Crispy Italian Roast Chicken and Potatoes

Cook super juicy and tender Italian roast chicken and potatoes with no oil at all! It’s dry roasted in the oven to perfection, leaving you with the ultimate crispy skin. It’s the set and forget roast dinner recipe you’ve been looking for.

Why We Love This

There’s nothing better than smelling a Sunday roast in the oven and having the family over for dinner. Especially one that’s pretty hands off when it comes to roasting.

With no oil required, it’s a matter of coating the chicken in salt and herb goodness, before popping it in the oven and waiting for that magic crispy skin to emerge.

Related: Cauliflower Cheese / Rolled Lamb Roast with Dukkah

What is Italian Roasted Chicken? 

Italian Roast Chicken is dry brined in salt and herbs with no oil at all. This results in a very crispy skin and succulent meat, cooked to absolute perfection. The herbs used are sage and rosemary, accompanied with a hit of garlic and black pepper.

Where We Learned This Recipe

This was a discovery in the heart of Naples, right amongst all the dough and fried pizza we were feasting on.

We were feeling pretty lucky to have summer dresses packed away in our travel bags suitable for a last minute invite to our first Italian wedding! They could pass, if you squinted, as something suitable to wear to such a big occasion.

So there we found ourselves sitting down at a table surrounded by our new Italian family, happily extending plate after plate of homemade Italian fare. Between courses of savoury pizza scrolls, roast chicken, and more refreshing salads than you could poke a fork at, we sipped glasses of red wine and toasted the bride and groom.

Ida’s Uncle soon joined our table, taking the last seat left next to us, and in true Italian fashion our conversation quickly turned to food.

“I have an amazing recipe, much better than this stuff,” he mumbled between mouthfuls of roast chicken. “But I will not share it with you. Haha. Oh no. TWENTY YEARS it took for my friend to get my secret recipe from me! You won’t get it that easily.”

We took one look at each other and grinned. Challenge accepted. >> Fast forward 10 minutes >>

“Okay. Okay, I will tell you this special recipe bella.” Success! We made sure to write down every word. Huzzah! Secret Italian Roast Chicken recipe acquired. While we have made a few adjustments, the recipe really did turn out absolutely incredible.

What You’ll Need

Get out your roasting pan, it’s time to cook up a storm!

• Chicken – We’re roasting a whole chicken today! Our recipe is based on a 1.5kg (3.3 lb) chook, but you can adjust your cooking time to suit a bigger or smaller bird.
• Coarse Salt – Coarse salt works best, as it’s easier to brush off of the skin once the chicken is ready to cook.
• Herbs – Fresh is the most fragrant and will really help to soak the flavours into the skin and meat. Gather up fresh rosemary, sage and garlic and chop!

How to make Italian Roast Chicken:

For the Seasoning:

1. Pour the coarse salt into a bowl, then add in your chopped garlic, sage and rosemary, and mix well.1/4 cup coarse sea salt, 4 cloves garlic, 1 handful fresh sage, 1 handful rosemary

To Prepare the Chicken:

2. Massage the herb and salt seasoning all over the chicken skin, making sure it’s well and truly coated.1.5 kg whole roasting chicken
3. Cover and pop in the fridge for 3 hours. Take it out of the fridge 1 hour before cooking to help bring it back up to room temperature.

To Roast the Chicken:

4. Preheat oven to 250˚C (480˚F). Yep. That is going to be one hot oven for roasting this chicken.
5. Meanwhile pop your potatoes and onions into a roasting pan and use them to create a nice base for your chicken.1 onion, 5 potatoes
6. Brush all the salt off the chicken. Place the chicken on top of the potatoes (breast side down to start) then pop the tray into the oven. Allow half an hour of cooking per 500 g (1.1 lb) of chicken, so 1.5kg (3.3 lb) = 1.5 hours. We’re cooking the chicken on top of the potatoes to stop the skin sticking to the pan and to flavour the potatoes with all that gorgeous roasting jus.
7. At the halfway point, flip the chicken and vegetables over then pop it back in the oven. This will allow that gorgeous skin to turn into crispy, golden brown deliciousness.
8. Once the chicken is done, take it out of the oven and wrap it up in some aluminium foil. For the juiciest, tastiest and most tender chicken ever, allow it to rest for at least 10 minutes covered in aluminium foil before you dive in. 😉

Wandercook’s Tips

• Chicken Size – Allow half an hour of cooking per 500 g / 1.1 lb of chicken.
• Hot Oven – This is crucial. We really do mean 250°C (480°F)! Get that oven hot guys – that’s what gives you a crispy chicken skin while keeping the moisture in the chook!
• Timing (Based on 1.5kg Chicken) –
  • 11:30am: Prepare the seasoning to allow the flavours to develop.
  • 12:30pm: Massage the salt into the chicken, then pop into the fridge to dry brine for 3 hours.
  • 3:30pm: Remove the chicken from the fridge to bring up the meat temperature.
  • 4:30pm: Pop the chicken into the oven and prepare any other side dishes or salads to go with dinner.
  • 6pm: Serve and eat!
• Perfect Pairs – Make a quick Greek salad or shopska salad to serve alongside.

