• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Cafe Delites

for good food lovers

  • Recipe Index
  • About Me
    • BOOKS
  • Contact Me
    • Policies
      • Disclaimer
      • Copyright
    • MEDIA
You are here: Home / Dinner / Crispy Lemon Chicken

By Karina 16 Comments Filed Under: Chicken

Crispy Lemon Chicken

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Roast Lemon Chicken thighs with crispy skin, seared then oven baked for tender and juicy chicken full of flavour!

Your new favourite chicken recipe is here! An easy Lemon Chicken recipe with a kick of garlic and a touch of herbs will fast become a requested chicken dinner. Simple to make with minimal ingredients and maximum flavour, this is one low carb meal the entire family will get behind!

Roast Lemon Chicken thighs with crispy skin pan, seared then oven baked for tender and juicy chicken full of flavour! Your new favourite chicken recipe is here! With a kick of garlic and a touch of herbs, simple to make with minimal ingredients and maximum flavour! | cafedelites.com

Roast Chicken

You all know how much I love a good, juicy whole roast chicken recipe, but my absolute most favourite parts of a chook are either legs or thighs. I know, I know most people hate dark meat and for those people, we have juicy baked chicken breasts. For today, however, these thighs are the shiznit!

Chicken Thighs Or Breasts?

Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs are an inexpensive cut of chicken that won’t kill your weekly food shop! Deliciously versatile, easy to make on either stove top or oven, nothing beats crispy skin on chicken! Due to the nature of this recipe, I recommend using thighs. If you want to use chicken breasts, I’d recommend using skin-on and bone-in for ultimate flavour.

Easy Lemon Chicken | cafedelites.com

How To Make Lemon Chicken

Our lemon chicken recipe starts off seared in a pan first. Searing skin-side down in a hot skillet over medium-high heat gives the skin time to get the crispy texture we love so much, while roasting them finishes cooking them off, giving you tender, juicy meat.

Seasoned with only salt and pepper to avoid any other seasonings from burning in the hot pan, you’re going to sear your bone-in chicken thighs, UNDISTURBED, for a good 8-10 minutes — skin-side down first — to render the fat and get the skin nice and golden brown in colour.

Tips for a crispy skin

  • Thoroughly pat skin dry with a paper towel. This gets rid of any excess water from freezing or refrigeration.
  • Use a cast iron skillet or oven-proof stainless steel pan and heat over medium heat until hot.
  • Add in a tiny amount of oil (about 2 teaspoons) and wait for it to shimmer. When it’s hot enough, add your chicken as mentioned above.
  • Once skin has seared, flip and continue searing the underside for a crispy, golden meat base.
  • When adding in the rest of the ingredients, add them to the base of the pan without touching the skin to keep that skin as crunchy and crispy as possible.
  • If wanting to baste the skin with the liquid ingredients, it won’t turn out as crispy as it was. Yes, the flavour will be present, but the pan seared crispiness will diminish a little.
  • Transfer the pan or skillet to a hot oven and roast for 15 – 20 minutes until done and cooked through to the bone.
  • Baste with pan juices when serving.

Lemon Chicken with crispy skin pan | cafedelites.com

Sides for Roast Chicken

  1. Mashed potatoes
  2. Wedges: Sweet Potato OR Potato
  3. Roast Green Beans
  4. Avocado Corn Tomato Salad
  5. Roast Carrots
  6. Smashed Potatoes OR Smashed Sweet Potatoes
  7. Roast Asparagus
  8. Pasta Salad
  9. Balsamic Chickpea Avocado Feta Salad

Looking for more chicken recipes? Try these!

Chicken Thighs With Creamy Mushroom Garlic Sauce
Crispy Chicken Parmesan (Parmigiana)
Chicken Tikka Masala

Roast Lemon Chicken thighs with crispy skin pan, seared then oven baked for tender and juicy chicken full of flavour! Your new favourite chicken recipe is here! With a kick of garlic and a touch of herbs, simple to make with minimal ingredients and maximum flavour! | cafedelites.com

Lemon Chicken

Roast Lemon Chicken thighs with crispy skin pan, seared then oven baked for tender and juicy chicken full of flavour! Your new favourite chicken recipe is here! With a kick of garlic and a touch of herbs, simple to make with minimal ingredients and maximum flavour!
PRINT SAVE go to your favorites
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 35 mins
Total: 45 mins
Serves: 4 people

Ingredients

  • 6-8 chicken thighs skin-on, bone-in, trimmed of excess fat
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil divided
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons garlic minced or crushed
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup chicken stock or broth (or a dry white wine for extra flavour!)*
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 tablespoon  fresh chopped parsley, plus extra to garnish
  • Lemon slices for garnish

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 220°C | 430°F. Thoroughly pat thighs dry with paper towel. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large oven-proof pan or skillet over medium-high heat. When pan is HOT, sear chicken skin-side down for 8-10 minutes, until crispy and golden browned. Flip and sear the underside for another 8 minutes, until the meat is golden.
  • Move thighs to the side and add the garlic to the pan juices. Sauté until fragrant (30 seconds). Pour in the lemon juice and stock, then add in the herbs. 
  • Transfer chicken to hot oven and roast until completely cooked through (about 15-20 minutes). 
  • Garnish with extra parsley; taste test and adjust salt and pepper, if needed. Serve with lemon slices.

Notes

*If using a dry white wine instead of chicken stock/broth, use a Sauv Blanc, Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio.

