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Easy Lemon Garlic Chicken

This easy one pan lemon garlic chicken recipe is ready in no time! A quick, healthy weeknight chicken dinner that tastes great over rice or pasta.

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chicken thighs in a skillet with chicken broth and spinach

There’s something about cold-weather food that just soothes the soul. You know? Standing over a warm stove and breathing in the onion and garlic and herbs (which is always harder to do in the summertime, because, y’know, you’ll melt or whatever), building something up from scratch, and sharing dinner with family.

Overhead photo of cooked chicken thighs in a large saucepan

This easy lemon garlic chicken is easily one of my favorite fall recipes. It’s ready to go in just over half an hour, needs just one pot, has a handful of spinach so you’re even SORT OF KIND OF eating your vegetables, and the simple, lemon-y, garlicky broth is perfect for pouring over rice, pasta, or sopping up with a few slices of your favorite bread.

Also, this makes great leftovers – it’s perfect for meal prep!

Baked chicken thighs in a grey pan with chicken broth, spinach, and onions

This chicken recipe also makes the house smell ahhhhh-mazing, but it’s low maintenance enough that you can throw it together and still have time for a glass of wine with a side of Netflix while it cooks.

ADD YOUR FAVORITE VEGGIES TO MAKE THIS LEMON CHICKEN RECIPE YOUR OWN!

These lemon garlic chicken thighs are ultra-forgiving and easy to customize: add diced potatoes, asparagus, broccoli, kale, or carrots to make it a little heartier. Serve with pasta (we love ravioli or tortellini!), rice, quinoa, farro, or a pile of zucchini noodles.

You can also use whatever cut of chicken you have on hand – this recipe is equally delicious with boneless, skinless chicken breasts (just make sure to add a few minutes to the cook time if you’re using a larger cut).

Baked chicken thighs in a pot with chicken stock, spinach, and chopped onions


VIDEO: HOW TO MAKE EASY LEMON GARLIC CHICKEN


 

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Easy Lemon Garlic Chicken - This one pan chicken dinner is easy to make and ready in no time! A quick and healthy recipe that tastes great over rice or pasta.

Easy Lemon Garlic Chicken

★★★★★ 4.8 from 61 reviews
  • Author: Jessie
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 35 mins
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: Serves 4 1x
  • Category: Main Dish
  • Cuisine: American
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Description

An easy baked lemon chicken recipe for busy weeknights!

Scale

Ingredients

  • 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 large sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 and 1/2 cups chicken stock
  • 2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped

Instructions

SEAR THE CHICKEN (10 MIN)

  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Season both sides of chicken thighs with salt and pepper to taste.
  3. Heat olive oil in a large, oven-safe pan (I like to use a wide, deep skillet) over medium heat.
  4. Place chicken thighs in the hot pan and sear for 4-5 minutes on each side until golden brown.
  5. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside, then return pan to stove over medium-high heat.

MAKE THE SAUCE (5-10 MIN)

  1. 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.
  2. Pull leaves off of thyme sprigs. Add thyme leaves to the onions.
  3. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Juice the lemon, removing any seeds, and add lemon juice to the onion mixture. Stir to combine.
  5. Add chicken stock and spinach to onions and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a simmer.
  6. 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)

  1. Place pan in 400 degree F oven, uncovered, and cook 15-20 minutes more until chicken is cooked through. Serve immediately.

Notes

Click here for an Instant Pot version of this recipe!

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). We recommend investing in a good meat thermometer to help with this! Use 1/2 cup of white wine in place of 1/2 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 or add 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!) We love our Crock Pot Slow Cooker or Instant Pot here! 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.

Equipment. We love a deep stainless skillet or large cast iron skillet for this recipe. Use a digital thermometer to test chicken for doneness.

Keywords: dinner, baked

graphic describing how to make lemon garlic chicken
chicken thighs in a cast iron skillet with spinach and onions

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Comments

  1. Tina says

    I served this over egg noodles with a little grated parmesan for supper tonight and it was a hit! My husband could not stop raving about it. My 11 year-old and my 8 year-old proclaimed it was delicious. I followed the recipe except for the following changes: I used a mixture of Vidalia onion and green onions instead of yellow, and I used fresh oregano instead of thyme because that is what I had. I sprinkled with one dash of ground thyme after adding the oregano. I baked it in the grill outside by inverting a Pampered Chef stone cookie sheet and placing the skillet on top of that. (It gets hot here in Alabama, so cooking outside is a life-saver on the power bill in spring and summer!) Delicious recipe! Thanks so much for sharing!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  4. Sparrow says

    I try to cook enough of one thing to keep me in dinners through the work week, as I work 10 hour days so when I get home cookin’ is not happenin’. I need recipes that are reasonably healthy, low-carb, full of flavor, and microwave well. This ticked all the boxes and is going into my regular rotation. Thank you!

    The only changes I made were to add the zest of half the lemon (I love lemon) along with the thyme and finished it on the stove as I don’t have an oven-safe pan. I had to guess at the amount of thyme since I don’t really know how big a “sprig” should be, but it worked out perfectly. I used a “family pack” of boneless, skinless thighs (about 2.5 lbs).

    Next time I’ll zest the entire lemon and double the sauce ingredients so I can call it soup, but otherwise it’s perfection!

    Reply

  8. Tara says

    Just wanted to say that if you wrap your skillet/wok/whatever handle with foil, you can put it in the oven easy peasy 👍 Hope this helps somebody out there. Thanks for this recipe; it is simple, healthy and delicious!

    Reply

  11. Mark B says

    Love this dish. Added a 1/2 cup more of chicken stock because the sauce is so good. Easy and quick and great as a leftover.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  12. Cathy R says

    Absolutely loved this recipe…pleased adults and our sometimes picky teenager! We all agreed this will be a new favorite to work into our rotation! It was easy to make, ingredients were simple and it’s full of flavor! Yummy!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  13. Paul says

    What an outstanding recipe. I had doubts but they are gone! Wonderful flavors, assembly is easy, and the diner reaction was terrific!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  14. Aslyn Van cleave says

    This has become a staple in our household. My husband and daughter love this recipe. I have made it enough times now that I throw other veggies or spices in and change it up a little. But the method and base I keep the same. I highly suggest trying the recipe

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  15. Toni says

    This dish is absolutely delicious and so easy to make! My family and I enjoyed it very much and thank you for sharing!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  16. Cynthia B says

    Thanks so much for this fast and easy recipe! My family loved it! I will definitely make it again! Instead of regular olive oil, I also used a little bit of both the garlic infused and lemon infused olive oil. Delish!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  17. Kristen says

    I never post comments on recipes but I had to tell you how good this was. Both of my kids loved it. I followed the recipe exactly except I finished the cooking on the stovetop instead of the oven because I didn’t have the correct pan. So good! Will definitely make again.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  18. Patricia Jones says

    Tonight makes the 4th or 5th time I’ve made this wonderful dish! My partner & I both LOVE it. I use bone broth (extra) & add whatever fresh veg I have on hand. This time it’s carrots, cauliflower & broccoli served over rice. Always extra garlic & salt to taste. Thank you so much for my favorite chicken dish!! xxxooo

    ★★★★★

    Reply

    • Jessie @ Life As A Strawberry says

      Absolutely! You can also cover the skillet with a lid and finish cooking the chicken on the stovetop if you like.

      Reply

  20. Kathleen Rizzuto says

    Can I use frozen broccoli? It’s the steam fresh where u microwave for 10 minutes. If I can use frozen, cooked or not?

    Reply
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