Need recipes for whole chicken?

I have never made a chicken before, and need recipes and instructions on cooking a whole chicken. Its frozen but I am taking it out tonight to defrost it. Would love ideas on what to stuff it with, if anythig, How and what to cook it in...any ideas! Thanks!Need recipes for whole chicken?
Try this one...it's great!





Wild Rice-Stuffed Chicken





1 6-ounce package long grain and wild rice mix


2 medium cooking apples (such as Granny Smith or Jonathan), cored and chopped


8 oz sliced fresh mushrooms (3 cups)


1 cup shredded carrot


1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion


1/2 tsp pepper


1 5- to 6-pound whole roasting chicken


2-3 Tbs apple jelly, melted


1 medium apple, cut into wedges (optional)





For stuffing, cook rice according to package directions, except add apples, mushrooms, carrot, onion, and pepper to rice before cooking.





Meanwhile, rinse chicken; pat dry with paper towels. Spoon some of the stuffing loosely into the neck cavity. Pull the neck skin to the back and fasten with a small skewer. Lightly spoon the remaining stuffing into body cavity. Tuck drumsticks under the band of skin that crosses the tail. If there is no band, tie drumsticks to tail. Twist the wing tips under the bird.





Place stuffed chicken, breast side up, on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Insert meat thermometer into the center of one of the thigh muscles. The bulb should not touch the bone.





Roast, uncovered, in a 325 degree F. oven for 1-3/4 to 2-1/2 hours or until meat thermometer registers 180 degrees F. to 185 degrees F. At this time, chicken is no longer pink and the drumsticks move easily in their sockets. When the bird is two-thirds done, cut the band of skin or string between the drumsticks so the thighs will cook evenly.





Brush chicken with melted jelly once or twice during the last 10 minutes of roasting.





Remove chicken from oven and cover it with foil. Let stand for 10 to 20 minutes before carving. Transfer the chicken to a serving platter. Spoon the stuffing around the chicken. Garnish with apple wedges, if desired.





Makes 10 servings.








This one is good as well:





Roast Chicken with Onions and Potato





2 tablespoons olive oil, divided use


2 tablespoons Dijon mustard


1 teaspoon dried thyme


1 teaspoon dried rosemary


Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper


1 lemon cut in half


1 whole roasting chicken, 3-3 1/2 pounds, rinsed inside and out and patted dry


1 large red onion, cut into thick rounds


4 medium red potatoes, washed but not peeled, sliced in half


1/2 cup chicken broth or water





Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon olive oil, mustard, thyme and rosemary and season with a little salt and pepper. Squeeze one half the lemon into this mixture; squeeze other half into a small bowl. Reserve juice as well as squeezed halves. Rub mustard and herb mixture over chicken and inside its cavity. Put squeezed lemon halves in cavity.





Place onion and potatoes in bottom of a roasting pan and toss with remaining olive oil and some salt and pepper. Make room for chicken in pan and put it in breast side up. Cook until juices run clear when thigh is pricked, about 1 1/4 hours; a meat thermometer inserted into thigh should register 165-170 degrees.





Transfer the vegetables to a serving platter. Pour juices from inside the chicken's cavity into the roasting pan and transfer chicken to a cutting board to rest.





Skim fat from juices in the roasting pan. Set pan over medium-high heat. Add reserved lemon juice and chicken broth or water. Bring to a boil, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape up the flavorful browned bits stuck to the pan. Carve the chicken or cut it into pieces and serve with the potatoes, onions and some of the pan juices poured over all.





Serves 4.





Good luck!Need recipes for whole chicken?
Glad you liked it! Thanks for the best answer :-) Report Abuse

It is so easy and lovely to roast a whole chicken. Stick with the classic preparation the first time.





Make sure to give it a few days to defrost in the refrigerator (do not defrost on the counter or in the sink).





When you open the package, REMOVE the giblets (usually in a bag in the cavity or under the neck). Rinse the bird thoroughly inside and out then pat dry. Make sure to salt the inside well.





Now you can do any number of things. You can cut lemons in half and stuff them inside (smells wonderful). Or you can make a stuffing to put in the bird. It's faster to roast a bird with nothing in it.





Salt %26amp; pepper is all you need to make the skin taste nice....but poultry seasoning or sage can be wonderful.





