Craving something cozy but still kinda impressive? This skillet-roasted lemon chicken is packed with delicious flavor, and topped with a buttery, garlic and white wine sauce that's straight-up dreamy.
It's got golden skin, juicy vibes, and comes together with way less effort than you'd think, and in just one pan. WIN!
This recipe was one of my very first recipes I ever wrote down for this website back in 2020, and it stayed hidden for all this time.
In making this, I have tweaked a few things from my culinary experience and the results are absolutely outstanding. I'm excited for you to make this!
Recipe at a Glance:
- 👩🏼🍳 Cook Level: Easy/Beginner.
- ⏱️ Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes.
- 😋 Taste: Buttery, tender chicken that quite literally falls off the bone drizzled with a garlic, white wine sauce with herby thyme.as
- 🍽️ Pairings: I highly suggest making my creamy garlic herb mashed potatoes or a side of fresh tomato sauce pasta to pair this with. You could also make a heaping pile of garlicky green beans. No matter what, save room for chewy brown butter chocolate chip cookies for dessert.
Jump to:
Trusted Tips and Key Reminders
- Sear, then Bake: Searing beforehand creates a gorgeous crust and crispy skin on the chicken as it bakes. Don't skip this step.
- Take your Time: I am known to rush recipes and move around my kitchen aimlessly/frazzled because I operate at warp speed sometimes, but this recipe really makes you slow it down, especially because it bakes for just under an hour.
- Don't Thicken TOO Much: We make a creamy butter garlic sauce with herby thyme sprigs and a splash of white wine, and we use some flour or a cornstarch to thicken it. I added way too much of it the first time I made it, so be sure to add just a touch to thicken. Otherwise, it will clump and potentially curdle.
The Main Ingredients
- Chicken Drumsticks: Chicken drumsticks tend to cook evenly and fit really well into a smaller pan all at once. Feel free to use bone in chicken thighs or breasts here instead.
- Lemons: Freshly sliced lemons go on top of the chicken to bake, and then added to the butter sauce. A little acidity is important to help balance dishes, too.
- Olive Oil: We use the olive oil to pan sear the chicken before we bake it.
- Butter: The basis of making our butter garlic and white wine sauce. We use a good chunk of it, and for good reason. I'd recommend using salted butter.
- Garlic: I like to use fresh garlic and mince it rather than grate it as we don't need a huge garlic forward flavor. Just a subtle touch.
- White Wine: Do not use cooking wine, it is filled with additives and sugar. I used a quarter cup of a chardonnay for this recipe and it was great.
- Thyme: Fresh thyme sprigs are baked with the chicken and also added into the butter sauce to infuse the butter with earthy flavor.
- Flour: I've used tapioca flour, arrowroot, and regular flour to thicken the butter sauce, and I'd say stick with regular flour or a cornstarch. The other ingredients do not help thicken this particular sauce well.
Be sure to check out the recipe card at the end of this post for more information about quantities, measurements, and specific cooking instructions.
Simple Swaps and Substitutions
- If you want to use other cuts of chicken, I suggest either chicken thighs or breasts, which you could still use bone in. Boneless chicken is doable too, just adjust time timing (read more below.
- You can easily make this without the thyme and use rosemary or basil.
- No cast iron skillet? Sear on a regular frying pan and then transfer to a baking sheet or dish to bake.
How to make skillet lemon chicken
Step 1: Rinse and pat dry chicken. Add to a large bowl and season with salt, and pepper.
Drizzle olive oil and toss. Let marinade for an hour or overnight.
Step 2: Preheat the oven to 400°.
Take a large cast iron skillet or large dutch oven and pour 2 tablespoon olive oil to the pan. Let the pan get very hot. Add chicken and sear, turning pieces of chicken to make sure all sides get golden brown. Add in 2 tablespoon butter and deglaze the skillet with a splash of the cooking wine and lemon juice.
Step 3: Sprinkle fresh chopped herbs on top of the chicken and disperse the sliced lemon throughout the chicken.
Roast in a preheated 400º oven for 55 minutes.
Step 4: With 10 minutes left of the chicken baking, take the remaining white wine, lemon juice, and butter and add it to a saucepan over medium heat. Add in the minced garlic, flour, and thyme.
Let sit on low heat as it will thicken. Whisk to combine, then pour over the chicken once it comes out of the oven.
Add any leftover chicken to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, you can add to a saucepan or skillet and warm on medium heat, or add to the oven to warm up.
Yes, you can use a bone-in chicken thigh or bone-in chicken breast in this dish too. The cooking time will remain the same, BUT if you want to use boneless chicken thighs or chicken breasts, lower the cooking time by about 20ish minutes. You could also use boneless chicken and cut up into cubes, similar to my sticky honey chicken. Toss in the lemon, and thicken.
If you want to meal prep this dish for a weeknight dinner or for an event, prep the chicken with the lemon and herbs ahead of time, wrap in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, then bake when you are ready to cook.
The same goes for the butter garlic sauce. Make the sauce the day of, no need to prep this as the butter will become solid again once it's cooled.
If you don't have a cast iron skillet or don't prefer to use one, you can use a large frying pan to sear the chicken, and then add to a pyrex or an oven-safe baking dish. If you want to use a dutch oven, that works as well!
Check out these other one-skillet meals that are not only mouthwatering, but take no time to clean up:
Did you love this recipe? ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ If you're just as in love with this recipe as I am, please share a comment below and rate it! Better yet, share this recipe with family and friends!! Thank you!
Super Simple Skillet-Roasted Lemon Chicken Recipe
Equipment
- cast iron skillet
- tongs
- Small Saucepan
Ingredients
- 6 medium Chicken Drumsticks pat dried
- 1 tablespoon Salt and Pepper
- 4 tablespoon Olive Oil divided
- 2 medium Lemons sliced thin
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Lemon Juice
- ¼ cup Semi-Dry White Wine
- 5 tablespoon Butter
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
- 2 teaspoon All Purpose Flour or cornstarch
- 2 oz Thyme
Instructions
- Rinse and pat dry chicken. Add to a large bowl and season with salt, and pepper.
- Drizzle olive oil and toss. Let marinade for an hour or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 400°. Take a large cast iron skillet or large dutch oven and pour 2 tablespoon olive oil to the pan. Let the pan get very hot. Add chicken and sear, turning pieces of chicken to make sure all sides get golden brown. Add in 2 tablespoon butter and deglaze the skillet with a splash of the cooking wine and lemon juice.
- Sprinkle fresh chopped herbs on top of the chicken and disperse the sliced lemon throughout the chicken. Bake in a preheated 400º oven for 55 minutes.
- With 10 minutes left of the chicken baking, take the remaining white wine, lemon juice, and butter and add it to a saucepan over medium heat. Add in the minced garlic, flour, and thyme.
- Let sit on low heat as it will thicken. Whisk to combine, then pour over the chicken once it comes out of the oven.
Yani Suri says
Zesty and full of flavor, Very nice touch of lemon!