Mediterranean Baked Chicken Dinner – this is a midweek chicken dinner idea that’s one of those “throw it all in a pan” recipes with high returns for minimal effort. With chicken, potatoes, onion and cherry tomatoes, you’ll love how everything sucks up the tasty lemon garlic sauce in this sheet pan dinner!
Mediterranean Baked Chicken Dinner
This is a chicken sheet pan dinner that ticks a lot of boxes for midweek cooking:
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complete meal – no need to bother with side salads
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low effort prep – no finely chopping anything, no fiddly assemble, just throw it all in a pan
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no need to watch over it – pop it in the oven, set the timer and walk away;
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no gourmet or hard to find ingredients – plus plenty of substitutions
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IT’S TOTALLY DELICIOUS!!! The tasty Mediterranean sauce is not only very, very tasty in its own right, it also keeps everything nice and moist while it’s in the oven (you will love how juicy the chicken is).
I especially love how the potatoes suck up the sauce as they bake. It reminds me of Greek Lemon Potatoes (but a lot less effort!).
What you need for this Chicken Dinner
Here’s what you need for this one pan Mediterranean Baked Chicken Dinner:
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Chicken – thighs and drumsticks (bone in, skin on = juicy flesh and golden skin!)
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Lemons, lots of garlic, paprika and oregano – to make the tasty Mediterranean sauce;
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Honey and mustard – to thicken/sweeten/flavour the sauce;
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Potatoes, onion and cherry tomatoes
Customise it!
I’ve used onions, potatoes and cherry tomatoes here but you could really use whatever vegetables you have.
Zucchini, pumpkin, sweet potato, corn cobs spring to mind as ideal substitutions. Rummage around in your fridge and see what you’ve got!
Also, in there spirit of Mediterranean food, I’ve used oregano and garlic here. Try it with rosemary or thyme instead, or give it a Middle Eastern spin by adding a touch of cumin and coriander!
How to make this One Pan Chicken Dinner
Obscenely simple: mix Sauce, toss in chicken, optional marinade, toss it all in a pan and bake.
OK, I skipped one step here. 😇 I add cherry tomatoes partway through the bake time so they don’t turn into unidentifiable mush. But if you’re ok with extremely squishy tomatoes, just add them right in at the beginning!
And here’s what you end up with in this one pan Mediterranean Chicken Dinner:
1. Very, very juicy chicken infused with Mediterranean flavours -the chicken isn’t submerged in sauce because we want the skin to go nice and golden. But the underside is partially in the sauce / steamed which keeps it ultra juicy.
2. Juicy pops of cherry tomatoes and potatoes that suck up the lemon garlic sauce:
Another nice thing about this chicken dinner is that marinating is optional. It definitely adds flavour if you can marinate overnight because then the chicken is flavoured all the way through.
However, there is plenty of sauce in this recipe – enough to mop and dunk and douse every bite you take. So it’s fine to make even without marinating! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Mediterranean Chicken Dinner
Ingredients
Marinade / Sauce
- 1kg / 2lb bone in, skin on chicken thighs and drumsticks (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup (125 ml) lemon juice
- 6 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard (Optional - Note 2)
- 2 tbsp honey or 1 tbsp sugar (or maple or other sweetener)
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1.5 tsp paprika
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp EACH salt and pepper
Bake
- 5 smallish potatoes (7.5cm/3" wide) , quartered (Note 3)
- 2 red onions , quartered
- 1 cup (250ml) chicken broth/stock , low sodium
- 250g/8oz cherry tomatoes (whole)
- 1/2 tsp EACH salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp Olive oil (or oil spray)
- Fresh oregano , for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Mix Marinade ingredients in a bowl, then add chicken and toss to coat. If time permits, marinate for 24 hours, otherwise proceed to next step.
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Place potatoes and onion in baking pan, top with chicken. Pour over the chicken stock then marinade from the bowl.
- Bake for 20 minutes, then remove from oven.
- Scatter over cherry tomatoes, drizzle everything with 1 tbsp olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for a further 30 - 35 minutes until chicken is golden and potatoes are cooked.
- Remove from oven, garnish with fresh oregano if using and serve!
Recipe Notes:
- Marinating - benefits from marinating but not critical. Sauce has so much flavour (and there's lots of it) it compensates;
- Pan size - ingredients should fit snugly. If they are too spaced out, too much of the liquid will evaporate while baking and you won't end up with much sauce.
Nutrition Information:
Originally published November 2015, updated March 2020 with new photos, new video and most importantly, Life of Dozer section added!
More Dinner in One Pot!
Life of Dozer
This is a 3 seater lounge – or one Dozer. 🙄
Lisa says
Thankyou! For the first time in a very long time dinner went without any complaints. Since finding out my kids have food intolerances (son gluten and daughter lactose) I really struggle to find recipes that they enjoy and don’t cost an arm and a leg. I had everything on hand and their plates were empty. ?
Nagi says
I’m so glad Lisa!! Did you see my Gluten Free collection? A good friend of mine has the same – a daughter that is both gluten AND lactose intolerant. 🙂
Maro says
Could you make this in a slow cooker?
Karen says
Marinated for 1hr. Used chicken bone in thighs and was not even being close to done after following all directions, and cooking for a total of 1hr. And 1/2. Like the idea but will tweak it my way.
Nagi says
Hi Karen – that’s really strange!!! 1 1/2 hours in the oven and the chicken wasn’t cooked????
