This impressive sheet pan chicken made with juicy bone-in chicken breast, lemony potatoes, and roasted cauliflower is a guaranteed crowd pleaser. Paired with quick pickled onions and yogurt sauce, this vibrant (and filling!) Mediterranean-inspired main checks all the boxes. Major flavor, plenty of protein, veg, and healthy fats!
We’re leveling up our weeknight dinner game with this scrumptious sheet pan stunner.
She’s gorgeous enough to serve to company (do we still say that?) for a dinner party and simple enough to whip up on a Wednesday.
And don’t you just love when the carb (potatoes), veg (cauli), and protein (chicken + sauce) are all at the party? I sure do.
You know I’m a sucker for bright (hello, lemony sheet pan shrimp) and saucy elements, so we’re upgrading the predictable chicken situation with pretty pickled onions and a cooling, creamy yogurt sauce.
It’s gonna be a mega delish year!
But what the heck is bone in chicken?!
Also known as split chicken breast, bone-in chicken breast stays more moist than boneless thanks to the protective layer it adds against heat. (The skin functions the same way!) They’re pretty large and usually come in packs of two.
America’s Test Kitchen made me LOL with this epic metaphor: “Choosing boneless, skinless chicken breast over bone-in breasts is like paying extra for a car that has had its air bags removed. You’re spending more for less protection.”
The skin adds add more flavor and textural intrigue which is always appreciated. Using boneless chicken breast in this recipe would be quite literally dry as a bone (pun intended) so let’s not even go there, k?
Let’s make it
Isn’t it fun to use new ingredients?
Give all the marinade ingredients a whisk.
Time for a 6 hour chicken bath (hi, flavor).
Make the quick pickled onions.
Get everyone onto the pan! Baaaake.
Whisk together the easy yogurt sauce.
Garnish with fresh parsley and devour!
Storing leftovers
Store leftover chicken and veggies in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Store onions and yogurt sauce in the fridge separately for up to 5 days. The yogurt sauce goes with everything and the onions elevate any and all salads.
I don’t know about you but I feel like I’m channeling my inner Julia Child with this recipe. Like it feels impressive even though it’s not even hard or technical? Such a win!
My top tip
Don’t over-bake the chicken! We want juicy. An instant-read thermometer is your best bet for not over-cooking.
I hope you’re as obsessed with this sheet pan recipe as I am!
I’d be super grateful if you’d take a moment to leave a quick star rating and review below. Comments mean the world to me and your honest feedback helps me to continue to share recipes you’ll crave!
Lemony Sheet Pan Chicken with Potatoes and Cauliflower
-
Prep Time:
15 minutes -
Cook Time:
40 minutes -
Total Time:
55 minutes -
Yield:
6 servings 1x -
Category:
Main Meals -
Method:
Oven -
Cuisine:
Mediterranean -
Diet:
Gluten Free
Description
This impressive sheet pan chicken made with juicy bone-in chicken breast, lemony potatoes, and roasted cauliflower is a guaranteed crowd pleaser. Paired with quick pickled onions and yogurt sauce, this vibrant (and filling!) Mediterranean-inspired main checks all the boxes. Major flavor, plenty of protein, veg, and healthy fats! (Plan ahead because the chicken marinates for 6 hours.)
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (also known as “split chicken breasts”), about 2 lb
- ¼ cup + 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice*
- 1 tsp Djion mustard
- 3 large cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp dried oregano (yes, tablespoons!)
- 2 tsp coarse kosher salt, divided
- ½ large head cauliflower, chopped into florets (about 4 cups)
- 1 ½ lb Yukon gold potatoes, diced
- ½ lemon, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- Greek Yogurt Tahini Sauce, for serving
Quick pickled onions:
Instructions
- Whisk ¼ cup olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon, garlic, oregano, 1 ¼ tsp kosher salt, and several grind of black pepper in a large mixing bowl.
- Add chicken and toss well to coat. I like to use a small knife or fork to make a few tiny holes in each skin for the marinade to get deeper (you can also try to get marinade under skin). Cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Make quick pickled onions by placing onions, vinegar, salt, and sumac in a medium bowl. Mix to combine and let sit out to soften. (Refrigerate if longer than an hour.)
- Once chicken is marinated, place cauliflower and potatoes directly on an extra large sheet pan. Drizzle with remaining 2 tbsp olive oil, ¾ tsp kosher salt, and a good pinch of pepper. Toss well to combine. Scatter lemon slices on top.
- Nestle in marinated chicken. Use a small knife to poke tiny holes in the skin to allow the fat to render. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 165F.
- While chicken cooks, make yogurt sauce per the recipe.
- Garnish chicken with fresh parsley. Serve with pickled onions and plenty of yogurt sauce!
Notes
*You’ll need 2 large, whole lemons for this recipe. You’ll use ~1 ½ for the juice and you’ll slice and bake the remaining half.
Chicken: Don’t use boneless, skinless chicken breast here (they would cook way faster than the veggies and be dry); rather grill the marinated chicken and bake the veggies per the recipe.
You can however use chicken thighs in this recipe. For bone-in, skin on thighs, you can make as written. For boneless skinless thighs, cook them separately as they will only take ~20 minutes and will be done before the veggies.
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