Easy Healthy Baked Lemon Chicken

It doesn’t get much easier than this Healthy Baked Lemon Chicken!

I am alll about the ease of cooking weeknight dinners and this chicken recipe is no exception.

A lemony sauce envelops the chicken while cooking to give it serious flavour!

The sauce for this baked lemon chicken is SO simple to mix together. Then the rest of the recipe is pretty much a breeze! We season and sear the chicken breasts first in a frying pan to give them a lovely golden hue. Then, the chicken breasts are transferred to a baking dish, drizzled with the lemon sauce and baked. It’s seriously so simple!

What ingredients are in baked lemon chicken?

Chicken: Boneless chicken breasts work best for this recipe.

Lemon: Use juice from one whole lemon and lemon slices to bring in all that lemon flavour.

Garlic: Minced garlic is a part of the delicious lemon sauce.

Olive oil: Brings all of the sauce ingredients together.

Dried spices: Dried oregano, thyme and rosemary are a part of the lemon sauce and salt and ground black pepper.

Now you might be wondering…

Why do you put lemon in the sauce AND sliced on top of the chicken?

The lemon juice in the sauce AND the slices of lemon on top keep the chicken juicy. The lemon along with the other aromatics like garlic and dried spices infuse the chicken while cooking, giving it amazing flavour!

Easy Healthy Baked Lemon Chicken

Course: dinner

Cuisine: American

Keyword: one pan baked chicken

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Servings: 4

If you are running out of chicken recipe ideas for dinner, try our easy healthy baked lemon chicken recipe with tangy and savory flavors.

Print

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts
• salt & pepper
• 4 lemon slices

Lemon Sauce

• juice from one lemon
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
• 1/4 tsp chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp coarse salt
• ground pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400F and set aside a baking dish.

2. Make the sauce: mix together lemon juice, olive oil, minced garlic, dried oregano, dried thyme, dried rosemary, chili flakes, salt & pepper. Set aside.

3. Season each side of chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Then, add 1 tbsp olive oil to a frying pan and turn the heat to medium-high.

4. Once the frying pan is hot, add chicken breasts to the pan and brown on both sides by cooking for 3-4 minutes per side. Remove from heat once browned and transfer to a baking dish. 

5. Pour the lemon sauce over chicken breasts, moving them around the baking dish a bit to make sure sauce gets under the chicken too. Put a lemon slice on top of each chicken breast. 

6. Bake 22-25 minutes (or until chicken is cooked through). Serve with grains and greens, drizzle sauce from the baking dish on top of chicken.

What do you eat baked lemon chicken with?

Grains: Any kind of rice or quinoa would be delicious with this chicken recipe.

Roasted Vegetables: I love roasted carrots or brussels sprouts as a side but honestly whatever vegetable is your fav works!

Green Salad: A simple, fresh side salad is a fresh bite beside the baked chicken.

Sauteed Kale: Bright, fresh kale just lightly sauteed is a delicious side with the lemon chicken. Or, try an easy kale salad!

Potatoes: For a more decadent dish, try roasted or mashed potatoes.

Fresh and bright, this baked lemon chicken is here to become your new go-to chicken recipe! You can even make this for a ‘fancier’ date-night at home too; just pair with your favourite side dishes and a lovely glass of wine.

More delicious chicken recipes to love from the blog:

One Pan Baked Chicken with Tomatoes & Oregano

Pesto Baked Chicken

Peanut Chicken Power Bowls

Until the next cooking adventure,
Jess