Spiced Roasted Chicken is Everything
Spiced roasted chicken is such an easy, tasty dinner dish and it takes very minimal prep. There are so many different ways to season chicken and I’m glad to share a couple of my absolute favorite spice blends with you.
Homemade Seasoned Salt
Roasted chicken and veggies usually make it onto the menu most weeks because it is easy to make and you get a variety of different flavors by changing up the spices.
Since we discovered Smart Chicken organic air-chilled chicken that is our preference. Sustainably raised and humanely handled and never treated with antibiotics.
Of course, seasoning with olive oil, salt and freshly ground pepper is pretty amazing on its own. And the roasted chicken can be used to make things like BBQ chicken tacos, BBQ chicken pizza, or Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken and Potatoes.
But the seasoned salt or different spice blend can really can change the flavors and make dinner a little more interesting.
Seasoned Salt
This blend of spices can be used in so many recipes to kick it up a notch!
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp kosher salt
- 4 tsp organic raw cane sugar
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp GF cornstarch
Instructions
Just mix all the spices together in an airtight spice container or glass jar (sometimes I double the recipe so we have more on hand).
Store with other spice blends in your pantry.
This blend for seasoned salt (Lawry’s copy cat) makes an amazing brine when added to water. Check out how we use it when making gluten free fried chicken tenders or carnitas burrito bowls. And it is awesome when added to gluten-free flour for making chicken fried steak or “buttermilk” fried chicken tenders and okra.
Spices > Processed Foods
The health benefits of spices are well-known and ancient (make sure they are gluten-free and preferably organic). Some spices are also anti-inflammatory!
And using them to flavor food is so much better than just covering the chicken with processed cheese or canned soup that has very little nutritional value.
There is a cleaner way to make a yummy casserole, too. If I want a creamy base for a casserole or dish, I’ll make a roux with GF flour, ghee and organic liquid. Check out how we clean up this white chicken enchilada casserole!
When I first started cooking years ago, I made casseroles with Campbell’s cream of mushroom or celery soup. In fact, one of my grad school profs brought a dish (her grandma’s recipe) for a killer zucchini squash casserole to a school potluck party. We all raved about it and after she shared the recipe, I made it for years on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
As well as the traditional green bean casserole that my mom taught me to make from the back of the French’s Fried Onions canister. Those were some of the first dishes I made for my husband.
And why not make queso with Velveeta cheese and Rotel to pour over chicken tostadas or nachos for dinner, too. No wonder we got so fat! I saw this saying and love it — you just can’t out-exercise a bad diet. Especially as you get older! So we had to clean it up!
Food Choices for Cleaner Eating
After realizing how much better clean eating is and ditching the processed stuff we often turn to spices and vinegars for flavor. Most vinegars are gluten-free except malt vinegar and maybe some Balsamic vinegars with caramel coloring added depending on where it is from. Basically, we eat a Mediterranean diet with a Texas kick.
I often ate poorly in college, grad school, law school, working… I know how busy things get. But it really is attainable to cook fresh food at home with some menu planning and even meal prep.
It’s so much better, cheaper and healthier to eat real food – fresh produce, organic whole grains, lean protein and lots of spice! And it makes coping with all my dietary restrictions way more bearable.
Cajun Spice Blend
I love using this blend to make Cajun bison dirty rice. So good. Anyway, back to this spice blend and fabulous homemade roasted chicken!
Cajun Seasoning Spice Blend
We love Cajun spices adding that extra kick of flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
Instructions
Just mix all the spices together in an airtight spice container.
Store with other spice blends in your pantry.
Cooking the Chicken
Here are some basics for how to cook spiced roasted bone-in chicken breasts:
- For bone-in split chicken breasts, brine the chicken by rubbing the seasoning under the skin.
- Doing this earlier in the day or overnight will develop deeper flavors.
- Use about 1-2 teaspoons of spice mixture per breast.
- Place in a baking dish and drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake for about 45 minutes to an hour at 400 degrees F.
- For a full bird (4 pounds) the cook time will be about an 1 hour and 15 minutes (make sure temperature of the bird reaches 165 degrees F with a meat thermometer).
- Can store the cooked chicken for 3-4 days in the fridge.
Want More Delicious Chicken Recipes?
- Eggplant Chicken Parmesan
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Spicy Chicken Spaghetti
- Herbed Chicken Meatballs
- 14 Delicious + Nutritious Salads
- Chicken Stew with Mashies
- Chicken Breakfast Sausage
- Healthy Chicken and Dumplings
Looks so yummy and it is healthy too. Cheers Deana. 🙂
Thank you so much!