Greek Lemon Chicken

Greek Lemon Chicken
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 1 hr 10 min
- Total Time: 1 hr 25 min
Description
A juicy, delicious and flavorful take on one of my favorite dishes in Chicago! (Plus, it’s a sneak peek from my book!)
Ingredients
For the Lemon and Garlic Sauce:
½ cup fresh lemon juice
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2½ tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, pressed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard (check label if you’re doing Whole30)
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the Chicken:
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 whole (4-pound) chicken, cut in half
1½ teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds*
1 lemon, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
Chopped Fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
*Adjust the oven rack to 7 inches below the broiler. Preheat the oven to broil. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.*
In a large bowl, add the lemon juice and using a whisk, slowly add the olive oil. Then add the vinegar, garlic, oregano, salt, mustard, and pepper, stirring well. Set aside.
Thoroughly season each chicken half with the salt and pepper, then generously rub every crevice with the olive oil. Put the chicken skin-side down on the lined sheet pan and put the pan on the adjusted rack in the oven. Broil for 15 minutes, until beginning to turn golden.
Remove the sheet pan from the oven and flip the chicken over to the other side. Return to the oven and broil for 20 more minutes, or until cooked through, golden brown, and bubbling. Remove the pan from the oven and set the chicken aside. Once cool enough to handle, cut each half into 3 pieces: legs, thighs, and breasts with wings attached.
Arrange the sliced potatoes and lemons on the sheet pan. Return to the oven and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the potatoes and lemons begin to brown. Remove the sheet pan from oven, put the chicken on top of the potatoes and lemons and pour 1/2 cup of the Lemon and Garlic Sauce evenly over the top.
Return to the oven and broil until the chicken is further browned and crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and drain off any excess liquid from the pan (so that the potatoes can cook to a crisp). Return the potatoes to the oven and broil until crisped an cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes more.
Serve the potatoes and lemons with the chicken and remaining lemon and garlic sauce, either poured over the top or as a dipping sauce.
Notes
You can Japanese sweet potatoes instead of Yukon gold potatoes, which take about the same time to cook.
You can also use a different kind of sweet potato, but be sure to watch them closely, as they take less time to cook.
If you have a smaller oven, or your broiler runs hotter than 500 degrees, roast the chicken 450 – 475 and cook longer as needed. In the end, you may need to add some extra time to get the chicken cooked in the middle.

Just made this last night, using bone in thighs. Came out awesome! Thanks!
Can you tell me how you adjusted the cooking time for thighs?
This was really good. I used the olive oil left over from marinated onions since the recipe called for red wine vinegar, oregano and olive oil. No waste and delicious!
My oven has a high and low option for broil. Which would you recommend using g?
I wanted to know as well so I did some google research. Broiling on low is best for chicken since you want it to cook all the way through. When you want high heat to cook the outside more than the inside (think a med-rare steak) you use high. Although for the final 5 mins with the marinade I put it on high since the goal was to crisp up the skin. Hope this helps!!
Thanks so much Emma. If you have a regular size oven, this is actually a broil chicken recipe, I do mine on high. If by chance you have a smaller oven, I would switch to a regular size oven and do it at 475F.
This is a great question. If you have a regular sized oven, I do it on high. If you have a mini oven broiler, I recommend to switch to a regular oven, if possible, and do it at 475F.
i don’t understand which temperature to broil at? 😉
Broil is a setting on your oven, which is 500F. If you have a mini broiler oven, I would suggest switching to a regular oven and doing it at 475F.
Fabulous meal!! Followed most of the recipe. I Cooked the potatoes on a separate baking sheet and added a sweet potato to the mix. Family really enjoyed and now it is going to be adding this recipe to my collection of faves. Thank you
★★★★★
I have made Lemon Chicken many times and have my go-to recipe, but had recently purchased No Crumbs Left cookbook and wanted to try their version. I am always careful to read a recipe through a couple times before starting. I followed this recipe down to the letter. I found all the times to be off and almost over cooked it. What a mess this recipe made of my oven. There are many easier and far better recipes for Lemon Chicken that won’t leave your oven a greasy mess! I love to cook, but I had no fun whatsoever making this particular recipe and would recommend against it.
★
Love it with Chicken Thighs as a substitute!
★★★★★
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Teri, Teri, Teri! Just made this for the first time and it was SO good. I felt like a gourmet cook! I steamed broccoli and red peppers to go with it and the lemon sauce drizzled on that too was yummy.
I haven’t even tasted this and I need to leave feedback. The ingredients look awesome, but I don’t understand how you can put something under the broiler for 15 minutes and not burn the living hell out of it? I specifically measured the rack to make sure I had it far enough away and even when I moved the chicken to the very bottom rack, it was still on the way to being full on burned. I had to shift gears and just finish it in the oven on “Roast”. If this tastes good, I’ll just modify the cooking technique.
★★
Thanks so much for your comment. This is a recipe we make on repeat in the kitchen and a favorite for so many in the cookbook. i’m so sorry that you’re having this experience. My directions are for a full-size oven and what I’ve come to realize is that some people have broiler‘s that are not in a full-size oven and I’m wondering if that’s what’s happening to you. It would make the heat conduct differently than in a normal size oven and then you would need to finish it just as you did. Recipes are fabulous but my favorite thing to say is exactly what you’ve done here. Adjust when necessary and every oven is different. Please feel free to direct message me and we can chat about it
This is so good it’s mindblowing! Make double the sauce because it is so good you are going to want to.
