This easy one pan lemon garlic chicken recipe is ready in no time! A quick, weeknight chicken dinner that tastes great over rice or pasta.
This easy lemon garlic chicken is one of my favorite fall recipes.
It's ready to go in under an hour, uses just one pot, includes spinach because #vegetables, and makes a simple, lemon-y, garlicky broth that's perfect for pouring over rice, pasta, or sopping up with a few slices of homemade crusty bread.
Also, this lemon chicken recipe makes great leftovers (perfect for meal prep!)
Ingredients you'll need
- Boneless, skinless chicken thighs - We're using chicken thighs here because they pack a ton of flavor, stay a bit more tender than other cuts, and are easy to fit in the pan. Boneless skinless chicken breasts work just as well here though!
- Diced yellow onion and plenty of minced garlic - We'll sauté these aromatics together to create the base of our sauce.
- Fresh thyme gives some extra depth to this recipe. Dried thyme works, too!
- Lemon is the star of the show here: Fresh lemon juice adds brightness and flavor to our sauce. Use more or less lemon juice depending on your preference!
- Chicken stock (or chicken broth) gives our sauce some volume and extra flavor.
- Fresh spinach lends a pop of color and plenty of nutrients.
- You'll also need a few basics: olive oil, salt, and pepper help us bring this dish together.
Order of operations
First, sear the chicken
Adding a quick sear to our chicken thighs locks in a bit of moisture and gives us some super flavorful drippings to use as the base for our sauce.
Season your chicken thighs on all sides with plenty of salt, then sear the chicken with a bit of oil in a deep, large skillet until the meat is lightly browned on all sides. Set the chicken aside, then use the same pan to make the sauce.
Build your sauce + bake
- Sauté onion and garlic with a bit of oil until soft.
- Add salt, pepper, and fresh thyme, then squeeze in the juice of one lemon.
- Stir chicken stock and spinach into the sauce.
- Return the chicken thighs to your saucepan, then bake in a hot oven until cooked through.
Riffs and substitutions
These lemon garlic chicken thighs are ultra forgiving and easy to customize! A few of our favorite swaps and additions:
- For a creamy sauce, stir in a splash of heavy cream or Magic Cauliflower Cream.
- Use white wine in place of ½ cup of the chicken stock for extra flavor!
- For more lemon flavor, add the lemon zest from your lemon in addition to the juice (or add another lemon entirely!) You can also top the chicken thighs with lemon slices just before baking for a beautiful presentation and extra flavor.
- Add diced potatoes, asparagus, broccoli, kale, or carrots to make it a little heartier.
- Use whatever cut of chicken you have on hand - this recipe is equally delicious with boneless, skinless chicken breast (just make sure to add a few minutes to the cook time if you're using a larger cut- a good meat thermometer can help you with this).
What to serve with lemon garlic chicken
We love serving this chicken with pasta (we love ravioli or tortellini!), rice, quinoa, farro, or a pile of zucchini noodles. It's also great with:
- Small Batch Crusty Bread
- Classic Homemade Mashed Potatoes
- 5 Minute Lemon Arugula Salad (you can also use spinach in this salad!)
PS - Love this recipe? Try our Spinach Artichoke Chicken →
VIDEO: HOW TO MAKE LEMON GARLIC CHICKEN
📖 Recipe
Easy Lemon Garlic Chicken
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 35 mins
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Main Dish
- Cuisine: American
Description
An easy baked lemon chicken recipe for busy weeknights!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- ½ medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 large sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 lemon
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock
- 2 heaping cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
Instructions
SEAR THE CHICKEN (10 MIN)
- Heat oven to 400° Fahrenheit.
- Season both sides of chicken thighs with salt and pepper to taste.
- Heat olive oil in a large, oven-safe pan (I like to use a wide, deep skillet) over medium heat.
- Place chicken thighs in the hot pan and sear for 4-5 minutes on each side until golden brown.
- Remove chicken to a plate and set aside, then return pan to stove over medium-high heat.
MAKE THE SAUCE (5-10 MIN)
- Add onion and garlic to pan. Sauté until onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. If the pan is looking a little dry, add another drizzle of olive oil to help the onion cook.
- Pull leaves off of thyme sprigs. Add thyme leaves to the onions.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Juice the lemon, removing any seeds, and add lemon juice to the onion mixture. Stir to combine.
- Add chicken stock and spinach to onions and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a simmer.
- When mixture has reached a simmer, return seared chicken thighs to pan and spoon some of the broth over the top of them to help them stay moist.
BAKE (15-20 MIN)
- Place pan in 400° F oven, uncovered, and cook 15-20 minutes more until chicken is cooked through. Serve immediately.
Notes
Can I make this in an Instant Pot? Yes! Visit our Instant Pot Lemon Garlic Chicken post for full instructions.
Substitutions. Use bone-in, skinless chicken thighs or boneless, skinless chicken breasts if you prefer. With larger or bone-in cuts, you may need to extend the baking time to ensure chicken is cooked through (when we tested this recipe with boneless, skinless chicken breasts, we increased the cook time by 8 minutes or so). Use ½ cup of white wine in place of ½ cup of the chicken stock if you like. Add kale, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, or any vegetables you have on hand in place of or in addition to the spinach. We recommend adding broccoli, cauliflower, or carrots just as you put the chicken in the oven to avoid overcooking.
How to serve this lemon garlic chicken: Serve this lemon chicken over rice, quinoa, farro, pasta (we love ravioli and tortellini!) or mashed potatoes. It's also delicious as a stand-alone entree with some roasted vegetables on the side.
For added texture, wait to add the spinach until you're ready to serve. Stir it into the hot broth and let it wilt just slightly. (We add the spinach before baking in this recipe for ease, so you can go right from the oven to the table - but if you have the time and prefer your spinach to have more texture, add it right at the end!) This recipe has a very light, broth-y sauce.
