Roast Chicken With Maple Butter and Rosemary

By Colu Henry

Roast Chicken With Maple Butter and Rosemary
Con Poulos for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
1 hour
Rating
5(5,214)
Comments
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This simple roast chicken combines the classic fall flavors of maple and rosemary with melted butter, which is basted over the bird as it cooks to keep it juicy. The butter browns slightly and helps caramelize the outside thanks to the sugars in the maple syrup. The result is a fragrant, sweet-and-salty chicken that makes the house smell great. There will be plenty of buttery pan juices left over, which you should most certainly pass around the table, but they would also be delicious spooned over rice pilaf.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1(3½-pound) whole chicken
  • Kosher salt and black pepper
  • 2 to 3rosemary sprigs, plus 2½ teaspoons finely chopped rosemary
  • 4tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2tablespoons maple syrup
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

716 calories; 53 grams fat; 19 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 20 grams monounsaturated fat; 9 grams polyunsaturated fat; 8 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 51 grams protein; 990 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Pat the chicken dry and season it well with salt and pepper, both inside and out. Place the chicken breast-side up in a 10-inch cast-iron or ovenproof skillet and stuff the rosemary sprigs into the bird's cavity.

  2. Step 2

    In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the chopped rosemary and the maple syrup, and cook together until the rosemary is fragrant and the mixture has thickened slightly, about 1 to 2 minutes. Spoon all of the mixture over the chicken, making sure it is evenly covered. A decent amount will end up on the bottom of the pan, and that’s O.K.

  3. Step 3

    Roast the chicken, basting with the pan juices every 15 to 20 minutes or so, until the chicken is glossy and golden brown and registers 165 degrees with an instant thermometer in the thickest part of the thigh, about 55 to 60 minutes. Remove from the oven and baste an additional time, if desired. Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before carving. Whisk remaining juice and pass at the table.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
5,214 user ratings
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Comments

Gail

Preheat the skillet in the oven; the thighs will cook, quicker, allowing the chicken to be done when the breast meat is still moist. That is the whole point of cooking a chicken in a skillet.

Margaux Laskey, Staff Editor

Ridiculously easy and so so so very good using supermarket-brand real maple syrup. I roasted broccoli and potatoes on a sheet pan on the rack beneath the chicken. I didn't have a ton of buttery drippings left over, but those I did have, I drizzled over the taters.

Alissa

Added sage to the butter basting, and took the apricots and apples suggestion. Doubled the butter and maple syrup amounts to have plenty of gravy. Whisked gravy with a bit of heavy cream. RAVE reviews and requests for the recipe!

Ali

Based on the comments I decided to give it a try . The recipe didn’t live up to the hype . A basic roast chicken would have been an improvement.

Kil

This was excellent and extremely simple to make. Second the recommendation to preheat the skillet in the oven, and suggest turning drippings+butter into a full pan sauce afterward, as it's a bit heavy otherwise (I just added mustard, but some diced shallot would have been great as well)

Stacey

We loved this simple but delicious recipe. Easy to make with ingredients we always have on hand. I made it in a pyrex baking dish as we don't have a cast iron skillet and it turned out crispy on the outside and moist inside, reaching 165 degrees in 50 minutes. I added a half cup of chicken broth to the pan during the last 30 minutes and and mixed the drippings with some half and half to make an easy gravy. Served with boxed stuffing mix and asparagus. My hubs raved about it. Definitely a keeper.

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