Thanksgiving Chicken and Stuffing in One Pan

Glazed Thanksgiving roast chicken on a bed of golden sourdough stuffing in a black braiser.

Thanksgiving Chicken and Stuffing in One Pan

This Thanksgiving Chicken is a whole holiday dinner built in one 12-inch pan. A dry-brined chicken gets Dijon herb butter tucked under the skin, then roasts at 425°F on a bed of sourdough, onion, celery, and garlic, so the drippings season the stuffing as it cooks. A maple Dijon glaze goes on for the last stretch, and the stuffing gets tossed and crisped while the bird rests. Meanwhile, a from-scratch gravy simmers on the stove with browned chicken fat, the neck, and a toasty roux, then gets finished with the saved juices and cold butter. Serves 4, or 2 with plenty of leftovers.

Prep Time45

Cook Time1 25

Dry Brine12

Total Time2 10

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings, about ¼ chicken with stuffing and gravy

Calories: 1310kcal

Author: Briana

Equipment

deep 12-inch oven-safe skillet or braiser
small saucepan
instant-read or leave-in probe thermometer
kitchen twine
microplane or zester for the lemon

Ingredients

Dry Brine

1 whole chicken 3½ to 4½ pounds, neck and extra fat saved for the gravy
2 tablespoons kosher salt 18 grams for a 4-pound bird, or 1% of the bird's weight; use 1¼ tablespoons if using Morton's or 1 tablespoon table salt, see notes
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon dried sage
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon black pepper

Herb Butter and Roasting

6 tablespoons unsalted butter Plugrà butter, 85 grams, softened
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
5 cloves garlic about 25 grams, finely minced
½ small shallot about 20 grams, finely minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh sage finely chopped
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary finely chopped
1 lemon zested, then halved
1 teaspoon kosher salt use ½ teaspoon if using Morton's or table salt, see notes
1 teaspoon coarsely cracked black pepper
1½ tablespoons unsalted butter Plugrà butter, 21 grams, melted, for brushing
1 shallot halved, for the cavity
1 small bundle fresh herbs such as thyme, sage, and rosemary, for the cavity

Stuffing

8 to 9 cups sourdough bread cubes about 425 grams, cut into 1-inch cubes
5 tablespoons unsalted butter Plugrà butter, 71 grams
1 large yellow onion about 200 grams, diced
4 ribs celery about 190 grams, diced
1 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste, use ½ teaspoon if using Morton's or table salt, see notes
12 cloves garlic about 55 grams, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves chopped
1 tablespoon fresh sage chopped
½ teaspoon fresh rosemary chopped
⅔ cup chicken broth well seasoned
black pepper to taste

Maple Dijon Glaze

1½ tablespoons unsalted butter Plugrà butter, 21 grams, melted
¼ cup pure maple syrup
2¼ teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
scant ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
kosher salt to taste

Gravy

reserved chicken fat, skin, and neck trimmed from the bird
4 tablespoons unsalted butter Plugrà butter, 57 grams
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour 32 grams
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
reserved cavity and resting juices
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon lemon juice from the reserved lemon half
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter Plugrà butter, 28 grams
kosher salt to taste

Instructions

The Night Before

Trim the chicken. Remove the neck if your bird came with one, and trim the extra fat and skin from around the cavity opening. Refrigerate them for the gravy.
1 whole chicken
Dry brine. Pat the chicken dry. Mix the salt, dried thyme, dried sage, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper, then rub it all over the bird and inside the cavity. Refrigerate uncovered overnight.
2 tablespoons kosher salt, ½ teaspoon dried thyme, ¼ teaspoon dried sage, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon black pepper
Dry the bread. Cut the sourdough into 1-inch cubes, spread them on a sheet pan, and leave them on the counter overnight to dry.
8 to 9 cups sourdough bread cubes

Herb Butter and Stuffing

Heat the oven. Heat the oven to 425°F with a rack in the lower-middle position. If the bread isn't dry, heat the oven to 275°F first and bake the cubes for 20 to 30 minutes, tossing halfway, until crisp but not browned, then raise the heat to 425°F.
Make the herb butter. Mash the softened butter with the Dijon, minced garlic, minced shallot, thyme, sage, rosemary, lemon zest, salt, and pepper. Halve the zested lemon.
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, 5 cloves garlic, ½ small shallot, 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, 1 tablespoon fresh sage, 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, 1 lemon, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon coarsely cracked black pepper
Build the stuffing. Melt the butter in a deep 12-inch oven-safe skillet or braiser over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and salt and cook until soft, then add the garlic, thyme, sage, and rosemary and cook for 1 minute. Turn off the heat and pour in the broth, then toss in the bread and season with pepper, adding more salt to taste. Go light at first, since the drippings will season the stuffing more in the oven. Spread it into an even layer for the bird to sit on, then pile any extra around the edges.
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1 large yellow onion, 4 ribs celery, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 12 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, 1 tablespoon fresh sage, ½ teaspoon fresh rosemary, ⅔ cup chicken broth, black pepper

