Sheet-Pan Lemon-Oregano Chicken with Crispy Chickpeas

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Bone-in chicken thighs roast on one tray with chickpeas, cherry tomatoes and red onion until the skin is deep gold and the chickpeas turn nutty and crisp at the edges. The tomatoes burst into a lemony, oregano-scented pan sauce, and crumbled feta melts into it off the heat. One pan, twelve things, dinner.

Ingredients

• 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 lb / 900 g)
• 2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas, drained and patted dry
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes
• 1 large red onion, cut into thick wedges
• 1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 lemon, half sliced into rounds, half kept for juice
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp black pepper
• 4 oz feta, crumbled

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C). On a large rimmed sheet pan, toss the drained chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, red onion wedges and sliced garlic with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the oregano, 1 teaspoon of the salt and 1/2 teaspoon of the pepper. Spread everything into a single layer, pushing it toward the edges to leave gaps in the middle.
2. Pat the chicken thighs very dry with paper towels, rub them with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and season all over with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/2 teaspoon oregano. Nestle them skin-side up in the gaps, sitting directly on the pan so the skin stays above the vegetables.
3. Roast on the middle rack for 30 minutes without touching it, until the skin is beginning to brown and the tomatoes have started to slump.
4. Scatter the olives and lemon rounds over the chickpeas, gently stirring the chickpeas with a spatula so the browned undersides come up (keep the chicken skin dry and uncovered). Return to the oven for 12 to 15 minutes more, until the skin is crisp and deep gold and a thermometer in the thickest thigh reads 175°F (79°C).
5. Squeeze the juice of the remaining lemon half over the vegetables, scatter the crumbled feta across the hot pan and let it sit for 5 minutes so the feta softens into the pan juices. Serve straight from the tray, spooning chickpeas and juices over each thigh.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

More from Sprig Originals

One-Skillet Blackened Cajun Chicken Pasta

One-Pot Chicken Creole

Dark Roux Seafood Gumbo with Quick Shrimp Stock

Are you this recipe's original author or publisher? Report a problem