Make sure to get a meat thermometer to know when the chicken is done (best way).





Here's a recipe to get you started from Cooks.com:





ROAST CHICKEN IN LEMON - ROSEMARY


MARINADE





chicken


1 whole lemon, halved


4 sprigs fresh rosemary.





FOR THE MARINADE:





2/3 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice


2 tbsp. olive oil


3 tbsp. crushed black peppercorns or coarsely ground pepper


4 tbsp. fresh, chopped rosemary or 2 tbsp. dried





Combine all ingredients for the marinade. Pour over the chicken and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours, or overnight.





Place the lemon halves and rosemary sprigs in the cavity of the chicken. Roast chicken in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes per pound. Do not open oven or baste chicken during roasting.
I do this quite often: After your chicken is thawed, clean it by removing the giblets, etc. You can rub it with any type of seasoning you like. Inside and out. I put mine in a Reynolds Baking Bag and cook it about an hour. The instructions will tell you what you need to know. It comes out moist and juicy. PLUS, you have all the wonderful drippings in the bag to make a gravy, if you want. Clean up is a breeze. I usually cook two chickens at a time, just add 20 or so minutes to the cooking time. That way I have an extra chicken for pot pie, or enchiladas, soup etc. If I don't want to cook with the second one right away, I pick off the meat and freeze it for later. Very convenient.
Best idea is after defrosting, rinse chicken well inside and out. Do not stuff with anything but some salt, pepper lemon juice and rosemary. Litely coat outside with soft butter or olive oil, salt and pepper and place in roasting pan. Bake @ 350, untill done. Depending on weight of chicken, probably 1 hour or so. Use a meat thermometer or you can tell by twisting leg and be sure pan juices are clear. Allow to rest before carving.
Make sure u thaw it in the refridgerator and remove the package of innards from the cavity. If you have a grill, beer can chicken is wonderful.


http://bbq.about.com/cs/chicken/a/aa1004鈥?/a>
(DONT WASH THE CHICKEN) if you splash water u spread bacteria, also when its cooking the bacteria die!! A good tip i learned





Ok first of all when defrosting take out of packaging %26amp; place on a Plate %26amp; cover with tinfoil. It avoids a plastic smell from the wrapping.


Before cooking make sure its fully defrosted. Preheat the cooker (fan assisted oven) 190C %26amp; depending on the size of the chicken cook for 1hour %26amp; a half. Don't stuff the Chicken.





Peel potatoes and chop them into cubes (size of an egg)


Get an ovenproof dish %26amp; put two large table spoons of butter in. Place the potatoes in the dish %26amp; into the oven for the same time as the chicken.





Make stuffing %26amp; gravy %26amp; peas %26amp; yorkshire puds. All are printed on the back of packets. Not sure where u live but I use


Paxo Stuffing (sage%26amp;onion)


Marrowfat Peas Tinned


Aunt Betseys Yorkshire puds.


%26amp; Bisto gravy granuales. (red tub)


Put three tablespoons into a large mug %26amp; boil the kettle with water. When boiled whisk the gravy whilst pouring the water %26amp; keep stirring until its the way you like it.
make a rub of salt ,pepper, sage, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, mix to taste and rub on chicken , first wash the chicken and remove the neck and giblets the will be in the neck cavity and up inside the back side of the chicken, throw them in a pot and simmer about an hour keep liquid on them use the broth for the stuffing or make gravy from them. an rub the chicken down with the seasonings and place in a roasting pan .cover with foil bake at 350 until done the chicken is done when you can pierce the chicken with a fork in the thigh and the juices run clear don't know were you are at and altitude does make a difference in cooking time stuff with sage dressing yum-mm
Go to the grocery store and get some Reynolds oven bags--they come with cooking instructions and are easy to use--and the chicken will come out perfect and really moist! It is even still able to brown in the bag.





http://www.alcoa.com/reynoldskitchens/en鈥?/a>





When I cook whole chicken or turkey, I cut up onions, carrots, lemon, and celery into chunks and put them in the cavity. I disgard them after cooking but they add a lot of flavor and aroma! I also put a little oil, salt, and pepper on the outside of the bird.





Here is a recipe for the oven bags:





http://www.alcoa.com/reynoldskitchens/en鈥?/a>