One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes

This one pan or one-pot Greek chicken and potatoes dish is literally one of my favourites. It has all the things in it and flavors I love. Restaurant style Greek lemon Potatoes and chicken, with a fabulous pan sauce created by the two slow roasting together. What’s better than a one pan meal for the midweek or any day?!? - easy cleanup and happy tummy’s all around. This dish is a great stand alone meal but even better when served with a side salad - perhaps my Greek Horiatiki Salad or my Classic Greek Lettuce Salad (Maroulosalata). Finish off the dish with an extra squeeze of lemon juice and serve garnished with lemon slices, chopped fresh herbs and crumbled feta and enjoy!

One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes

Why You Will Love This Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes Recipe

  • A dish packed with sooo much flavor
  • Soft, buttery and tender potatoes in the middle/inside, juicy chicken
  • Recipe requires simple pantry ingredients
  • All you need is one dish
  • Easy to make
  • Quick to prepare
  • A family favorite
  • Perfect for entertaining

One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes Ingredients on a table

One Pan Chicken and Potatoes Recipe Ingredients

  • CHICKEN: I used bone-in chicken legs with the skin on for this recipe for extra flavor since the chicken cooks with the potatoes creating so much delicious flavor but you can use chicken breasts or chicken thighs or drum sticks just use the same weighted amount. In general other cuts like breasts will dry out too much while they’re in the oven, whereas the bone-in pieces will help retain moisture.
  • POTATOES: I almost always use Yukon gold potatoes or yellow potatoes. I always peel my potatoes but that is technically optional. I use to use russet potatoes with are starchier potatoes for this recipe and you can but I find they can be a bit inconsistent in the way they absorb all the liquids so I stick to medium size Yukon gold potatoes.
  • LEMONS: Fresh lemon juice is the only way to go here for best flavor. You will need 2-3 lemons for this recipe.
  • OLIVE OIL: I use Extra virgin olive oil - Greek if possible. The golden ratio after testing this recipe so many times in 2/3 cup. If you know Greeks - you know we love our olive oil. If you want to reduce this amount - make sure to replace equal amount with broth or water, but the olive oil not only adds flavour and richness to this dish but makes for an incredible pan sauce so I strongly recommend not skimping out on the olive oil.
  • OREGANO, THYME & PAPRIKA: Dried Greek oregano, dried thyme and paprika is what I use - any dried oregano will do the trick. Adjust amounts to taste. It’s the only herb I add although many like to add some dried thyme or rosemary as well.
  • BROTH: I usually use chicken broth or chicken stock but you can definitely use water or vegetable stock in it’s place as well
  • GARLIC POWDER & ONION POWDER: This might be controversial but I stick to using garlic and onion powder not only for simplicity (‘laziness’) but also for flavor - trust me! But if you don’t trust me that is ok too - feel free to smash a few whole garlic cloves and rough chop some fresh onions or shallots. Please adjust amounts to taste - if you prefer a lilt less garlic onion flavor start with half the amount and add more as desired.
  • MUSTARD: Mustard adds so much flavor. It is optional but I think it adds the perfect tangy savory umami’ish flavor to the braising liquid. I typically use regular prepared yellow mustard but feel free to use dijon mustard for an even stronger kick of flavor. Some recipe call for adding up to ¼ cup of it but I find 1-2 tablespoons enough but feel free to adjust amounts to taste.
  • CHICKEN BOUILLON: Also optional but really and truly this is the ingredient that really gives you that restaurant quality flavor in your potatoes - they use it always in Greek potatoes and also Greek Restaurant rice too. A little goes a long way but I always include it!
  • SALT & PEPPER: To taste

One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes Step by Step

One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes Cooked

How To Make One Pan Greek Chicken and Potatoes

It doesn’t not get easier than this - that is why I love this recipe! Here are the basic steps - full instructions below in recipe card:

  1. PREPARE POTATOES: Peel and slice potatoes into wedges
  2. SEASON CHICKEN & POTATOES: Toss the chicken and potatoes in baking pan with seasoning plus remaining ingredients ensuring the chicken is well coated. Or combine all the marinade ingredients together than pour over chicken and potatoes as shown in the photos. (some like to season and dress chicken separately in a bowl with half the seasoning and liquids and the other half for the potatoes in the pan to ensure chicken is well coated, then add chicken to pan after and that is totally fine but that is up to you)
  3. BAKE/ROAST: Seal off roasting pan with a layer of parchment and foil and roast in preheated oven for 45 mins covered and 15-30 mins uncovered.
  4. SERVE: Let rest a few minutes then serve.