FAQs

Variations & Substitutes

• Switch up the Protein – You can use this recipe with lamb, beef or pork if you prefer.
• Herbs – While we’ve used rosemary and sage in our recipe, feel free to experiment with other herbs like oregano, thyme or a sprinkling of ground black pepper. Or try it with a sprinkling of dukkah for an extra crispy crust.
• Leftover Chicken? – Use it up in homemade chicken pasta bake.

Italian favourites to cook up in the kitchen next:

★ Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating below!

Crispy Italian Roast Chicken And Potatoes

Cook super juicy and tender Italian roast chicken and potatoes with no oil at all! It's dry roasted in the oven to perfection, leaving you with the ultimate crispy skin. It's the set and forget roast dinner recipe you've been looking for.

4.92 from 12 votes

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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Resting Time: 3 hours hours

Total Time: 1 hour hour 40 minutes minutes

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 407kcal

Author: Wandercooks

Cost: $15

Equipment

• ▢
  Mixing Bowl(s)
• ▢
  Roasting pan

Ingredients

• ▢ 1.5 kg whole roasting chicken skin-on
• ▢ 5 potatoes medium size, peeled and halved
• ▢ 1 onion peeled and quartered

For the Seasoning

• ▢ 1/4 cup coarse sea salt
• ▢ 4 cloves garlic roughly chopped
• ▢ 1 handful fresh sage roughly chopped
• ▢ 1 handful rosemary roughly chopped

Metric – US Customary

Instructions

For the Seasoning:

• Pour the coarse salt into a bowl, then add in your chopped garlic, sage and rosemary, and mix well.
  1/4 cup coarse sea salt, 4 cloves garlic, 1 handful fresh sage, 1 handful rosemary

To Prepare the Chicken:

• Massage the herb and salt seasoning all over the chicken skin, making sure it’s well and truly coated.
  1.5 kg whole roasting chicken
• Cover and pop in the fridge for 3 hours. Take it out of the fridge 1 hour before cooking to help bring it back up to room temperature.

To Roast the Chicken:

• Preheat the oven to 250˚C (480˚F). Yep. That is going to be one hot oven for roasting this chicken.
• Meanwhile pop your potatoes and onions into a roasting pan and use them to create a nice base for your chicken.
  1 onion, 5 potatoes
• Brush all the salt off the chicken. Place the chicken on top of the potatoes (breast side down to start) then pop the tray into the oven. Allow half an hour of cooking per 500 g (1.1 lb) of chicken, so 1.5kg (3.3 lb) = 1.5 hours. We’re cooking the chicken on top of the potatoes to stop the skin sticking to the pan and to flavour the potatoes with all that gorgeous roasting jus.
• At the halfway point, flip the chicken and vegetables over then pop it back in the oven. This will allow that gorgeous skin to turn into crispy, golden brown deliciousness.
• Once the chicken is done, take it out of the oven and wrap it up in some aluminium foil. For the juiciest, tastiest and most tender chicken ever, allow it to rest for at least 10 minutes covered in aluminium foil before you dive in. 😉

Video

Recipe Notes

• Chicken – We’re doing a whole roast chicken today! Our recipe is based on a 1.5kg (3.3 lb) chook, but you can adjust your cooking time to suit a bigger or smaller bird. Allow half an hour of cooking per 500 g / 1.1 lb of chicken.
• Hot Oven – This is crucial. We really do mean 250°C (480°F)! Get that oven hot guys – that’s what gives you a crispy skin while keeping the moisture in the chook!
• Timing (Based on 1.5kg Chicken) –
  • 11:30am: Prepare the seasoning to allow the flavours to develop.
  • 12:30pm: Massage the salt into the chicken, then pop into the fridge to dry brine for 3 hours.
  • 3:30pm: Remove the chicken from the fridge to bring up the meat temperature.
  • 4:30pm: Pop the chicken into the oven and prepare any other side dishes or salads to go with dinner.
  • 6pm: Serve and eat!
• Switch up the Protein – You can use this recipe with lamb, beef or pork if you prefer.
• Herbs – While we’ve used rosemary and sage in our recipe, feel free to experiment with other herbs like oregano and thyme.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Crispy Italian Roast Chicken And Potatoes

Amount per Serving

Calories

407

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

27

g

42

%

Saturated Fat

 

8

g

50

%

Trans Fat

 

1

g

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

6

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

11

g

Cholesterol

 

135

mg

45

%

Sodium

 

7201

mg

313

%

Potassium

 

407

mg

12

%

Carbohydrates

 

4

g

1

%

Fiber

 

1

g

4

%

Sugar

 

1

g

1

%

Protein

 

34

g

68

%

Vitamin A

 

261

IU

5

%

Vitamin C

 

6

mg

7

%

Calcium

 

56

mg

6

%

Iron

 

2

mg

11

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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