This easy lemon chicken recipe is a delicious savory baked chicken perfect for a tasty, healthy family meal! It takes just 5 minutes prep time; then bake and serve! It’s a go-to recipe for me because it’s so easy to make and then serve with something simple like rice and your favorite vegetable!
Lemon is one of my favorite flavors in the world and this lemon chicken does not disappoint. Make our lemon chicken recipe for guests or the family for an elegant meal any time of year.
This lemon pepper chicken is delicious on its own and is also wonderful served over rice, pasta, or egg noodles. It can be enjoyed with mashed potatoes, a green salad and if you have extra time, some fresh bread. In addition, you could try serving it with roasted or sauteed vegetables or, a cold pasta salad.
Besides this lemon chicken recipe, you can find many other easy family recipes in our Dining On a Dime Cookbooks!
How to Make Lemon Chicken
Making this Lemon Chicken recipe is easier than you might think. First, you lift up the skin on the breast, leg, and thigh of the chicken on both sides and apply the dry rub directly to the meat. Then you quarter half of the lemon and place that in the cavity.
Before baking, the juice of the remaining lemon half is squeezed out over the meat and the chicken is coated with the remaining rub. It is roasted like you would roast a turkey. Finally, let the chicken rest for a bit before serving. The end result of our lemon chicken recipe is a bright, zesty lemon chicken dish your whole family will love.
Lemon Chicken Ingredients
- One Chicken. Approximately 3 pounds but you can easily scale the recipe for a larger chicken should you need one. You can also cut the chicken in half and fit two whole chickens on a cookie sheet. This allows the roasting process to go more quickly, but you have to be super careful not to overcook and dry out the chicken.
- Lemon Pepper Seasoning. A recipe for this seasoning mix is included in our Dining On A Dime Cookbooks.
- Salt.
- Thyme. Fresh thyme can be found in small packages at your local grocery store.
- Lemon. Halved. Cut one half into quarters and juice the other half into a measuring cup.
- Rosemary. If you like fresh, you can find these in the produce section of your grocery store or you might wish to grow your own. Rosemary is a great introduction to growing your own herbs. It’s hard to kill!
How to Make Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings
You can use this same recipe to make baked lemon pepper chicken wings! Just mix up the rub, and then place the wings and rub in a large bowl with a lid. Close the lid and shake the wings in the spice mixture until they are coated evenly. Then bake, grill, or deep fry the wings as you normally would.
Supplies You Will Need
Citrus Juicer. You can do this by squeezing the lemon, but this handy little tool makes it easier.
Roasting Pan or Baking Dish. Whatever pan you normally use to bake a whole chicken is perfect. Should you decide to halve the chicken to save baking time, you can use a sheet pan instead.
Meat Thermometer. If you’re concerned about making sure your chicken is cooked, you can use a meat thermometer to check the temperature of your cooked chicken.
What to Serve with Lemon Chicken
Pasta Veggie Fruit Salad Recipe
How To Make Homemade Biscuits – Easy Super Delicious Recipe!
How to Store Leftovers of Lemon Pepper Chicken
This delicious chicken will keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator as long as you seal it in an airtight container. Reheat leftover chicken pieces in a microwave or skillet.
If you prefer, you can pull the cooked chicken off of the bone and dice it up. This diced leftover lemon-pepper chicken can be used on pasta or in other dishes.
If you wish to freeze leftover lemon chicken, I recommend pulling the meat off of the bones, dicing it into bite-sized pieces, and saving it in freezer bags. Now you have prepared chicken ready to go to fix quick meals such as fried rice, pasta, or anywhere you would use leftover chicken.
Find Lemon Pepper Chicken and more favorites in our Dining on a Dime cookbooks.
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Lemon Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 (3 1/2 lb.) chicken
- 1 1/2 tsp. lemon-pepper seasoning
- 1 1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
- 1/2 tsp. thyme
- 1 medium lemon, halved
- 2 fresh rosemary sprigs (You can also use dried.)
Instructions
- Loosen skin around the chicken breast, leg and thigh, being careful not to tear the skin.
- Combine the seasonings.
- Rub half under the skin.
- Cut half of the lemon into quarters and place in the cavity along with the rosemary sprigs.
- Place chicken, breast down, in a roasting pan.
- Squeeze the remaining lemon over the chicken.
- Rub the chicken with the remaining spice mixture.
- Bake, uncovered, at 375º for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until the chicken juices run clear or a meat thermometer inserted in the thigh reads 180º.
- (Cover loosely with foil if you notice it is browning too quickly.)
- After baking, cover and let stand 15 minutes.
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