Slow-roasted Greek chicken with potatoes, lemon and oregano. An incredibly simple recipe with only a handful of ingredients that’s delicious and meant for sharing.
You will also love… my Greek Keftedes!
Oven-roasted chicken with potatoes (kotopoulo sto fourno me patates) is a classic Greek recipe that I have grown up on – it graced our Sunday table often during my childhood.
This slow-roasted whole chicken requires little prep and very few ingredients, yet it is so delicious that I am mentally slapping myself for not making it sooner.
One whiff of the intoxicating herby-garlicky aroma and I am ten years old once again, sharing this meal and fighting over who gets the leg. Proust’s madeleines have nothing on this roast chicken!
It is definitely a meal meant for sharing – and meant for lazy Sundays. Because even though it doesn’t mean slaving over a stove, it does need a long roasting time.
I say stick it in the oven and spend the next couple of hours catching up with friends over a glass or wine… or preparing some dessert.
Greek Roast Chicken Ingredients
Since the recipe has such few ingredients it makes sense to use the best quality free-range chicken, good virgin olive oil and Greek oregano if you can find it.
Dried oregano doesn’t have much of a reputation these days, but wild Greek oregano really has a bolder flavour and scent – well worth sourcing if you can.
Now the one thing about Greek cooking is – do not be stingy with the olive oil or the lemons. Pretty much all meals come with lemon wedges on the side and this chicken is a lot more lemony in Greece than the recipe below – use as much or as little as you prefer.
The olive oil and lemon get absorbed by the potatoes which become crispy on the outside and meltingly soft inside. I could eat just the potatoes on their own and be very happy indeed!
PREPARING AND COOKING CHICKEN
A note on preparing the chicken… Most of my life I rinsed the chicken with water and patted it dry before cooking. The recommendations have changed in the UK however and I have now dispensed with the rinsing.
Always be safe when cooking poultry! Make sure the internal temperature of your cooked chicken is 75°C /165° F. Use a meat or instant-read thermometer to check the temperature, inserting into the thickest part of the thigh (not touching the bone). Rest the chicken for 10 minutes before carving to serve.
LOVE GREEK FOOD?
- Soutzoukakia – Greek meatballs in rich tomato sauce
- Greek potato salad
- Lamb kleftiko
- Giouvetsi – Greek Lamb and Orzo Casserole
One-pot Greek Oven–Roasted Chicken and Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1 large whole chicken without giblets preferably free-range (about 1.5kg /3.3lbs)
- 120 ml | 1/2 cup chicken stock or white wine
- 4 floury potatoes such as Maris piper, peeled and chopped into large cubes
- 1 small red onion peeled and halved
- 4 large garlic cloves peeled and crushed
- 3-4 tbsp virgin olive oil or more, as needed
- 2 tsp dried oregano or more, as needed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 lemon
- salt and freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170C (325F).
- Pat the chicken dry with kitchen towels (see above) and then rub all over with olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper and place on a large roasting tin or casserole.
- Squeeze half the lemon over the chicken and place it in the chicken cavity together with the onion and one bay leaf. Sprinkle with the dried oregano and pour a third of the stock into the pan. Cover with foil and roast for 40 minutes.
- Take the pan out of the oven and arrange the potatoes, garlic and other bay around the chicken, drizzling with extra olive oil and seasoning with salt, pepper and more dried oregano. Squeeze the other lemon half over the potatoes, place in the pan, and add a bit more stock to the pan if it is dry. Cover with the foil and roast for another 40 minutes.
- Check the roast, turning the potatoes over. Add more stock if the pan is dry, cover and continue cooking for another 20-30 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender and the chicken juices run clear. Increase the oven temperature to 220C (425F) and cook for a further 5-10 minutes or until the chicken skin crisps up.
- Let the chicken rest, covered with foil, for 10 minutes before carving and serving with the potatoes and a Greek salad on the side.
Notes
Nutritional Info
Theo says
First, I was happy to read a recipe with a realistic cooking time, it was an encouraging start.
Second, I am thrilled, I have been looking for a recipe for this dish for a while!!!! My son said the potatoes were better than our favourite Greek potatoes (from a restaurant).
*I seasoned potatoes before adding to roasting pan
Rachel says
Could I add feta to this dish towards the end?
Lucy Parissi says
Absolutely!
Kellie@kelliesfoodtoglow says
I have a pot of Greek oregano and I knew I could come to you for a recipe using it with chicken. Making this tonight with celeriac instead of potatoes! Looking forward to dinner, 😊
Lucy Parissi says
I need to restock! Thanks for the comment lovely
ANNIE BAKER says
Delicious Greek lemon chicken and an easy recipe to follow.
Kim Sturdivant says
Can skinless boneless chicken breast be used in place of the whole chicken?
Lucy Parissi says
Hi Kim, chicken breast would really dry out if you cooked it this way.
Lee says
Turned out perfectly for us
Kat says
Cook 40, add potatoes cook another 40. Check and cook another 20-30. Raise temp and…QUESTION: Do I REMOVE THE FOIL at this point to brown and crisp? Then place foil back on while resting? OR keep the foil ON the entire time?
Lucy Parissi says
Yes remove foil to brown and crisp.
Katherine says
So good! Thought the potatoes would be mushy, but they came out really good. The whole thing is delicious – perfect level of lemony-ness. It takes a long time to cook but I’ll def make it again
Lucy Parissi says
So glad you liked it! My mum’s recipe 😘
Antony A says
Cooking this right now .. can’t wait to devour!!!!
rookycook says
I’ve always put a rack in the roasting pan so the bottom of the chicken doesn’t get soggy. would that help with this recipe?
Lucy Parissi says
The chicken juices help flavour the potatoes so I prefer to do it without a rack. But can’t see the harm in it either, if that’s your preference
Reba says
Made this for dinner tonight, absolutely delicious. The chicken was perfectly moist and the potatoes were wonderful with the lemon. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Lucy Parissi says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Aj says
Do you think you could do the same with a cut up chicken instead of whole? I hate having to cut the chicken, lol!
Lucy Parissi says
If you cut the chicken up in portions it will need less time to cook. So keep that in mind.
mookies • Mina Limnioudi says
I love Roasted Chicken and Potatoes with lemons. It's so delicious and almost traditional, reminds me a similar recipe that we have in my family too. A classic Greek dish!
Choclette Blogger says
This reminds me of my mother's long slow cooking in the aga when I was young, not that she used anything as exotic as lemons! Those potatoes sound totally lush.
Kate Hackworthy says
One-pot meals are so easy and flavourful. I love the heady aromas of oregano, too.