Roasted Chicken Thighs with Lemon & Thyme

Roasted chicken thighs is one of those meals that just make you feel at home. I don't think you can possible go wrong with baked chicken and potatoes for appealing to the whole family. The thyme isn't too overpowering and the lemon adds acidity and brightness without being overly lemony. My mom made thyme chicken with lemon all the time as a kid, since it's so easy to throw together and get on the table without a lot of effort. I'm sure that this will be a family favorite for you too!

Jump to:

• Equipment
• Ingredients and Potential Swaps
• Recipe Tips and Notes
• FAQ
• Recipe
• Reviews

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Equipment

One of the best parts about this herb roasted chicken recipe is the minimal equipment needed! You really only need a large baking sheet, but I also like to use silicone mats to roast chicken as well. It helps with cleanup and has little wires running through them that ensure the bottom is evenly heated. While you can certainly use aluminum foil, I prefer not to cook with aluminum in case it has negative health effects.

Ingredients and Potential Swaps

Roasted chicken with lemon and thyme has a lot of staple ingredients that you can keep in your freezer and pull out when you need a quick meal.

• Chicken - I usually use one Costco frozen package and just however many chicken pieces are in there. I would guess that this is about 1 pound, bone-less and skinless. This usually winds up being anywhere from 4-6 boneless chicken thighs so keep that in mind when feeding a crowd.
  • I also highly recommend salting your chicken before you roast them. Samin Nosrat's book Salt Fat Acid Heat was a life changer for me in terms of flavor. But just in case you don't have that book she also wrote an article for the NYT on the subject.
• Potatoes - Any kind will do! Just make sure that you cut them up to bite sized pieces that are uniform in size so that they cook evenly and quickly
• Onion - Whatever you have on hand will do, cut into slices.
• Whole Garlic Cloves - Roasted garlic is one of my very favorite things. They add a really amazing pop of flavor and crunch occasionally as you eat. Don't worry if you want to add more or less. You could also sprinkle garlic powder over the entire pan if that's what you have on hand.
• Olive Oil - This is important to make sure that your food doesn't burn and caramelizes nicely. Occasionally I will also spray the entire pan with an avocado oil spray just to ensure that everything is evenly covered. You can sub the olive oil with avocado oil as well!
• Lemon - This is key! You need an acid for your food to taste complete so don't leave this out. If you don't have or like lemon, I would recommend trying white wine vinegar!
• Thyme - I love thyme. It's a subtle herb that goes great in so many dishes. But this is a great place to change up flavor! I can see rosemary or oregano being natural substitutions. Don't be afraid to branch out! Cumin or paprika would also be great, so try any of your favorite spices! You don't even have to limit yourself to one just one! Doesn't roasted chicken with lemon thyme and rosemary sound amazing?
• Peas and Pearl Onions - So the first time I made lemon thyme chicken I forgot the peas and pearl onions and could not figure out what was missing. So while you can certainly leave these out, I don't recommend it! Feel free to substitute other vegetables though, or leave out the pearl onions if don't like them. I also recommend just going for frozen vs fresh. It's a lot less work and you can keep them on hand for on demand meals!
• Salt and Pepper - Seasoning is very important for flavor. Don't forget these!

Do I have to use boneless skinless chicken thighs?

Of course you don't! I would also recommend chicken breasts, bone-in chicken thighs, chicken wings, or drumsticks! You'll just want to make sure to adjust the time and remove them when they're fully cooked. Always cook your chicken to 165 degrees!

Recipe Tips and Notes

If you want to make the very best roasted lemon thyme chicken then you have to make sure that you do a few things to make sure that will make it taste best to you! For example, my mom cooks hers at 350 degrees for much longer until the onions and potatoes are super browned and crispy. She might even double the onion because that's her favorite part. Try that out if it sounds good to you!

Don't let the onions burn. If you don't get a lot of oil spread around or stir often, then you might burn the onions which doesn't taste the best.

FAQ

How long will thyme chicken thighs keep?

I recommend keeping cooked chicken in your fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days after cooking.

What do you eat lemon chicken with?

The best part about roasting a one pan chicken meal is everything you need for the meal is cooking alongside the chicken. No additional side dishes required! See "ingredient swaps" above for more suggestions on what else you can use in this dish.

I can't wait for you to try out Roasted Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Thyme for your next family meal! Leave a comment with the changes you made and how you made this your own! If you like what you see here and want to get updates with new recipes, subscribe to my email list! I only send out new recipes so you won't want to miss them!

Recipe

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