Best Pan for Baking Chicken in the Oven to Perfection

The ultimate guide to roast chicken, including the best pan for baking chicken, FAQs, and recipe.

Look no further for the best pan for baking chicken! I have found it for you.

Roasting chicken, whether it is a whole one or just a piece of chicken, used to be intimidate me. It was hard to get the meat done all the way, and the clean-up was ridiculously hard. I used to despise cooking chicken in the oven until I learned that all I needed was a right pan and a little bit more information on how to do it right.

Though there are so many different types of pans, the best option is not a non-stick pan. It is not a glass pan. The best roasting pan that I have found for baking a whole chicken or chicken pieces is a cast-iron skillet.

I love using my cast-iron skillet because it is one of those things that you can use for so many different things. It’s the perfect minimalist pan because you can cook, bake, fry, or even make a stew/soup in it.

I also find this to be the best pan because it:

• is a non-toxic non-stick pan.
• distributes the heat evenly, which cooks your meat evenly
• is super easy to clean if it is well taken care of.

Here is the cast iron skillet I use. There are also options for cast iron casserole dishes.

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Non-Toxic Non-Stick Surface

One of the key features of cast iron is its nonstick surface. This means that your chicken won’t stick to the pan, making it easy to remove and reducing the chance of overcooking or burning.

Cast iron is also one of the few, if not the only, non-toxic non-stick options that are out there, making it the best option for cooking healthy without compromising texture or taste.

Even Cooking

Another advantage of a cast-iron pan is its ability to cook chicken evenly. Cast iron is made of heavy-duty materials that distributes heat evenly throughout the pan. This means that your chicken will cook evenly, with no hot spots or cold spots. The result is perfectly cooked chicken with crispy skin and juicy meat.

Easy to Clean

Cleaning up after cooking can be a hassle, but well-seasoned cast iron makes for easy cleanup. It is non-stick for the most part if you know how to care for it, but the best part about it is that if food does stick, you can scrub it with some steel wool and hot water without fearing that you will ruin it. It gets clean in no time!

FAQ

Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions to help you learn how to make the perfected roasted chicken!

Should I Bake Chicken in a Glass or Metal Pan?

Either one will work well for cooking your chicken. There doesn’t seem to be a problem with using one over the other.

Can You Bake Chicken in a Non-Stick Pan?

Yes, you can, but should you? Well, that is another thing.

I recently stopped using non-stick pans, and I will tell you why. When I read the warning section on the label of a new non-stick pan, it advised you not to keep your pet birds in the kitchen when you are cooking with them because the fumes could kill them.

So…you tell me. Should you use a non-stick pan?

It is your personal preference and you can if you want to.

Is It Better to Bake Chicken at 350 or 400?

There are a lot of opinions on this. It also depends on what portion of chicken you are baking or if you are baking a whole chicken.

For chicken breast, Half-Scratched says that they will cook faster at a high temperature, but if you are not a seasoned home chef, you could easily cook them at the lower temperature so that you can keep an eye on them.

For chicken wings, What Molly Madesuggests 400 for a more crispy result.

For chicken thighs, Kitchn claims that 400 again is better, with 425 being the ideal temperature.

Now for a whole chicken, NY Times is of the opinion that 350 is best for tender meat that falls off the bone.

I was using a different chicken recipe, but after hearing several people suggest doing a low and slow method, I gave it a try. It turned out so much better than the other way I was doing it, and it was less stressful starting the chicken several hours before mealtime. This cooking process is now my favorite way!

Scroll down to get my recipe!

Can you bake chicken breasts on a baking sheet?

Because chicken breasts are lean and don’t have as much moisture or broth that will leak out, a baking sheet with a low rim is fine for making baked chicken breast.

A casserole dish works great, too. I have even used a cake pan when I’m in a pinch and still got juicy chicken breasts.

What Can I Put on My Pan So Chicken Doesn’t Stick?

Any oil or fat that can stand high heat will help your chicken from sticking to the pan. I personally use butter because of its delicious flavor and bioavailability. It is easily digested and processed by your body.

If you use cast iron, most likely your pan is seasoned with some sort of fat or oil. This should be sufficient to keep the meat from sticking, but if you are concerned, it wouldn’t hurt to add a little bit more in the bottom of the pan just in case. If you are using a rub that uses butter, you definitely don’t have to worry about it.

Some good options are:

• butter
• olive oil
• ghee
• lard

Do You Put Foil on Pan When Baking Chicken?

No, it is not necessary to put foil on or cover a whole chicken when baking it. Leaving the skin on is enough protection and acts as its own covering.

How Do You Bake Chicken in a Pan Without It Getting Rubbery?

Soaking chicken in a brine is a solution to avoid rubbery chicken; however, if you are baking a whole chicken intact instead of individual pieces like chicken breasts or thighs, opt for rubbing the raw whole chicken skin with salt and refrigerate it, letting the chicken rest overnight uncovered before baking.

Whether you are soaking or using a rub, salt is a key to perfecting a roasted chicken.

Another factor that will affect the texture of your chicken is the temperature that you bake it at. You can refer back to the section on baking times for chicken to get the ideal bake time to make the perfect chicken, but the rule of thumb is to cook it low and slow until a meat thermometer shows the internal temperature is 165 degrees.

Roasted Chicken Recipe

Tools:

• Cast Iron Skillet
• Knife
• Cutting Board

Ingredients:

• A whole chicken
• Sea salt (or any other non-iodized salt)
• 1/2 onion
• 3 garlic cloves

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Remove chicken from packaging. Don’t forget to remove the giblets inside of the bird as well as the absorbent pad inside the packaging.
3. Rinse chicken under cold water.
4. Lay the whole bird in the well-seasoned cast-iron skillet with the chicken breast up.
5. Chop some onions and garlic and drop them beside and inside the chicken.
6. Sprinkle sea salt all over the chicken.
7. Once the oven is preheated, stick the chicken in the oven.
8. Set the timer for 1 hour.
9. Check the temperature of the chicken breast since it is the largest portion of meat until it reaches 165.
10. If the chicken is not done after an hour, continue baking the chicken while monitoring the temperature. (For a 5lb bird, it takes at least an hour and a half.)
11. Serve from the skillet or any dish with a ridge or lip to catch the juices.

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