5–Ingredient Pesto Chicken Thighs with Lemony Potatoes
5 ingredients, 1 pan, 1 hour, these pesto chicken thighs with lemony potatoes are a dinner–time hero that you need in your repertoire. With a few streamlined tricks, you can serve full roasted–chicken–flavor with a delicious pesto and lemon twist.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 4 Chicken Thighs, bone–in skin–on
- 1 teaspoon Salt, divided
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- 20 oz (5 medium) Yukon Gold Potatoes
- 1 tablespoon Extra–Virgin Olive Oil
- ¼ cup Basil Pesto
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 1 teaspoon Lemon Zest
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 °F. Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towel; rub all over, including under skin, with ½ teaspoon salt. Preheat 12–inch cast iron skillet with 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over medium heat for 5 minutes.
- Increase heat to medium–high; add chicken to skillet , skin–side down. Cook until skin is deep golden–brown, about 5 minutes. Flip chicken and cook until second side is golden–brown, about 3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut potatoes into 1–inch cubes. In a large bowl, toss potatoes, olive oil and ½ teaspoon salt until evenly coated.
- Remove skillet from heat; set chicken aside on cutting board. Pour off fat from skillet, but do not wipe clean. Arrange potatoes in empty skillet. Coat all sides of chicken with 1 tablespoon pesto per thigh. Place chicken on top of potatoes; roast in oven until thermometer in thickest section of chicken thighs registers 175 °F, about 25 minutes.
- Remove chicken from skillet and tent loosely with aluminum foil. Sprinkle lemon juice and zest over potatoes; stir to combine. Return potatoes to the oven until fully tender, about 15 minutes. Remove potatoes from oven; serve with chicken.
Notes
- You can use chicken breasts if preferred. Bone–in, skin–on breasts will remain juicier and provide more flavor. Remove from oven when chicken reaches 160 °F, 20-30 min.
- There is no need to peel the potatoes. Yukon gold potatoes have thin skins that roast well. However, if you prefer to peel the potatoes, it will not affect the recipe.
- This recipe was developed using genovese–style basil pesto, but any variety of pesto should work well.
- For a vegetable accompaniment, roast your vegetable of choice on a separate pan at the same time as the chicken and potatoes; serve with a side salad; or try this brussels sprouts slaw recipe.
- The recipe uses only 5 ingredients in addition to the pantry staples: olive oil, vegetable oil and salt.