Nutrition

Calories: 510kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 38g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 212mg | Sodium: 772mg | Potassium: 520mg | Vitamin A: 495IU | Vitamin C: 11.7mg | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 2.4mg

« Honey Mustard Chicken Salad With Bacon & Avocado
Garlic Butter Grilled Steak & Shrimp »

Subscribe to Cafe Delites FOR FREE and Receive Recipes Straight Into Your Inbox!

Image of a white plate with Chili Garlic Butter Shrimp in a buttery sauce
Artisan Bread in a dutch oven pot | cafedelites.com
Sautéed Green Beans | cafedelites.com
The best, juicy roast Beef Tenderloin slathered with garlic butter that melts in your mouth with every bite! Even better when served with a rich and rustic, easy to make red wine sauce (or jus) | cafedelites.com
Crock Pot Honey Garlic Chicken | cafedelites.com

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Suzanne says

    May 26, 2020 at 1:05 pm

    5 stars
    Made this last night. Loved it! Flavors were magnificent and very tasty. Will definitely be making this again. Thanks Karina!

    Reply
  2. Barbara Myers says

    June 25, 2019 at 6:50 am

    I’m making this recipe tonight. Curious though, when you put in oven should that be covered or uncovered?I love all your recipes I have tried in past. Sure to love this one too.

    Reply
  3. antoinette Medina says

    March 13, 2019 at 6:14 pm

    5 stars
    I want to thank you for this recipe! My autistic son is the hardest kid to feed and have him sit and eat! But this recipe he ate 4 thighs and kept saying, “mama, so good! This is so good!” Thank you!

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      April 24, 2020 at 10:18 pm

      Amazing Antoinette, food is another language xx

      Reply
  4. Justin says

    November 13, 2018 at 7:16 pm

    5 stars
    This taste really good! As a lover of both garlic and lemon this was a hit for me and my partner. The chicken came out soo moist and flavorful. I did have an issue with the garlic and the herbs burning though so I wasn’t able to use much of the sauce.

    I added both while the pan was still very hot. Would lowering the heat of the stove before adding the both the garlic and the herbs reduce the likelihood of having these ingredients burn (The garlic started burning on the stove and I think the herbs burned while in the oven)?

    Reply
  5. Luci says

    June 27, 2018 at 5:53 am

    This looks great! Will it come out okay if I transfer it to a glass casserole dish ? I don’t have an oven friendly pan.

    Reply
    • Karina says

      June 27, 2018 at 3:02 pm

      Yes, that works great too! Enjoy your lemon chicken!

      Reply
  6. Charlene says

    June 17, 2018 at 10:38 pm

    5 stars
    Made this yesterday, WOW. Delicious. Was a really easy recipe and the taste was wonderful. Definitely going to make this again and tell my friends about this recipe. Only thing I didn’t have was garlic, what was I thinking, but it was great even without.

    Reply
  7. Stanley says

    June 14, 2018 at 10:37 am

    Hi Karina,
    This looks sooooo good. My wife doesn’t like garlic though. What would you substitute to give the chicken that rich tangy flavor of garlic?
    thanks a bunch
    Stanley

    Reply
    • Karina says

      June 14, 2018 at 1:06 pm

      Onions and chives are always a great substitute for garlic, however; I don’t know if it will give you the taste you are looking for. I hope she enjoys it! Thanks so much for choosing one of my recipes to make her! XO

      Reply
  8. Melisa says

    June 14, 2018 at 6:06 am

    I don’t see the recipe for the crispy lemon chicken thighs

    Reply
    • Karina says

      June 14, 2018 at 7:52 am

      Hi! I’m so sorry about this. It seems to be a technical issue on mobile only and we are working on it right now. The recipes are on desktop if you need them urgently! Hopefully we will have all recipes up again soon! Thank you for your patience! Karina X

      Reply
  9. Sandy says

    June 09, 2018 at 1:20 pm

    Hi, Karina. I don’t have a working oven so I’m restricted to stove-top (skillet), toaster oven or microwave. I need some variety so any recipes, books, suggestions, etc. you can forward I’d greatly appreciate. BTW, I only like legs, thighs, or wings. Thank you very much.

    Reply
    • Karina says

      June 10, 2018 at 9:36 am

      You are welcome to use my search button for any recipes that you are looking for. Here are a few recipes from my site that may help with what you are looking for: https://cafedelites.com/?s=skillet
      https://cafedelites.com/?s=chicken
      https://cafedelites.com/?s=wings
      https://cafedelites.com/?s=thighs
      https://cafedelites.com/?s=legs
      ENJOY!!

      Reply
  10. Karen Moore says

    June 09, 2018 at 4:05 am

    You say to roast in a “hot” oven for an additional 15-20 minutes. What oven temperature is a “hot” oven?

    Reply
    • Karina says

      June 09, 2018 at 4:06 am

      Hi Karen. Please see Step 1 in the instructions 🙂

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

LOOKING FOR A RECIPE? SEARCH HERE!

HEY Good Food Lovers! It’s nice to see you!

Welcome! My name is Karina and this is my internet kitchen hang-out. A self-confessed balanced foodie sharing some waistline friendly recipes that are full of flavour. Life is too short for bland and boring. …

Read More

Connect with Karina – Cafe Delites

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Footer

Subscribe to Cafe Delites FOR FREE and Receive Recipes Straight Into Your Inbox!

CONNECT WITH KARINA – CAFE DELITES

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Archives

Categories

COPYRIGHT © 2023 CAFE DELITES. All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy