Lemon and Thyme Chicken Thigh Tray Bake

This lemon and thyme chicken thigh tray bake is delicious, requires minimal effort and works perfectly as a weeknight dinner. 

Why you’ll love this recipe

• Hands-off cooking– when making this chicken thigh tray bake with lemon and thyme the oven does most of the work for you, as you prep the ingredients and add them to the tray at two different points. Meaning you can chill out and watch Netflix, as your delicious meal comes together. Just like with my million-dollar chicken casserole.

• Bursting with flavour– I find with a chicken and potato tray bake, you need vibrant veggies, herbs and some acidity to bring the recipe to life. That’s why with the addition of roasted lemon, thyme and the roasted Mediterranean vegetables combo of tomato and red onion, we get the best outcome.
• Customisable: need to get rid of those loose veggies at the back of your fridge? This flavour base goes with most vegetables, so it’s great to use for a fridge raid and reduce waste with any leftover vegetables.

Chicken thigh tray bake recipes are always in my rotation, one of my go-to faves is my crispy bone-in chicken thighs. You can meal prep it and have it as a protein source in a salad, layer up a sandwich or through into soups, stews or any sauces. Divine!

Ingredients

Chicken thighs
Oven baked chicken thighs are amazing for two reasons. The crispy skin that forms when roasted over a longer period of time and the succulent meat that becomes intensely flavoured due to it’s fat content and being on the bone. If you want a leaner recipe, try out my tender thin sliced chicken breast in oven.

Lemon & Thyme
It wouldn’t be a lemon chicken tray bake without a good quantity of lemons. I use two whole lemons in this recipe, sliced into 1 cm rounds. Overtime they almost caramelize and sweeten, meaning you can even eat the skin! I’ve chosen thyme for this recipe, but you could also use rosemary, or alternatively serve with fresh basil or parsley at the end.

New Potatoes
I love their texture and skin-to-potato ratio. Whether they’re airfryer baby potatoes or slow roasted oven new potatoes, the texture is always incredible.

See the recipe card for full information on all ingredients and quantities.

Is this a healthy chicken tray bake recipe?

I’d say so! This recipe is balanced in many ways. Elements of a healthy tray bake:

• High in protein: chicken thighs are a great source of protein. If you want to try an incredibly lean source of protein, you should check out my air fryer cod recipe.
• Balance of carbs, fats and protein: carbs from the potatoes and veggies, fats from the olive oil and chicken thighs and protein again from the chicken thighs.
• Range of micronutrients: we get this from the lemon, tomatoes, onion and olive oil.

If you wanted to reduce the calories, you could make this a chicken breast tray bake as this would reduce the fat content. However, chicken breast often dries out in the oven. 

If you do decide to use chicken breast though, add the chicken at a later stage (maybe along with the tomatoes and onion) as they only take around 30 minutes to make in the oven. 

How to make this chicken thigh tray bake recipe

Preheat the oven to 200°C

1. Wash the new potatoes and add to a large mixing bowl.  Add the minced garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper and mix together, before placing on baking tray (Image 1).
2. Now remove the excess skin on the chicken thighs and add to the same bowl.  Add some olive oil, salt and mix together (Image 2).

3. Add the chicken thighs to the tray with the potatoes and pop in the oven for 30 minutes (Image 3).

4. Prep the veggies by quartering the red onions and tomatoes and slice the lemons into rounds. Add them to the baking tray with part cooked potatoes and chicken. Rub the thyme between your hands over the tray so the herb breaks off the stem and scatters over the tray bake. Shake and pop back in the oven for another 45 minutes (Image 4).

5. Remove from the oven and plate up! Season with salt and pepper and an extra squeeze of lemon (Image 5).

For chicken lovers, here are some recipes to inspire you; Wagamama’s Chicken Ramen (Chilli Chicken), Chicken Fajita Salad Bowl and Peanut Butter Ramen with Chicken.

Reheat & storage instructions

Storage: Once cooled, store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Freezer: Portion into freezer-safe tubs for up to 3 months.

Reheat: add to a baking dish and warm in the oven at 180°C for 15-20 minutes. You could also do this in the air fryer with the same temperature but for around 12 minutes. These methods will get the best texture with the chicken skin. If you’re in a rush, feel free to reheat in the microwave for 2 minutes on high.

Reheat from frozen: I like to defrost overnight in the fridge, then reheat using the methods above.

FAQs

Other tasty recipes for you to try; The BEST Teriyaki Chicken Bowl, Chicken Pot Pie with a stuffing crust and Pesto Quorn Chicken