Shallot and Apple Stuffed Bacon Chicken

I don't know why, but roasting a chicken freaks me out. I have no problem roasting a turkey. In fact, I enjoy roasting turkey. Chicken, on the other hand, poses a culinary problem for me. It's smaller than a turkey and should technically be easier, but I just have a mental block about it. The best explanation I can come up with is that the insides aren't in little baggies like the insides of a turkey and having to pull out the insides creeps me out.

Anyway, the point is that roasting a chicken is something I never do because of my issues. After this recipe, however, I think that's going to change. We had a whole chicken in the freezer and I told Alex I refused to buy any more meats until we used up what we had first, so I needed to figure out what to do with the chicken. In comes this recipe and the result was a chicken that was so delicious and juicy that it rivaled all those roasted chickens I've bought from Publix. You can never go wrong with bacon and the apples added a nice sweetness to the chicken. I think the bacon grease helped keep the chicken moist from the outside and the juice released from the apples helped keep the chicken moist from the inside.

Shallot and Apple Stuffed Bacon Chicken
Source: Kayotic Kitchen 

1 whole chicken
5 shallots
1 sweet apple
1 large garlic clove
1 rosemary sprig
3 oz bacon (thick slices)
3 tbsp butter or oil
1 tsp seasoning (I used Adobo All-Purpose Seasoning)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking oil.

Peel and coarsely chop the shallots. Grate or mince the garlic. Peel and dice the apple.

Heat a Tbsp butter or oil and add the shallots.Season the shallots with a pinch of pepper and salt. Sauté them over low to medium heat for about 5 minutes. As soon as they’ve browned up a bit add the diced apples. Add the garlic and cook things a few minutes, until the apples get a slight tan but are still firm. Turn off the heat.

Fill the chicken with the shallots and apples and push a rosemary sprig in there as well for some extra flavor.


Brush the chicken with the remaining butter or oil. Season it with your desired seasoning. Wrap the breast part of the chicken with bacon.

Place in oven and cook for 90 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 180 degrees F. Remove from oven and let it rest for 10 minutes before cutting.