With a few simple ingredients and minimal effort, you get a one-pan meal that is full of flavor to bring to the dinner table.
A couple months ago, fellow food writer Helen Rosner shared a post to her Instagram about how she roasted chicken atop cabbage in lieu of the more traditional root vegetables. In it she wrote the “schmaltzy cabbage is indisputably the real star.” That’s because all the fat and juices from the chicken drip onto the cabbage as it roasts, providing an unbelievable amount of flavor and letting none of the chicken’s goodness go to waste. Soon after, Deb Perelman shared her take on this recipe on her site Smitten Kitchen. Next up, it was my turn to put my own twist on the dish.
I’ve long been a fan of cabbage. It’s one of those items that reminds me of home where my mother would boil it with pork products, seasonings, and herbs until silky and tender. Cabbage is one of my comfort foods.
So during the safer-at-home ordinances caused by the pandemic, I already had some cabbage in my kitchen to provide sustenance, both due to a longing for comfort and because the vegetable holds up well for long periods of time. Pair that with a whole chicken and I was well on my way to an easy and soul-satisfying meal.
I took things a little further by adding bread into the equation (along with some onions and chicken stock). I think I used multigrain bread, but just about any kind will do. The bread adds more heft to the dish and turns this recipe into a complete, Thanksgiving-esque meal of roast poultry with stuffing all made in one pan. What more could you ask for?
A few healthy glugs of olive oil not only help things get brown and crispy, but also adds another layer of flavor. I enjoy the simplicity of this dish coming together with just a few ingredients, but feel free to jazz it up a bit by adding your favorite herbs, seasonings, and spices to make it your own.
Roast Chicken with Cabbage and Bread Stuffing
With a few simple ingredients and minimal effort, you get a one-pan meal that is full of flavor to bring to the dinner table.
Ingredients
- 1/2 small head of cabbage (about 1 pound), cut into bite-sized pieces
- 4 cups torn or cubed bread (from 4 or 5 slices)
- 2 small onions, chopped
- 1 cup chicken stock
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- One 3- to 4-pound chicken, spatchcocked and patted dry with paper towels
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 450˚F.
- Add the cabbage, bread, onions, and chicken stock to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish (or other large pan), season with some salt and pepper, and give everything a nice toss. Spread out into an even layer and drizzle with some olive oil.
- Sprinkle the underside of the chicken with salt and pepper and then put it breast up on top of the cabbage-bread mixture. Season the skin side with more salt and pepper—don't be stingy with it!—drizzle with some olive oil, and rub it all over.
- Bake until the chicken is golden and the bread and cabbage have browned in spots, about 1 hour. (If you want, you can also insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh to make sure it registers at least 165˚F, but I've roasted enough spatchcocked chickens of this size at this high a heat to know that it's fully cooked without one.) Enjoy!
I can’t wait to try this recipe!!!!
i made this for my family and my mom said we have to make this for thanksgiving it was that good. umm, ok! i followed the recipe almost exactly, except i added in garlic scapes left over from the farmers market.
I love the addition of garlic scapes!
I made this last night for the first time. It’s been on my to-make list for weeks while I shopped for poultry shears. I used red cabbage and artisan bread, plus added whole garlic cloves and a sliced shallot. I cooked it at 425 for an hour and that was plenty of time to fully cook the bird (5.6 lber) and soften the veggies. Delicious! Thanks for the steps and tips on this one. So quick and easy.
Glad you enjoyed it!
This is absolutely delicious! My husband and I have been debating whether to make the Zuni Cafe Roast Chicken Salad from America’s Test Kitchen or Smitten Kitchen’s Roast Chicken with Schmaltzy Cabbage. This recipe is the perfect balance of the two. Served over a mixed greens salad with tomatoes and cucumbers dressed with Ina Garten’s vinaigrette. Spatchcocking the chicken is the way to go! The bird cooks in next to no time at all. This recipe will stay in rotation. Sooo good!!