Baked lemon garlic chicken is a quick, easy, and healthy dinner. The secret to the juiciness and flavor of this delicious baked chicken recipe is in the marinade.
Confession #64 – I am on day one of the 3 Day Fix in an attempt to detox from the last two weeks of holiday celebrating.
And I’m actually not even hungry. Or hangry.
I am seriously shocked. I’m crossing my fingers it stays that way. I am all for cleaning up my diet and I am truly over cookies right now (for about the next 5 minutes, anyway)…but I can’t deal with crankiness due to food. #aintnobodygottimeforthat
Anyway, my mouth is watering a bit for this chicken dish I made last month. Yes, I am that behind on posting.
But this one, people, was worth the wait.
I used chicken thighs, which are technically NOT on the 21 Day Fix food list. But they are healthy and lean, so we eat them all the time!
This recipe is super easy, and the marinade would be awesome with boneless breasts or even fish if you prefer! But you should give boneless thighs a try if you haven’t. Yummy, yummy. And perfect for those of you who overcook your chicken breasts.
You know who you are. 🙂
Baked Lemon Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs (or other lean protein)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic peeled and smashed
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest about ½ lemon
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice about 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoons fresh thyme or 1/4 teaspoon dried
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup or honey
- ½ teaspoon red chili flakes or more if you like it spicy
- ¾ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a small bowl, add all the ingredients except the chicken and stir together. Place chicken thighs into a Ziplock bag, pour the marinade over and mix around until all the chicken is coated. Seal the bag and marinate for a few minutes (or up to a day, in the fridge).
- Pour the chicken and the marinade into an oven safe dish and arrange so chicken is in a single layer. Bake for 25-35 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
- If you want a darker top, broil on high for a minute before removing from oven. I did this - yum!
- Let the chicken rest, covered with foil, for 10 minutes or so. Serve with the pan juices and some lemon slices.
Notes
Nutrition
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Emily says
How necessary do you think the maple syrup is to the flavor? I’m trying to avoid any additional sugars atm.
Nancylynn says
Hi Emily – omitting the maple syrup could just make the lemon flavor a little too sour without it, you could give it a try though! Or even use half that is called for here.
Tonya says
Wow! Super easy and delicious. The entire family enjoyed this recipe and my kids ( 7 yrs and 5 yrs) told me that it was the best chicken I have ever made. This will be in our weekly rotation for sure, especially because it’s basically a bake and forget recipe and so convenient for the busy weekdays.
Nancylynn says
Tonya- what a win! Thank you for commenting!
Kara says
Wow! Another great recipe. I made this in the instant pot and served with rice. The juices from the chicken and chicken broth was amazing over the rice. Such a simple recipe but so delicious!!
Nancylynn says
Thanks Kara!
STEPHANIE says
Im not sure what went wrong but followed the recipe exactly. I love food and very seldom find food I dont like but this was inedible. We ended up throwing it out and ordering pizza. Sad.
Nancylynn says
Sorry this recipe didn’t work out for you!
Chloe says
What makes these 2 tsp per serving if there’s 1 tbsp of oil in the recipe? Do you add a tsp for the added fat in chicken thighs compared to breast? LOVE your site by the way!! Thank you!
Nancylynn says
YES, exactly! Thank you!
Harold Burton says
These are so stinkin perfect!! From the picture I assumed you just used jello on each side and it’s nice to see that you did something so much better.
Brittney says
I had to use skinless boneless chicken breasts but they came out very moist and flavorful.
Thank you for the great recipes and information for 21 day fix.
Nancylynn says
This is great to know! Thank you!
Jacquelyn says
This was DELISH! The chicken was so tender…melted in your mouth. Great flavor! Will be making this again, for sure. Thanks for all of the yummy recipes!!
Nancylynn says
I’m so glad ❤️
Ashlie Goerke says
Delicious! Everyone gobbled it up!
Donna C says
I love this chicken. It turned out so juicy. I used thin cut chicken breasts. I will be making this one again and again.
Nancylynn says
I am thrilled!!!!
Divine says
This recipe was great! My husband and kids loved it!! Thank you so much!
Nancylynn says
So, so welcome!
Kelly Melo says
Could this recipe be done in the instant pot? Hoping so! lol
Nancylynn says
Yes! I want to work on it a little more, but I have totally done it with 1/2 cup of broth and I cooked for 12 minutes! Came out yummy! I also like to sear them a little first on the saute setting.
Terri DeMario says
Could you substitute lime for the lemon?
Nancylynn says
Yes, and I bet it would be DELISH!
Dorothy says
Hi Nancylynn,
I’m making the marinade for salmon, but I’m not sure of the amount of olive oil. It just says 1 T… Is that tsp or tbsp? I’ve used one tsp and it doesn’t look like much marinade… :/
Cheers for your blog, I think I’ll be referring to it a lot on my journey! 😉 Day 3 so far and all going well!
Xxx
Nancylynn says
Way to go!! That’s awesome!! And, yes – I use a capital T a lot in my recipes to mean Tablespoon :). Hope you enjoy the salmon!
Caroline says
Hello! What would be the cooking time for chicken breasts? I’m so excited to make this.
Nancylynn says
I usually do 30 minutes on 350…but it depends on the thickness of your chicken.
Gigi Petersom says
Is sounds good we will be startmy 21 day I a for of days. We are researcig and gaining knowledge to help us be successful. Any information would help. Not just a diet we want a life style change
Toni says
This recipe sounds delicious! I can’t wait to try it. Thank you so much for this great blog.
Nancylynn says
Thank YOU! I hope you do try it and love it as much as we do!
Karen says
Simple and delicious but definitely needed the broiling. Thank you for this recipe.