Mediterranean Roast Chicken with Turmeric and Fennel

Name: Mediterranean Roast Chicken with Turmeric and Fennel
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4-6
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients: 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil; 1/2 cup dry white wine; 1/2 cup orange juice; 1 lime, juice of; 2 tbsp yellow mustard; 3 tbsp brown sugar, more for later; 1 tbsp garlic powder; 3/4 tbsp ground turmeric spice; 1 tsp ground corriander; 1 tsp sweet paprika; Salt and Pepper; 1 large fennel bulb, cored, sliced; 1 large sweet onion, sliced into half moons; 6 pieces bone in, skin on chicken (chicken legs or breasts, or a combination); 2 Oranges, unpeeled, sliced; 1 lime, thinly sliced (optional)

October 7, 2016 | Updated May 6, 2019 | By Suzy Karadsheh | 31 Comments

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

An easy one-pan roast chicken dinner with a delicious citrus marinade starring turmeric and other Eastern Mediterranean spices! Step-by-step tutorial below.

At first glance, this is a bubbling one-pan roast chicken with a beautiful golden hue.

But truth be told, this all began as a turmeric recipe. I wanted a way to use the”superior medicine,” which has long been a part of Eastern Mediterranean cooking. The poor chicken just happened to be a good carrier for my happy experiment.

Because how else could I have disguised the turmeric in the form of something my kids would eat?! All I had to say was, “look kids, I colored the chicken yellow!”

So the golden hue is obviously thanks to the ground turmeric. But turmeric also provides the flavor base in this roast chicken recipe. The rest of the spices, along with the brown sugar; fennel; onions; and citrus, all kinda surround the turmeric building on it’s woodsy, earthy characteristics…

And coming together in this roast chicken dinner as in a perfect melody– slightly sweet, earthy, and comforting! Enjoy!

Step-by-Step Tutorial for Roast Chicken

(Scroll down for the ingredient list and print-friendly recipe)

Note: this roast chicken is best served with a plain rice like this Lebanese Rice. You can begin by making the rice and reheat later, if needed.

Prepare the ingredients as listed. Slice the fennel, onions, orange and lime. Set aside.

Make the marinade. In a large bowl or deep dish, mix together the first six ingredients: olive oil, white wine, orange juice, lime juice, mustard and brown sugar.

In a small bowl, mix together the spices: turmeric, garlic powder, coriander, paprika , salt and pepper. Now, add about half of the spice mix to the liquid marinade. Mix to combine.
Pat the chicken pieces dry and generously season with the remainder of the spice mix. Be sure to lift the chicken skins slightly and apply some of the spice mix underneath the skin.

Add the seasoned chicken and the remaining ingredients to the large bowl of marinade. Work the chicken well into the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours (if you don’t have time, you can skip the marinating).

When ready, preheat the oven to 475 degrees F. Transfer the chicken along with the marinade and everything else to a large baking pan so that everything is comfortably arranged in one layer. Be sure the chicken skin is facing up. Sprinkle with a dash or salt and more brown sugar, if you like.

Roast for 40-45 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the chicken skin has nicely browned. Internal chicken temperature should be 170 degrees F.

Serve immediately with Lebanese Rice.