This Roast Chicken with a Light and Fragrant Orange Sauce is my ideal Christmas dinner recipe — so simple to make, yet tastes so delicious. The chicken turns out tender and juicy, paired with a light and fragrant orange sauce. This isn’t an overly rich or sweet type of orange sauce. It’s light, savoury, and warm with a hint of orange, all from natural ingredients.

I also love the pop of festive orange color. If you’re looking for simple and delicious Christmas chicken recipe with natural flavours, you have to try this!

Other Christmas Dessert you may want to try Fruit Jelly Balls.

Roast Whole Chicken Legs with a Light and Fragrant Orange Sauce Video Tutorial:

Ingredients 材料：

6 chicken small to medium size whole legs 6只中小型鸡腿

1 garlic bulb 1头蒜

4-5 sprigs rosemary 4-5枝迷迭香

1/2 orange, sliced 半个橙子，切片

3-4 slices ginger 3-4片生姜

Chicken Seasoning 鸡肉调味料:

1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 茶匙盐

1/4 lemon 1/4 个柠檬

2-3 tablespoon olive oil 2-3 汤匙橄榄油

Orange Sauce 橙汁酱:

Chicken juice from the baked chicken 烤鸡渗出的鸡汁

4 tablespoon orange juice 4 汤匙橙汁

1 tablespoon ginger juice 1 汤匙姜汁

1 teaspoon potato starch 1 茶匙土豆淀粉

Season with salt 加盐调味

Garnish 装饰:

1 sprig rosemary 1 枝迷迭香

1 orange, , sliced 1 个橙子

Method:

Season the Chicken

Season the chicken evenly with salt.
Squeeze lemon juice over the chicken.
Let it marinate for 30 minutes.

Prepare the Baking Tray

Place rosemary, orange slices, garlic, and ginger into a baking tray.
Place the chicken on top, skin side facing up.
Coat the chicken generously with olive oil.

Bake the Chicken

Preheat the oven to 220°C.
Bake for 40–45 minutes, or until the chicken skin turns golden brown and crispy.

Prepare the Sauce

Transfer the juices from the baking tray into a small pot.
Add orange juice, ginger juice, and potato starch.
Mix well until the starch is fully dissolved.
Cook on low heat until the sauce thickens.
Season with salt to taste.

Serve

Spoon the sauce over the chicken.
Serve hot.

Cooking tips:

I like to use navel oranges — they’re naturally sweeter, so I don’t need to add any extra sugar to the sauce. If you prefer a more tangy flavour, you can use Valencia oranges and balance it out with a little sugar.

Remove the orange peel if needed — orange skin can release bitterness as it cooks. For a cleaner, smoother sauce, you can remove the peel before adding to the baking tray.

Place the chicken skin side up — this helps the fat render properly and is key to achieving crispy skin.

High heat gives you the best balance — baking at 220°C allows the skin to turn crispy while keeping the meat moist and juicy.

Butter boosts crispiness — for extra crispy skin, rub a little butter over the skin and gently slide some underneath before baking.

High heat is a balance — baking at 220°C helps the skin turn golden brown and crispy and the meat juicy, but overbaking may slightly compromise the juiciness of the meat. Watch the colour of the skin closely and remove the chicken once it’s golden to keep the meat moist.

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