Garlic butter flavored anything is delicious and usually becomes a favorite for me. That was definitely true with this yummy garlic butter chicken! Chicken is always a win with my kids and I can do so much with the leftover chicken. We enjoy this garlic butter roasted chicken a few times a month and everyone loves it!

I love meals that require little prep time and makes leftovers for another meal. If you are into meal prepping, this is a great recipe to make one night and enjoy leftovers the next. Along with very little prep time, there are only a handful of ingredients you will need to complete the dish, making it a very low maintenance entree.

What is garlic butter chicken? 

Garlic butter chicken is a whole roasted chicken cooked in the oven and seasoned with butter, garlic and other select spices. The spice selection can be altered depending on your personal preferences and you can make the flavoring your own. Don’t let cooking a whole chicken intimidate you, this chicken recipe is super easy!    

Garlic butter roasted chicken ingredients 

It doesn’t take much at all to make this amazing garlic butter chicken! Recipes such as these are my favorites because I don’t have to have an abundant amount of ingredients to make a dinner my family will absolutely love. Here’s what you will need:

• 3 lb Whole Chicken
• 1/4 cup Butter, room temperature
• 3-6 Cloves Garlic, peeled and smashed (to taste)
• Salt and Pepper, to taste
• 1 teaspoon Dried Rosemary
• 1 teaspoon Dried Sage

How to make a whole chicken in the oven

One of the best parts about making this garlic butter chicken is there is very little prep time. It only takes me about 5-10 minutes to prepare my chicken to be put in the oven. Here’s what you need to do:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375F.

Step 2: In a small bowl, mix together the butter, smashed garlic and seasonings.

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Step 3: Use your hands or an inverted spoon to carefully separate the chicken’s skin from the breast, being careful not to rip the chicken skin.

Step 4: Rub half of the garlic butter mixture underneath the chicken skin directly on the chicken breasts.

Step 5: Rub the remaining garlic butter mixture all over the chicken and then place in a casserole dish.

Step 6: Roast the chicken for 40-45 minutes. If the chicken starts to brown too much before it reaches an internal temperature of 165F, cover the chicken with tin foil or parchment.

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Step 7: To ensure chicken is fully cooked, insert a meat thermometer into a few thick places of the chicken to ensure the chicken has reached a temperature of 165F.

Step 8: Allow the chicken to rest after roasting for 5-10 minutes before slicing up and serving.

What size chicken do I need? 

It would be best to use a chicken that’s about 3 lbs. If you want to use a chicken that is a little smaller or bigger, that’s ok. You will just want to make sure you are adjusting your cook time accordingly and making sure you check your chicken a little more often to make sure it’s not over or under cooking. The internal temperature should be 165 degrees at the thickest part of the bird.

Can I use other spices? 

You can! It is really easy with this garlic butter chicken recipe to put your own twist on it and add (or even take away) spices as you wish. Sometimes I even make it without garlic, per my daughter’s request. Just make sure the spices you use will compliment each other, otherwise you may end up overpowering the natural flavor of the chicken with too much spice.

How long do I cook the chicken in the oven?

This can be a tricky question, especially if the chicken is more or less than 3 lbs. For best results, you will want to frequently check the internal temperature and the browning of the chicken. About 40-45 minutes is all the time you need but you may have to adjust the time, depending on the size of your chicken. The internal temperature should be 165 degrees.

Side dish recommendations

Every amazing entree has equally amazing side dishes to compliment it and this delicious garlic butter chicken recipe is no exception. Here are a few favorite side dishes to pair with your garlic butter chicken:

• Crockpot mashed potatoes
• Italian roasted potatoes
• Cheesy baked asparagus
• Air fryer baked potatoes
• Loaded cauliflower bake

How to store leftovers

The best way to store your leftover garlic butter chicken is to cut the chicken up or off the bone completely and place it in an airtight container or ziplock bag. It will stay fresh in the fridge for up to 5 to 7 days.

Leftover chicken ideas 

If your family is anything like mine, it’s hard to get them to eat the same meal twice in a week. I often have to come up with other meal ideas to make with leftovers from previous meals. Here are a few of my family’s favorite dinner recipes that allow me to use our leftover garlic butter chicken:

• Cheesy chicken broccoli rice
• Chicken carnitas bowl
• BBQ chicken sandwich

Can I freeze it? 

I love pre-making meals to put in the freezer for the days I just have no time to make dinner. I love that this garlic butter chicken can easily be frozen after being cooked. As I stated above, to freeze your leftover garlic butter chicken, it would be best to either remove all the chicken from the bones or cut the chicken into pieces with the bones still in the chicken. Either way you decide to cut your chicken, you will place it in an airtight container or ziplock bag to place in the freezer. They can stay fresh for about 3 months in the freezer.

Other easy chicken recipes to try 

Love chicken? Us, too! Here are a few other recipes you won’t be sorry you tried!

• Oven baked chicken parmesan
• Chicken stir fry
• Chicken tenders
• Copycat Chic-fil-a nuggets
• Crispy oven fried chicken

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