Rosemary Lemon Chicken Thighs
Rosemary lemon chicken thighs are ready in about 30 minutes, like my bourbon jalapeno chicken thighs, making it a great choice for a weeknight dinner. Full of flavor, light on effort and super easy, this is a recipe you’ll come back to again and again.
I don’t often think of blogging about food that I cook for clients because the truth of the matter is that I didn’t think people would be interested. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Every pic I’ve posted lately about “client food” has been met with a one-word response: recipe?
Rosemary Lemon Chicken Thighs
Add to that the request from several friends asking for healthy, real food that gets on the table in roughly 30 minutes and here you have it. Dinner in about the time it takes to watch a sitcom. This recipe is hardly a “recipe” in that it has a handful of ingredients and it is minimal effort.
The most laborious part of it is taking the chicken from the sauté pan and putting it on a sheet pan. Actual hands-on time is roughly 10 minutes, so you can grab a glass of wine and chill out while the oven does all the work.
30 minute chicken dinner
Weeknights can get a little crazy and while it is easier to order a pizza, making this chicken dinner requires very little effort. The best thing about this recipe, besides how damn good it is, is that it is done in about half an hour.
We can’t just serve chicken for dinner, though, so here are a few sides that you can make in the time this chicken is roasting: white beans with arugula and sun dried tomato / mediterranean quinoa salad / sautéed broccolini with citrus / tomato cucumber salad / simple carrot salad from 3 boys and a dog
Roasted rosemary lemon chicken
The oven does most of the heavy lifting in this recipe. After you’ve browned the skin, the chicken thighs will roast while you are doing something else.
If thighs aren’t your favorite, you can make rosemary lemon chicken breasts instead. You will follow the recipe exactly as you would with thighs, with one change: reduce the cooking time by 5 minutes.
The garlic will get really soft and caramelized in the oven. You can see from the photo above how it is browned and delicious. If you are a fan of garlic, you can smash a few cloves and slather it on the chicken (or a piece of bread!).
My latest recipe video:
How to cook rosemary lemon chicken thighs
The key to getting these chicken thighs nice and crispy is a hot oven. I roast them at 375°F with a convection oven. If your oven is not convection, you could crank it up to 400°F.
Make a “bed” of rosemary, garlic and lemon for the chicken thighs. Set the chicken on top of this while it roasts, this will perfume your chicken thighs with all that delicious flavor. If you have time, you can also make a marinade of these ingredients and leave the chicken overnight in the refrigerator to marinate.
Easy entertaining
The dessert of choice the past two summers has been No Bake Blueberry Cheesecake Bars – it is one of the most popular recipes here for a reason.
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Did you make this recipe? Tag me @pookspantry, I’d love to hear from you!
Rosemary Lemon Chicken Thighs
An easy weeknight dinner, rosemary lemon chicken thighs are ready in 30 minutes.
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs, bone-in, with skin
- 1 large lemon, or 2 small, cut into small wedges
- 4-5 sprigs of rosemary
- 1/4 cup garlic cloves, or a big handful
- 3 tbsp. canola oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C)
- Toss chicken thighs with salt, pepper and oil. Sear in a med-hot pan, skin side down until browned, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
- Toss garlic cloves, rosemary and lemon, onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Transfer chicken to sheet pan, skin side up, placing it on top of the aromatics (herbs/lemon/garlic) and roast for about 30-35 minutes (depending on the size of the thighs)
- Sprinkle with chopped rosemary, if desired.
Notes
Cook time will vary slightly depending on the size of the chicken thighs. If they are on the small side, cook 2 minutes less. If they are large, add a few extra minutes to ensure they are done or use a meat thermometer - it should register 160-165, and allow chicken to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 674Total Fat: 47gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 35gCholesterol: 333mgSodium: 1036mgCarbohydrates: 6gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 62g
This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix on 7/10/2019
Cheryl – can chicken breasts be substituted for the thighs? If so, what changes to the recipe will I need to do. This sounds easy enough that I think even I could make it!!!
Jenny- you can absolutely use chicken breasts! Reduce the cooking time to about 25 minutes (unless the chicken breasts are huge, then don’t) and you should be good to go! 🙂
xo
This is gorgeous and reminds me of the lemon chicken dish I made for my wedding lunch (and many times since). Yours looks so delicious and whoa a whole hell of a lot better than a bucket!
Thank you Jamie! You are always so sweet! I appreciate your kind words so very much!
My husband is a pretty picky eater and he loves this chicken! So delicious ?
Hooray!!! I love it when a recipe is a hot with anyone, but ESPECIALLY with picky eaters 😉
What an amazing recipe! Chicken is not only tasty, but also healthy!