Lemon Chicken

By Addie

Overheard at the market, "I'm a breast girl." "Really? I'm definitely a thigh girl," pause..."dark meat, so much more flavor." Had to laugh, I'm so so so much a thigh girl myself. Here is the secret to fabulous lemon chicken - use bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (or legs, but thighs are easier to eat). Lemon is acidic and greatly benefits from the balance of the stronger flavor of the dark meat in thighs and legs, and the fat from the chicken skin. You don't have to eat the skin (my father doesn't, he gives them to me, score!), but cook with them on for the flavor.

What we most love about this recipe is that it is a classic American lemon chicken recipe without being too lemony. In other words, it doesn't make your lips pucker, it has just the right amount of lemon flavor to it.

Ingredients

• 3-4 pounds chicken parts (thighs and legs recommended), skin-on, bone-in, trimmed of excess fat
• 2 Tbsp lemon zest
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• ...............................
• 2-3 Tbsp melted butter
• Lemon slices for garnish

Details

Adapted from simplyrecipes.com

Preparation

Step 1

Combine the lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper in a large zipper-lock plastic bag. Seal the bag and shake well to blend. Place the chicken pieces in the bag with the marinade, pressing out excess air and sealing once more. Refrigerate and let marinate for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and transfer to a baking dish, skin-side up, reserving the leftover marinade. Brush the top of each piece of chicken with melted butter.

Bake for 50-55 minutes, until the skins are crispy and well-browned. Halfway through baking, pour the remaining marinade over the chicken pieces in the baking dish. Once fully baked, cover loosely with foil and let rest 10 minutes before serving. Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with lemon slices and serve.

Depending on the size of the breasts, they may be ready before the thighs, so if you are cooking a mix of chicken parts, keep that in mind, you may have to take them out of the oven before the thighs.

Let rest, covered in foil, for 10 minutes before serving.

4 Pour the juices from the pan into a serving bowl. Use a tablespoon to skim the fat off the top (save the fat for cooking with later, or discard, but do not discard down the drain or it will solidify and clog your drain). Serve the chicken with the juices on the side or a little poured over the top of the chicken.

Serve alone or with steamed rice.
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REVIEWS:

Hi, here the lemon chicken recipe is almost the same as ours. Only we do it the unhealthy way. After marinating, dip into corn flour and deep-fry it. Yummy !

I made this chicken tonight. It was awesome!! Thanks for the great recipe. I'm with you when it comes to eating the crispy thigh skin!! Yum!

Great recipe, just made it with breasts. Cooked it a little less but it was a huge hit. Thanks

What I love about this blog is that, unlike on the food network website, ALL of the recipes are good. Pick any recipe. Bam. Delicious. This was no exception, and CHEAP! 5 lbs of thighs for 3.44. I made it tonight. My husband is away for an internship for a month and I am alone with our babies, and this recipe was just a little more work than a frozen dinner! I wasn't able to baste and it still turned out amazing.

I have to thank you, I made this chicken tonight and oh my goodness the best chicken I've ever made! This is now going to be a staple in our house. I never heard about cutting into the chicken before the marinade, but wow it made a huge flavor difference.

Thanks for this recipe! I had a couple of lemons I wanted to use, so when I saw this recipe I bought some chicken and made it tonight. A success! All the flavors were wonderful together. I added some grated fresh garlic and paprika to the seasonings. Delicious!

Made this recipe last night and it is so delicious. The whole family loved it!!! Thank you.

I made this for our Sunday night dinner and it was wonderful. Your site has converted me to being a "thigh girl", skin and all. Thanks!

THANK YOU for another wonderful recipe. I made this for dinner tonight, and it was so perfect. I didn't change any of the ingredients or your instructions. The end result was as you said: not too lemony. You know it is lemon and garlic but the flavors are not overpowering. I think the skin must be eaten as that has so much of the flavors within it. (I've convinced myself that the fat has baked off and, therefore, not as many fat grams.) I served this with jasmine rice. This would be perfect for company. I'll make it again and again.

I made this for dinner tonight and it turned out just like your picture. I just made 4 thighs for my husband and I along with a baked sweet potato and salad. It was so tasty and easy. Thanks for the recipe.

This recipe was amazing! I LOOOVVVE all things lemon and was looking for a new way to do chicken and this fit the bill. As my husband said when it came out of the oven - "It looks just like the picture!" (clearly not all my meals accomplish that). FABULOUS!!!

Absolutely fantastic! We could taste the lemon, but it wasn't too lemony. Very easy to prepare. I baked the thighs and drumsticks first, but gave them a crispy boost on the grill. Will do it again for sure!

Just thought I'd let you know that I did try this recipe out the other week, and two more times since then! It's fantastic. You're right, the lemon isn't overpowering at all. It's one of our new favorite chicken recipes.

My husband said this was the best chicken dish I'd ever made. It was really delicious! And with no fat in the marinade and just a little butter on top, I didn't have any pangs of guilt about eating the skin. I let in marinate about 4 hours- got it started while the kiddo was napping - with no problems. We've added it to the "Cook Often" list.

Made this tonight for dinner - Scrumptious! Only marinated for an hour so will try 2 next time but was very good. Roasted up some red pepper and yellow grape tomatoes for 15 mins with some thyme and olive oil and mixed them in with the chicken and some brown rice. Lovely. With the left over lemon marinade mixed in with the rice - it turned out really well. Definitely a keeper!