Skip to main content
Epicurious

Miso-Butter Roast Chicken With Acorn Squash Panzanella

4.4

(10)

Read ReviewsTriangle
Photo of a roasted chicken on a serving platter with butternut squash a bowl of gravy and serving utensils on the side.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Prop Styling by Megan Hedgpeth, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich

  • Active Time

    40 minutes

  • Total Time

    2 hours 10 minutes, includes resting time

If you’re doing chicken for Thanksgiving this year (and you absolutely should), you might as well pair it with a nontraditional stuffing. This squash-and-apple side is the move: It has all the buttery, herby flavor of classic stuffing, but in place of mushy bread it offers crispy, craggy croutons, which readily soak up the miso-spiked gravy. Thanksgiving brood closer to six or eight people rather than three or four? The recipe doubles easily: Simply roast two chickens on a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet; to make the gravy, scrape the drippings from the baking sheet into a large skillet and proceed as usual.

Ingredients

4 servings

Chicken and panzanella:

1 (3½–4-lb.) whole chicken
2¾ tsp. kosher salt, divided, plus more
2 small acorn squash (about 3 lb. total)
2 Tbsp. finely chopped sage
1 Tbsp. finely chopped rosemary
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, plus 3 Tbsp. room temperature
¼ tsp. ground allspice
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Freshly ground black pepper
⅓ loaf good-quality sturdy white bread, torn into 1" pieces (about 2½ cups)
2 medium apples (such as Gala or Pink Lady; about 14 oz. total), cored, cut into 1" pieces
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
½ small red onion, thinly sliced
3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. white miso

Gravy and assembly:

¼ cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
¼ cup dry white wine
2 cups unsalted chicken broth
2 tsp. white miso
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

Preparation

  1. Chicken and panzanella:

    Step 1

    Pat chicken dry with paper towels, season all over with 2 tsp. salt, and tie legs together with kitchen twine. Let sit at room temperature 1 hour.

    Step 2

    Meanwhile, halve squash and scoop out seeds. Run a vegetable peeler along ridges of squash halves to remove skin. Cut each half into ½"-thick wedges; arrange on a rimmed baking sheet.

    Step 3

    Combine sage, rosemary, and 6 Tbsp. melted butter in a large bowl; pour half of mixture over squash on baking sheet. Sprinkle squash with allspice, red pepper flakes, and ½ tsp. salt and season with black pepper; toss to coat.

    Step 4

    Add bread, apples, oil, and ¼ tsp. salt to remaining herb butter in bowl; season with black pepper and toss to combine. Set aside.

    Step 5

    Place onion and vinegar in a small bowl; season with salt and toss to coat. Let sit, tossing occasionally, until ready to serve.

    Step 6

    Place a rack in middle and lower third of oven; preheat to 425°F. Mix miso and 3 Tbsp. room-temperature butter in a small bowl until smooth. Pat chicken dry with paper towels, then rub or brush all over with miso butter. Place chicken in a large cast-iron skillet and roast on middle rack until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of breast registers 155°F, 50–60 minutes. (Temperature will climb to 165°F while chicken rests.) Let chicken rest in skillet at least 5 minutes, then transfer to a plate; reserve skillet.

    Step 7

    Meanwhile, roast squash on lower rack until mostly tender, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and scatter reserved bread mixture over, spreading into as even a layer as you can manage. Return to oven and roast until bread is golden brown and crisp and apples are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven, drain pickled onions, and toss to combine. Transfer to a serving dish.

  2. Gravy and assembly:

    Step 8

    Using your fingers, mash flour and butter in a small bowl to combine.

    Step 9

    Set reserved skillet with chicken drippings over medium heat. You should have about ¼ cup, but a little over or under is all good. (If you have significantly more, drain off and set excess aside.) Add wine and cook, stirring often and scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon, until bits are loosened and wine is reduced by about half (you should be able to smell the wine), about 2 minutes. Add butter mixture; cook, stirring often, until a smooth paste forms, about 2 minutes. Add broth and any reserved drippings and cook, stirring constantly, until combined and thickened, 6–8 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in miso. Taste and season with salt and black pepper.

    Step 10

    Serve chicken with gravy and squash panzanella alongside.

Sign In or Subscribe
to leave a Rating or Review

How would you rate Miso-Butter Roast Chicken With Acorn Squash Panzanella?

Leave a Review

Reviews (10)

Back to TopTriangle

  • This was delicious! A perfect fall recipe. I did need to tent the chicken. Around 40 minutes I checked on it and the outside was starting to char a bit. The smallest chicken I could find at the store was 4.5 lb so it took about 70 minutes to cook. The chicken was juicy, the skin was delicious, and the drippings turned into an incredible umami-filled gravy that I kept going back for more of. I also loved the panzanella. One of our dinner guests couldn't stop talking about the pickled shallots (I used those in place of red onions). I used the rest of a stale sourdough loaf. I prefer that when I make panzanella with tomatoes but I think for this recipe next time I would use fresh bread. I had leftover delicata squash and roasted that along with the acorn squash. Don't skip the fresh herbs they really add an important layer of flavor. Can't wait to make this again!