Butter and Roast the Chicken

Butter the chicken. Pat the bird dry and tuck the wings. Gently loosen the skin over the breast and thighs, work all of the herb butter underneath, and press it flat from the outside.
Truss. Tuck one lemon half, the halved shallot, and the herb bundle into the cavity, saving the other lemon half for the gravy. Truss the legs with kitchen twine, brush the melted butter over the skin, and set the chicken breast side up in the center of the stuffing.
1 shallot, 1 small bundle fresh herbs, 1½ tablespoons unsalted butter
Roast. Roast at 425°F. Start the gravy about 20 minutes in. Start checking the chicken at 40 to 45 minutes, taking two readings in the thickest part of the breast, away from the bone and cavity.

Start the Gravy

Brown the fat. Put the reserved fat, skin, and neck in a cold saucepan over medium heat and cook 6 to 8 minutes, until the fat renders and everything is deeply browned. Add the butter and let it foam and turn golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Lift out the neck and crispy bits, setting the neck aside.
reserved chicken fat, skin, and neck, 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
Toast the roux. Whisk in the flour and cook 3 to 5 minutes, whisking, until it smells nutty and turns the color of peanut butter.
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Simmer. Slowly whisk in the broth, return the neck to the pan, and simmer gently for about 30 minutes, stirring now and then, until it reduces to about 2½ cups and coats the back of a spoon. Remove the neck and keep the gravy warm on low.
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth

Glaze, Rest, and Finish

Make the glaze. Whisk the maple syrup, Dijon, vinegar, red pepper flakes, and salt, then slowly whisk in the warm melted butter. If it thickens or separates, rewarm it for a few seconds and whisk again.
1½ tablespoons unsalted butter, ¼ cup pure maple syrup, 2¼ teaspoons Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar, scant ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, kosher salt
Glaze. When the breast reads about 140°F (about 45 to 50 minutes), brush on a thin coat of glaze. Roast until the breast reads 160°F and the thighs read 175°F, about 15 to 20 minutes more. If the skin darkens too fast, tent it loosely with foil.
Rest the chicken. Lift the chicken out of the pan and tilt it over a small bowl to catch the cavity juices for the gravy. Rest it on a cutting board for 15 to 20 minutes and brush with more glaze. Save the resting juices.
Crisp the stuffing. Toss the stuffing so the soaked center and crispy edges mix together, then return it to the oven, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, until the center reaches 165°F.
Finish the gravy. It should be a touch thick at this point. Stir in the Dijon, Worcestershire, and saved cavity and resting juices, which will loosen it. Off the heat, whisk in the cold butter and lemon juice. Taste and add salt as needed.
reserved cavity and resting juices, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, kosher salt
Serve. Set the chicken back on the stuffing, carve it at the table, and serve with the gravy.

Notes

A note on salt. This recipe was developed with Diamond Crystal kosher salt at 1% of the bird's weight. For a 4-pound bird, that's 18 grams: about 2 tablespoons of Diamond Crystal, 1¼ tablespoons of Morton's kosher salt, or 1 tablespoon of table salt. Morton's and table salt are denser, so for the rest of the recipe, use about half the listed amount and add more to taste.
Using salted butter. Unsalted butter gives you the most control, since the bird is already seasoned from the brine. Salted butter works too, just cut back on the added salt: use ½ teaspoon of Diamond Crystal instead of 1 teaspoon in both the herb butter and the stuffing, and taste the gravy before salting it. Salted butter varies by brand, so taste as you go.
Pan options. We use a 12-inch Staub braiser with no lid. Any deep 12-inch oven-safe skillet works, as long as the bird fits with a ring of stuffing around it. Or cook the vegetables in any skillet and move everything to a baking dish before adding the bird.
Go by temperature. Every oven is different, so start checking early. Pull the chicken at 160°F in the breast and 175°F in the thigh, and it will climb to 165°F as it rests. The stuffing should reach 165°F in the center. If you're using a leave-in probe, you can check with an instant-read as a backup to be extra sure.
No neck? Many birds come without one. The browned fat and skin still give the gravy plenty of flavor.
Leftovers. Store the chicken, stuffing, and gravy in separate airtight containers in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Extra chicken is perfect in our creamy chicken pot pie soup.
What to serve with it. Add a side or two, like buttermilk mashed potatoes or roasted green beans and carrots.

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