Sumac Rosemary Lemon Roasted Chicken

Woah, the last time I posted a recipe was back in February. That’s really a long time ago. To break the ice, I thought I’ll share this sumac rosemary lemon roasted chicken recipe which I made during the weekend. I’ve been using sumac quite a lot lately, mostly on salad. This was my first time combining sumac (and rosemary+lemon) with chicken, and I gotta say the end result is pretty good. Give it a try and let me know if you like it, ya?

Sumac rosemary lemon roasted chicken. 😍

Let’s go roasting!!!

This is a simple marinade: sumac, olive oil (you can substitute with other oil), salt and black pepper. Mix everything together.

Rub the marinade on the chicken pieces. Make sure you cover every nooks and corners. And if possible, even under the skin.

Put rosemary beside chicken and under the chicken skin (if possible). Then place a lemon slice on each chicken. Marinate for an hour or more. Tsk, you can squeeze some lemon juice on the chicken. I’m not really a fan of too lemony meat, so I just place lemon slice.

Roast the chicken at 190^oC pre-heated oven for 20 minutes. Then add tomatoes and cherry tomatoes in the roasting pan. Continue roasting for another 20-25 minutes, or until chicken is cooked. Mix carrots and onions with some olive oil, black pepper and salt, and roast in another pan at the same time for about 40-45 minutes, or until tender. Reason for separating the vegetables with chicken is because I don’t want to overcrowd the roasting pan. Remember to bath the chicken and vegetables with the yummy roasting juice before serving.

As a chicken breast lover, I can confidently tell you that this one is super moist and tender. All the chicken pieces are cooked perfectly and the seasoning are on point. The only thing I hope to improve next time is the chicken skin. They’re moist and not crispy. Now to make ’em crispy? Broil for a little bit?

Yummy yummeh. Do you know that you can eat the rosemary leaves? They are crispy. Don’t eat the branch though because someone told me “The rosemary branch not nice one”. LOL

Sumac Rosemary Lemon Roasted Chicken
Serves 2-3

1 heaped teaspoon sumac
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
generous amount of freshly grounded black pepper
3 sprigs rosemary, divide into two
5 sliced lemon

5 pieces of chicken (I used 2 x chicken legs, 2 x chicken wings, 1 x chicken breast)

2 carrots, sliced 1″ long and quartered
2 large onions, quartered
2 large tomatoes, halved
6-8 cherry tomatoes
2 teaspoons olive oil
a pinch of salt
freshly grounded black pepper

Method:
1. Mix sumac, olive oil, salt and grounded black pepper in a small bowl to make marinade. Mix well.

2. Rub marinade all over the chicken pieces. If possible, rub under the skin as well.

3. Place rosemary beside chicken and under the chicken skin (if possible). Put one lemon slice on each chicken pieces.

4. Leave to marinate for an hour or more in a roasting pan.

5. Pre-heat oven to 190^oC. Roast chicken for 20 minutes. Then place tomatoes and cherry tomatoes in the same roasting pan. Continue roasting for another 20-25 minutes, or until chicken is cooked and golden. Roasting time will vary depending on size of chicken pieces. The internal temperature for cooked chicken is 75^oC. Use a thermometer to check. Do not over-roast as this will dry out the chicken.

6. Meanwhile, toss carrots and onions with some olive oil, black pepper and a pinch of salt. Place in separate roasting pan/oven-safe bowl. Roast the vegetables for 45 minutes, or until tender.

7. When chicken and vegetables are out of the oven, add the vegetables to the chicken. Bask the chicken and vegetables with roasting juice from the pan before serving.

Happy roasting!