Perfectly tender baked lemon chicken thighs with crispy, golden skin, parsley and green onions, and a delicious pan sauce are forgiving and easy to make. Serve over rice or the grain of your choice.
Baked lemon chicken thighs are an excellent recipe to have in your back pocket. And once you have a feel for the marinade ratios and cook time, you can wing the recipe, riff on flavors, and make on-the-fly swaps for a versatile, always-delicious dinner staple.
This particular lemon chicken recipe starts with well-salted chicken thighs and a marinade of lemon juice and zest, garlic, Dijon mustard, and olive oil. The longer the marinade and chicken mingle, the better. If you’re the planning sort, 1 day is ideal. But even after 30 minutes or an hour, the chicken will be moist and flavorful.
Spring is a season of punchy greens, assertive alliums, and tender new shoots. These lemony chicken thighs are the perfect accompaniment – their richness sits alongside bitter or unctuous elements quite nicely. Of course, once you have it down, this adaptable recipe can be a year-round staple, pairing with everything from summer tomatoes to roasted squash.
Let Chicken Come to Room Temp
For best results, let the marinated chicken sit out on the counter and come to room temp for about 30 minutes before baking. This is also a great time to preheat the oven so it’s nice and hot.
Swapping in Chicken Breasts
Bone-in skin-on thighs are very forgiving in the oven and rarely dry out. If you prefer to use chicken breasts, go for skin-on and watch the cook time carefully – pull them just as they hit an internal temp of 165 degrees F.
Plan for Pan Sauce
As the chicken bakes, the marinade will concentrate in the baking dish taking on schmaltzy depth. Take advantage of this super delicious pan sauce by serving the chicken with a grain like rice, farro, polenta, or couscous. If grains aren’t your thing, have some bread at the ready to sop up all the deliciousness. Blanched asparagus or a lemony salad are perfect accompaniments. I also love to have a dollop of spicy harissa or a garlicky aioli alongside.
These perfectly tender baked lemon chicken thighs with crispy, golden skin, herbs, and a delicious pan sauce are forgiving and easy to make. Serve over rice or the grain of your choice.
- 3 - 4 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (6 - 8), see note above to swap in breasts
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Zest of 1 lemon plus 2 tablespoons juice
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon Dijon
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup minced parsley
- 2 tablespoons minced green onions, spring onions, garlic chives, or chives
- Harissa
-
Set the chicken in a large 9 x 13-inch pan or baking dish (you can use the baking dish you plan to bake in) and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, use a fork to mix the lemon zest and juice, garlic, Dijon, and red pepper flakes. Drizzle in the olive oil, whisking vigorously.
-
Slide into the fridge and marinate. Chicken is best left to marinate overnight, but an hour or even 30 minutes will be sufficient.
-
When ready to bake, preheat the over to 425 degrees F. Set the chicken out to come to room temp.
-
If needed, move the chicken thighs to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with deep sides. If using a different pan, scrape the leftover marinade over the chicken.
-
Bake 25 - 30 minutes, or until the chicken skin is golden and a thermometer inserted at the thickest part reads 165 degrees F or higher. If using breasts, start checking the temp at the 20 minute mark.
-
Tuck lemon slices all around. Sprinkle parsley and green onion over top of the chicken. Serve thighs over a grain with spoonfuls of pan sauce, sliced lemon, and a dollop of harissa.
nice dish, love lemon with chicken and thighs always, dijon flavor too, thank you!