One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes Macro Isolated

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Recipe

Servings: 4
Prep Time: 5-10 mins
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 mins
Total Time: 1 hour 25 mins

Ingredients

  • 3 Ibs bone in, skin on chicken legs, approx 4 (or chicken thighs bone-in + skin on or drumsticks) pat dry
  • 2-2½ Ibs medium size Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced into wedges
  • ⅔ cup Extra virgin olive oil
  • ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • ¼ cup chicken broth or water
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon Onion powder
  • 1½ teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon
  • 1 tablespoon mustard (yellow mustard or dijon mustard)
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper

Directions

  • Preheat your oven to 450°F.
  • Peel and slice your potatoes in quarters or 6ths, depending on how large your potatoes are. (try to keep the sliced potato wedges similar in size so they cook evenly - I usually cut each potato in half lengthwise then each half into 3-4 thinner wedges)
  • Place chicken and potatoes in a 13x9 or slightly larger baking dish. Toss with the oil, lemon juice, broth, mustard and herbs and spices making sure the chicken is well coated with everything. Or combine all the marinade ingredients and pour over chicken and potatoes as shown in the photos. (some like to season and dress chicken separately with half the seasoning and liquids and the other half for the potatoes in the pan to ensure chicken is well coated, then add chicken to pan after but that is up to you)*
  • Once everythign is well coated, arrange chicken and potatoes in the pan so that the chicken pieces are skin side up and touching the bottom of the pan. The potatoes can be in between and slightly overlapping
  • Cover the pan with a layer of parchment paper first and then aluminum foil and seal tightly.
  • Transfer pan to preheated oven and roast/bake for 45 minutes.
  • Carefully uncover foil and parhcment from the pan and retun pan to oven and continue roasting for another 15-30 minutes or until chicken is golden brown and cooked through (160 degrees F with an instant-read thermometer), and potatoes are tender. I like to either toss the potatoes around in the pan or sort of shake the pan gently to move them around a little after removing covering. For a little extra colour on the chicken feel free to broil for the last couple of minutes of baking.
  • Allow to rest 5-10 minutes then serve, with your favorite salads and side dishes and enjoy! Don’t forget to drizzle the chicken and potatoes with pan juices and feel free to garnish with chopped fresh parsley and extra lemon slices or wedges

Recipe Notes

  • Alternatively you can whisk all the ingredients (apart from the chicken and potatoes of course) in a small dish or measuring cup and them pour it over the chicken and potatoes in the pan then toss everything to coat as shown in the photos
  • Your Baking Dish Matters: Metals pans, especially aluminum ones, are better conductors of heat than glass and ceramic dishes. This recipe was tested in a stainless steal roasting pan and turned out beautilfully cooked and golden every time.
  • Cooking times may seem long and temps high but the chicken and potatoes steam first while covered and then get golden after covering is removed. Skin on bone in (dark meat) cuts of meat are harder to overcook and stay juicer so they are recommended for this dish.
  • I don’t usually need to do this but depending on the size of your chicken and the size of your potato wedges (if they are cut super thick), you can also remove the chicken when it’s fully cooked. Then, continue cooking your potatoes longer if you need to cook them longer or want a more crispy and charred finish.
  • Can I use different types of potatoes? Yes, you can use any type of potato you prefer like red, yellow, baby potatoes or russet, to name a few. However, be aware that some potatoes may cook faster than others or may have different textures, so you may need to adjust the cooking time accordingly.

One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes served on a plate