If you prefer to thicken the sauce, stir in a cornstarch slurry, a splash of heavy cream, or a few spoonfuls of our Magic Cauliflower Cream just before serving. (You may also want to check out our creamy one pan chicken and potatoes recipe, which features a thicker, creamy sauce!)
To make this recipe in a slow cooker, sauté the onions and garlic in a small skillet. Add sautéed onion mixture to your slow cooker along with the remaining ingredients and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Stir chopped spinach in when you're ready to serve. (While you can certainly skip the sauté step if you like, we strongly recommend sautéing the onions and garlic even if you're using a slow cooker because the texture is so much better!)
Save leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat, warm in a skillet or saucepan over medium-low heat until heated through. Taste and add extra chicken stock, lemon juice, and seasonings as necessary before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 362
- Sugar: 1.9 g
- Sodium: 357.8 mg
- Fat: 15.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 6.5 g
- Protein: 47.6 g
- Cholesterol: 215.8 mg
Linda
Too much lemon. Way too sour.☹️
Jessie
Sorry it wasn't right for you, Linda! If you'd like to try it again, you can certainly cut back on the lemon if it's not your favorite flavor and add a bit at a time while you taste until you find that perfect balance!
Mimi
When I taste tested before adding the chicken back, I too found it a bit too lemony. I added a knob of butter and it evened it out perfectly!
This recipe is a keeper!
Jessie
Thanks, Mimi! Great tip about adding some butter!
Andrea
Excellent recipe and so easy to make! Can't wait to have this one again mmmmmm 🙂
Jessie
So happy you liked it, Andrea!
Tim
It was excellent. I didn't use the spinach or olive oil (only had corn oil on hand, it didn't seem to hurt the results a bit), but used everything else. Easy, relatively fast. Very tasty, if you like onions, make sure you add a pretty hefty amount, they made the dish extra good.
Jessie
I'm so glad you liked it, Tim! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out!
Tracy Q
Yummy, thank you. As you suggested, I added quartered petite carrots, quartered brussels sprouts, asparagus, and Spanish chorizo (all I had in the fridge), served over brown rice, oh, and deglazed the pan with dry sauvignon blanc. Will save recipe and serve again.
Jessie
I'm so glad you liked it, Tracy! I LOVE your additions!
Karyl | Karyl's Kulinary Krusade
I love chicken thighs! This recipe looks fabulous, and I'm pinning it to make soon
Scigeek4fun
Great recipe! Great flavor! I used chicken thighs with bone and skin on and it turned out great. It is a must try quick dish that is sure to please all.
Jessie
I'm so happy you liked it - thanks for letting me know how it turned out!
Nancy
I love this recipe! I use bone-in drumsticks and thighs, a whole bag of baby spinach, and baby potatoes for a one-pot meal. Yum!!!
Jessie
I'm so happy you liked it, Nancy! Thanks for letting me know!
Amanda O
Great recipe. I added the wine as well as mushrooms and served over roasted broccolini. Next time I think I'll cook up some orzo, too.
Jessie
I'm so glad you liked it (and I love the addition of broccolini! Yum!)
Lety
Tried this tonight with my family. TO DIE FOR. We loved it, good way to sneak in those veggies! Love it
Jessie
I'm so happy you liked it!! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out 🙂
Kristin Stone
I just stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest looking for a recipe with boneless chicken thighs (hard to find a good one sometimes!). I am so glad I tried it! Definitely a keeper. I added some chopped marinated artichoke hearts and replaced about 1/3 cup of the chicken broth with sherry. Wowza! I can't wait to eat the leftovers for lunch tomorrow! Thanks for the great recipe!
Jessie
I'm so happy you liked the recipe, Kristin!! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out!
Jen
Oooh. I made this today. It is just so delicious! I did it with kale instead of spinach, and shaved some locatelli romano cheese over it to serve. It's a feast for the senses, what with the aroma and the bubbling and of course the taste. Thanks so much! I need to go back and look at your other recipes.
Jessie
I'm so glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out. I love the idea of adding kale and romano cheese! Definitely going to have to try that next time 🙂
Annie
Made this last night, it was delicious! Will add a little wine next time
Jessie
Thanks, Annie! I'm so glad you liked it! (Also, LOVE the white wine idea) 😉
Axomamma (@axomamma)
Because I am the only wine drinker in the house, and I drink very little myself, opening a whole bottle to use for cooking doesn't make sense, so I use dry vermouth as a substitute for white wine. It has always worked very well for me.
This recipe sounds delicious. It combines all of my favorite things - lemon, garlic, spinach, and chicken!
Jessie
Great tip! Thanks!
Queenie
Definetley will try this. I'm pretty sure this will turn out delicious thank you for sharing.
Jessie
Thanks, Queenie!
Tony Dreher
I'd drop a couple table spoons of any creaminess into this and it won't kill your diet. It is a little bland. Cream, milk, coconut milk or sour cream. This is skinny girl chicken,
Jessie
You can definitely add some cream to this! We didn't have any on hand when I made it, but I find a dash of salt (or even swapping white wine for some of the chicken stock!) also makes a big difference if the flavors aren't quite there yet.
Shell
Making it tonight with kale instead of spinach, adding artichoke hearts and serving it with orzo. May have to make more sauce, too! I have a nice loaf of rustic bread that would be great for dipping 🙂 Thanks for a wonderful recipe!
Jessie
I love the changes you're making to the recipe! Hope it was delicious!
EnticingHealthyEating
Ah! This seems like the perfect dish for a weeknight meal to throw together quickly and still have ample flavor for the meal itself. Yum.
Jessie
Thanks, Kaylin!