★★★★★
this is quite simply the GREATEST recipe on the face of the planet. The chicken is juicy and PERFECT and the potatoes… omg. I may salivate to death while writing this. I started making this recipe last year and I haven’t lived it down with friends, quite simply because they ask me to make it each and every week. Even with a whole chicken, there couldn’t possibly be enough food for the flocks of people that want to join in on the leftovers when they hear I’m making this. (I can’t share with everybody because I need to hoard it for myself, and I’m not sorry. This dish is quite literally perfect. I repeat, perfect. And for any occasion! Whether it’s a weeknight where you have a little extra time, a dinner party, a casual gathering, or something to leave out just to pick on with a glass of wine in front of some bad TV, this dish will make any day 1000% better. I’m sadly seeing a comment where where the recipe didn’t work as the person had expected or wanted, and I would say the key to any recipe with chicken is that you watch your chicken and pay attention to it the whole time, it’s like a baby! If the baby is hungry, feed it. If your intuition says the chicken is overcooking even though the recipe says to cook it more, take it out! That being said this recipe works perfectly for me, and always has! I LOve this RECIPE! GAH!
This recipe, just like all the recipes I’ve tried from no crumbs left have been total winners! Flavors were on point, the process was made with love, And the final product made my whole family happy! Thank you so much for bringing the delicious food a happy memories into our home time and time again
★★★★★
It’s a favorite for many people… It’s my own spin on an old fashion broiled chicken… I love the sauce
I love this chicken! It’s a crowd pleaser and not terribly expensive to make. I will say that I ended up broiling just the skin side down because I got nervous about flair ups. I cranked the oven to 500 convection and it was crispy as all get out. Starting the chicken skin side down is GENIUS. It stays wide and doesn’t scrunch up. Thanks Teri!
★★★★★
love it ????
Yes ma’am!
I ADORE this recipe. The marinade is pure heaven. The potatoes are perfectly seasoned, creamy, and crispy all at the same time. The chicken comes out juicy and delicious (though my oven is small, so I typically roast this around 450-475 instead of broiling). If I have the time, I use this marinade recipe with Teri’s Heroine Chicken cooking method and it comes out perfectly every time. Add some potatoes and carrots in with the chicken to roast, and you’ve got dinner.
★★★★★
great tip and yes oven size does matter ????? thanks for the feedback
This delicious recipe is a family favorite! The lemony sauce is so savory and if there are leftovers, they’re just as scrumptious. I always add more potatoes, just because we love them.
★★★★★
Love! Delicious every time!
★★★★★
This is a delicious roast chicken. The skin gets beautifully crispy and the lemony potatoes are beyond tasty. I usually add more potatoes than the recipe calls for because we love them so much.
★★★★
i love to do a second tray
I LOVE this recipe! The sauce comes together beautifully and you’ll want to put it literally on everything. I’ve even used it as a salad dressing. I am one who loves a good roasted chicken and Teri knows how to bring out the beauty in a chicken. Your potatoes will soak up all those great pan juices along with the lemon garlic sauce. Basically this recipe is a must on your recipe rotation. You will be craving this dish every week, I promise!
★★★★★
Thank you so much Caroline..I feel like I have to make it again tomorrow
My smoke alarm works! I’ve made this recipe at least 5 times since getting the cookbook and gotten over my fear of spatchcocking a chicken (saving the spine for bone broth) it’s amazing when it comes out of the oven and for a few days after. The dressing is my fav magic elixir and I make it a lot to use for salads and other meats. I actually don’t love chicken, it’s usually so boring, but this recipe rocks. Make extras for left overs!
★★★★★
I love it so much laura. I could eat it three times a week
This is one of my favourite recipes from no crumbs left (it’s hard to choose)! I cheat a bit and use chicken thighs, no whole chicken. It tastes amazing and I love that it’s whole30 compliant! My MIL asks me to make it every time she comes over – that says a lot! I also just make the potatoes when meal prepping, they are delicious!!!!!!!! You gotta try it 🙂
★★★★★
Thanks for sharing… Definitely next time try the whole chicken and let me know what you think
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??????
I made this tonight and LOVED it. I did switch sheetpans about 3 times because all the uncovered parts of the parchment paper shriveled up and turned to ash! Not sure if it was a parchment paper issue or oven issue or sheetpan issue (I use stainless steel sheet pans). Regardless, the sauce was fantastic. The skin was crisped up so nicely. May try to do the 450 temp roast next time instead of the broil. But just a delightful recipe. Will definitely make again.
★★★★★
I made this tonight and LOVED it. I did switch sheetpans about 3 times because all the uncovered parts of the parchment paper shriveled up and turned to ash! Not sure if it was a parchment paper issue or oven issue or sheetpan issue (I use stainless steel sheet pans). Regardless, the sauce was fantastic. The skin was crisped up so nicely. May try to do the 450 temp roast next time instead of the broil. But just a delightful recipe. Will definitely make again.
★★★★★
This recipe is amazing! It’s the classic roast chicken flavor you want, but with a citrusy twist. I make a roast chicken every week and this is one in the regular rotation.
Make extra potatoes! We make a ton of the potatoes and my husband uses them in his breakfasts all week too! What an awesome dish
★★★★★
this is a favorite for me and those potatoes go so fast
This is my go to for feeding a crowd as I can usually snag chicken leg quarters in bulk from my local market. Anything lemon doesn’t last long in my household so this chicken often doesn’t make it to leftovers. When it does, I make a citrus chicken salad with Greek yogurt instead of Mayo, celery, marinated onions, and a few crushed capers for a little bit of salty bursts.
★★★★★
thanks love ??????
Thank you emily
love this
I really want to try the flavors and have family coming who don’t eat chicken off the bone…go figure. I want to make this with boneless, skinless breasts and thighs. I only have medium red potatoes. Thoughts on how to best approximate the timing and other logistics? Thanks!
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