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Apple-Bacon Roasted Chicken Recipe

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This Apple-Bacon Roasted Chicken recipe bursts with sweet and smoky flavors. It’s a super cozy fall meal that’s impressive enough for a dinner party.Whole roasted chicken surrounded by apples slices in a cast iron skillet.

While I do love the sunshine, I also appreciate the cooler weather as an excuse to cook warming foods. Warming foods with longer cooking times, that have the wonderful scent of dinner wafting through the house. Know what I mean?

I love when my kids call down from upstairs saying, “It smells so good! What’s for dinner?” Love it!

Whole Roasted Chicken

Roasting a whole chicken with aromatic flavors is a great way to create a delicious, comforting and cozy family dinner — or, an impressive dinner for a group of friends. This Apple-Bacon Roasted Chicken recipe is a crowd pleaser.

Cast iron skillet with apples slices, with steam.

The cooking time may seem a bit long but please don’t worry as most of it is inactive. While the chicken in the oven you can make a salad or a phone call. 😉

The Combination of Apple and Bacon

  • Apple and bacon make for an incredibly fantastic flavor combination.
  • Together they are sweet and smoky, crispy and soft, and truly perfect with a bite of the golden roasted chicken.
  • It’s nothing short of dreamy!

Apple slices with onion and bacon pieces in a cst iron skillet.

What to Serve with Apple-Bacon Roasted Chicken Recipe

I love adding lentils or brown rice to the pan when the chicken is done — both will soak up the tasty juices and add so well to this hearty, warming and comforting dinner.

Adding a starch or a salad, or both would complete this meal nicely.

Here are a few delicious sides . . .

Golden roasted chicken in cast iron skillet with apple slices

Apple-Bacon Roasted Chicken Recipe

Valentina K. Wein
This recipe packed with flavor and it's a huge crowd pleaser. It's easy enough to prepare for a weeknight meal, and impressive enough for a weekend dinner party.
5 from 6 votes
Print
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 1 hr 30 mins
Resting Time 15 mins
Total Time 2 hrs 5 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 4 to 6
Calories 543 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • 3 strips applewood smoked bacon
  • 12 ounces hard apple cider
  • 1½ cups Fuji or Granny Smith apple, washed and dried, cored, and thinly sliced (about 1/2-inch slices)
  • 1 cup yellow onion, super thinly sliced
  • 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • olive oil for drizzling
  • 5½ pound whole chicken

Instructions
 

  • Set the oven and cook the bacon. Preheat the oven to 500° F. Place a paper towel on a plate and set it aside.
    In a large, ovenproof skillet, over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until it's crispy, about 3 minutes per side. (A cast iron skillet is perfect.) Turn the heat off, remove the bacon, and place on the paper towel-lined plate to drain.
  • Cook the apples and onion. With the heat off, add the hard apple cider to the pan and let it sit for a few minutes. Then turn the heat to medium-low and add the apple, onion and garlic. Crumble the bacon and add it to the pan too. Let it simmer gently for about 10 minutes. Then add the butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  • Truss the chicken and begin roasting. Lightly drizzle a 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking pan with olive oil. Remove the insides of the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Season the inside and outside of the chicken with salt and pepper and truss it. (Here's how.) Then place it breast side up in a in the baking pan and drizzle with olive oil.
    Place the pan in the preheated 500° F oven and roast until the chicken is golden brown, about 25 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven and reduce the heat to 350°F.
  • Turn chicken over, add the apple mixture, continue roasting. Arrange the apple mixture around the sides of the skillet, so there's space enough for the chicken in the center. Very carefully, use tongs, heat resistant cooking gloves or your hands, to flip the chicken over so it's now breast side down, in the center of the skillet, surrounded by the apple mixture. Place the skillet in the 350° F oven and continue to roast until the internal temperature is 155 degrees F -- this should take about 1 hour. The final internal temperature will be about 165 degrees, as the chicken will continue to cook for several minutes outside of the oven. You can use a meat thermometer to check the temperature. You'll also know it's done when the juices run clear and the legs should move easily when it's done. Baste the chicken with the cider-butter mixture every 15 minutes or so.
  • Rest, season and serve. Wait at least 15 minutes before carving, to allow the juices to settle. Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper. (Here's How to Season to Taste.) Serve!

Notes

I highly recommend buying an organic chicken, as they typically have less fat and more flavor.
Calorie count is only an estimate.
Keywords chicken for family dinner, fall comfort food recipes, apple recipes
Have you tried this recipe?I'd love to see it on Instagram! Tag me at @cookingontheweekends or leave a comment & rating below.

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Comments

  1. romi says

    Every dish looks gorgeous! Your blog is superb and I must say, I’m having such a joy reading your witty quips and cheerful stories.

    Reply

  2. Libby Bratton Butler says

    I cooked this recipe tonight and my daughters (and I) LOVED IT! The bacon was their favorite part. The chicken was so tender and full of flavor. Thanks for sharing. This is a winner that I will add to my rotation :0).

    Reply

    • valentina says

      Libby, that’s great! I’m so happy the girls enjoyed it, and that it made your rotation! :-)!!

      Reply

  4. David @ Spiced says

    What a fun idea to use apples in the roasting process! I can see how the sweetness combined with the salty (and delicious) bacon would yield an excellent dinner. And lucky for us, it’s apple season in the northeast…and I might have picked like 50 pounds of apples the other day. haha!

    Reply

    • valentina says

      Lucky you to go apple picking and get so many! I imagine there might be a pie on a windowsill somewhere at your house. 🙂 And yes the sweet-salty mix is delicious. Thank you!

      Reply

  10. Christina says

    What a perfect recipe for autumn! I always have hard cider in the fridge, so this is definitely a recipe I’d love to try. I mean, it’s got bacon, too! Winner, for sure! Thanks, Valentina!

    Reply

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