    • Taylor

    • California

    • 12/3/2021

  • My very southern grandmother always roasted a “nice fat hen”—or two or three or however many were needed—with stuffing, dressing, cranberry relish, et cetera, for Thanksgiving—never a turkey.

    • Lisa

    • The USAF.

    • 11/25/2021

  • I had a 5 lb chicken. I lowered the heat to 425 and roasted the chicken 80 minutes. It was too long and the chicken was a bit over cooked. The rest of the recipe was perfect. I will do this again and try to get a 4lb chicken and roast at 450. The chicken gravy was delicious and the apple squash medley was perfect. The acidity of the onion brought everything alive. I will definitely make this again.

    • Frank P

    • Southampton, NY

    • 10/10/2021

  • So good - with the following modifications. I used white miso soup mix instead of white miso (limited grocery stores), just remove the tofu chunks! I used butternut squash instead of acorn. And I used a turkey breast instead of a chicken. It was SO good!

    • bmberry

    • Virgin Islands

    • 12/9/2020

  • This was super good. The chicken was well seasoned and simple- I did have to tent it. The panzanella is a really fun, different take on typical dressing- I am a lover of squash and this incorporated the dressing and squash in one tasty, slightly less bread-y side. You still get that herby, buttery goodness but it doesn’t feel as heavy. Love the pickled onions! The gravy is very tasty too. I made this for our small covid thanksgiving and it was well received!

    • otwell

    • San Diego

    • 11/28/2020

  • Everyone loved this, especially the herbed panzanella with apples, squash and bread. Great complement to the chicken and gravy. The chicken came out juicy and not overly salty (miso is very salty, like soy sauce) but there were rosy spots near the breastbone that made me think it wasn't quite cooked.

    • SweetTart

    • Los Angeles

    • 11/23/2020

  • Major caveat that I only made the chicken portion of the recipe - but since that is the primary component I feel fair reviewing it. It was a disaster. I’ve roasted dozens of chickens in my life, and never had an issue like this one. The miso almost immediately burned; within 5 minutes it was charred and black, and the chicken had to be tented with foil - which of course means no crispy skin. Worse, temping the breast did not work for me. I’ve never seen a direction to temp a breast but wanted to trust the recipe. Breast temped fine, but after a few minutes of resting I checked the thighs - totally raw. Back in the oven, more time. After way more time in the oven than called for by weight, I eventually just had to abandon it to get my children to bed. Still raw, and finally just had to throw the entire thing out as the in and out of the oven plus time losing temperature did not seem safe. Never ever had a chicken disaster like this in 30 years of cooking.

    • Anonymous

    • Boulder, CO

    • 2/5/2024

  • time consuming, but well worth it! so delicious

    • Anonymous

    • 9/24/2023

  • VERY good. Would make an excellent substitute Thanksgiving or other holiday meal that calls for turkey, stuffing, etcetera. Easy-peasy and delicious. Highly recommend.

    • Laura

    • New Orleans. LA

    • 12/27/2022

TagsSaladWhole ChickenChickenPoultryAcorn SquashSquashVegetableAppleFruitMisoMainDinnerNut FreeCast Iron SkilletThanksgivingFallWinterEpicurious

See Related Recipes and Cooking Tips

Read More
Skillet Cornbread
Proof that the best cornbread isn’t necessarily the most complicated, this easy recipe gets it on the table in 30 minutes.
Stuffing-Crusted Fish
Flaky fish with a buttery, crispy stuffing crust and a fresh salad makes for a delicious meal using holiday pantry staples—all under 30 minutes.
Skillet-Fried Chicken
This easy recipe for Southern fried chicken is the only one you'll ever need. This is part of BA's Best, a collection of our essential recipes.
Simple Classic Stuffing
Try this easy homemade stuffing recipe made using country bread and a quartet of fresh herbs.
Sauerkraut and Potato Skillet
This simple hash—equally good for breakfast as for a quick and easy weeknight dinner—gets a pick-me-up from bright, funky sauerkraut.
Sausage-and-Herb Stuffing
The only way to improve our very best stuffing recipe? Add breakfast sausage.
Weeknight Pasta With Stuffing Crumbs
The crunchy stuffing-mix crumbs that adorn each bowl of pasta are the true stars of the show here.
Skillet Chicken Thighs and Peaches
Frozen peaches make this one-pan chicken dinner a breeze to throw together; you’ll want bread or potatoes on the side to sop up all the luscious sauce.