutch oven. That way, you end up with really tasty skin on the bottom of the chicken, not just the top. If you don’t do this, you run the risk of the skin of the chicken sticking to the bottom of the Dutch oven.

Quick note: I make this recipe a lot. The standard and frugal way I do it is with just an onion at the bottom, like this recipe. But I also add chopped carrots (chopped as sticks) to the bottom too because the soft carrots are actually my favorite part.

Clean your chicken.

Quick note: This definitely means pulling out the giblet bag and discarding it (or saving it to cook with, if you know how). It also means rinsing the chicken and patting it dry with a paper towel, depending on what the spirits of your ancestors tell you to do. Honestly, the washing vs. not washing argument runs deep. So do what feels right in your soul.

Melt the butter in a small bowl. Add a half tablespoon of salt, the garlic powder, and three of the sprigs of thyme to it. Stir.

Quick note: As noted above, you can use half butter and half olive oil. The butter will add a great flavor and the oil has a higher smoke point, so it’s a good combination.

Use a pastry brush to brush the bottom of the chicken with the melted butter.

Place the chicken into the Dutch oven (on top of the onions) and brush the outside of the chicken with the remaining butter.

Stick the remaining sprigs of thyme into the cavity of the chicken. If there’s any melted butter left, brush it inside the chicken.

Sprinkle the remaining salt (1 tablespoon) on the top of the chicken.

Put the lid on the Dutch oven and put the entire Dutch oven into the oven. Cook for one hour.

Take off the lid and brush some of the juice from the pan drippings onto the chicken.

Quick side note: Make sure you have washed the pastry brush before you do this. You absolutely don’t want to be brushing raw chicken on top.

Cook for an additional 30 minutes.

That’s the secret to crispy skin, by the way. Taking the lid off and cooking it for the remaining 30 minutes without a lid starts to really crisp up the skin. Letting the chicken rest finishes crisping the skin as well.

Use a meat thermometer to make sure the internal temperature is 165 F. You want to stick it into the thickest part of the thigh and the thickest part of the breast to check the temperature. Make sure you’re not hitting any bone because the bone will read higher than the meat.

Depending on the size of the chicken, the cooking process may take a little longer or shorter, so make sure you check the chicken’s temperature before serving.

Let the roasted chicken rest for about 20 minutes before cutting it.

Before you serve the chicken, mix some of the pan drippings with either flour or corn starch to make a gravy. That will thicken it and be a delicious gravy you can pour on top of the chicken.

Dutch Oven Whole Roast Chicken: Frequently Asked Questions

More Easy Dutch Oven Recipes:

A Dutch oven is a really big investment. They’re not cheap. But, they cook so well and are really worth the money.

We love to use our Dutch oven to make soup, like our Lasagna Soup, One Pot Sausage Potato Soup, and our French Onion Soup. You can also use it when you’re making a one-pot meal, like our One Pot Sausage Pasta recipe.

A lot of people also use it to make homemade bread (but I personally prefer to make bread on a pizza stone, but that’s just me).

More Whole Chicken Recipes:

If you’re looking for another way to make a whole chicken, try our Grilled Beer Can Chicken.