ROY says
Awesum recipe!
Nagi says
Thanks so much Roy! 🙂
BOB says
Did any other reviewer actually venture to TRY this recipe? I did. Let me first say that this is confirmed full of flavor exactly as Nagi promised! A woman of her word indeed! I will make this recipe again and again. But, in an effort to help any reader who gives this a try, I would like to share one difficulty I had with the recipe. By the time all of the other ingredients in the baker were baked to perfection, the potatoes in my baker remained substantially uncooked. I had to cook the dish much longer than specified here to get the potatoes done. This could be because I selected Yukon potatoes, which may take longer to cook than other varieties. But can you imagine how good it was to mash the potato to fluffy perfection once served so that the potato can take up all broth! Perhaps Nagi’s used another type of potato in her recipe and it would help to have her specify her potato of choice. I’d make this recipe with Yukon potatoes again, but would blanche the potatoes first. Hope this helps!
Nagi says
Hi Bob! Thank you so much for your helpful message! To my knowledge Yukon takes around the same time to bake as other potatoes, the only thing I can think is that the potatoes were much larger than the drumsticks which is why the cook time was out? As you can see in the photos, my potatoes were cut into quarters so they are smaller than the head of the drumsticks. I found these cooked perfectly in the time it took to cook the chicken! I am SO GLAD you enjoyed the flavour Bob, thank you again for your wonderful message!!!
Sarah says
Hi, can I cook this in the morning and reheat in the oven later that day?
Thanks
Nagi says
Hi Sarah! Yep, that will work fine for this! Just reheat at 180C/350F uncovered until it heats through and the chicken skins becomes a bit crispy again 🙂
linda says
Can I use a dutch oven and not put it in a baking pan/oven?
Nagi | RecipeTin says
You sure can Linda! 🙂
Elle Dee says
I made this last night. My boyfriend and I loved it! So many good flavors mixed together. 🙂
Nagi | RecipeTin says
I’m so glad you and your boyfriend enjoyed it Elle! Thank you! 🙂
Jon says
Wow! This looks great! Definitely on my list for the party now!
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Thanks Jon!! 🙂
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef says
Ten minutes for something like this? Surely you mean you use a Jamie Oliver clock. (I’ve never made his recipes in 30 minutes).
This is just gorgeous, Nagi – fit for a king.
Nagi | RecipeTin says
*Snort!* Even I can’t make Jamie’s 15 minute meals in 15 minutes!! This is massively less stressful than his meals!!!
Jane says
was disappointed with this recipe… I followed it exactly and it turned out very dry… not sure what I did wrong. marinated for several hours. Used chicken drum sticks with skin on. used lemons did everything and read all your notes………. I am a great follow of your site and found all your dishes to be beautiful. This is my first time writing
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Oh dear! That’s very odd! Drumsticks are a “dark meat” so it’s very hard to overcook them to the point of being dry, certainly not with the baking time in this recipe. I’m quite baffled! Were they very small drumsticks?? Or does your oven run extremely hot? They are the only things I can think!
Laura M says
I just tried to pin this. Pinterest rejected every photo as “may link to spam”. I wonder if you can do anything about this, or is it just my crazy computer? I’ve never had a problem pinning any of your recipes before.
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Oh dear! I’m sorry I have no idea Laura! BOO if your computer things I’m spam!!! <3 Here is a link to a pin on my board for this recipe :) https://www.pinterest.com/pin/349591989804728929/
Lokness @ The Missing Lokness says
It happens! I remember I threw away my knife once. Oops, good that I realized very quickly. Anyhow, this chicken are nicely browned. I love the charred on the lemon. Can’t wait to try this easy and flavorful dish! 🙂
C A Fitzgerald says
Don’t feel bad, I threw away a $3000.00 check once because thought it was junk mail.
Nagi | RecipeTin says
BA HA! I did that the other day! Though just in my kitchen bin 🙂 I’m always trying to multi task!!
Kathy F. says
Usually just a lurker and fan, I have to tell you – I must have been channeling you about 2 weeks before this post…Used almost exactly this proportion of same ingredients to marinate/bake chicken thighs for my niece’s wedding reception…They were part of a large buffet and were scarfed down with much lip-smacking!
Nagi | RecipeTin says
NO! What a co-incidence, I love that!!! Congratulations to your niece, how wonderful!
Lyn says
Made this the other night with cut up chicken..(husband loves dark pieces and I love breast)…came out delicious…NOT DRY…very moist…I would definitely make again! Thanks so much:)
Nagi | RecipeTin says
I’m SO GLAD you loved it Lyn!!! YAY!!! Thank you so much for coming back to share your feedback! N x
Easypeasylifematters says
This sounds amazing!!! And the sauce sounds good enough to just drink! Yum 🙂
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Thanks so much!! <3
Jesse says
It looks simple and yummy. Thanks for the wonderful recipe that you have shared with us. I’ll be looking on for some of your recipe’s.
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Thank you Jesse!
Sabrina says
I love one pot dishes like this! Looks delish!
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Thanks Sabrina! 🙂
The-FoodTrotter says
It looks so tasty and so simple at the same time 🙂 I love this kind of comfy recipes
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Thank you so much! N x
Holly | Beyond Kimchee says
I like this kind of one dish meal. Perfect for busy nights. The flavor sounds great to me. Yum!
Nagi | RecipeTin says
Thanks so much Holly! 🙂