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This Roasted Garlic Butter Chicken with Lemon Olive Dressing is a flavorful update to the classic roasted chicken. Herb and garlic-seasoned chicken, roasted with lemons, and served with a tangy and slightly salty olive dressing. This quick-cooking, easy sheet pan dinner comes together in just about an hour. It’s a touch buttery, colorful, healthy, and beyond delicious. Incorporate this into your weekly dinner rotation or serve it up at your next dinner party. Yes, it’s easy enough for a weeknight, but fancy enough to serve to guests.
Sharing yet another sheet pan dinner today that I’m so very excited about. I hesitated to share this recipe, solely for the fact that I don’t love the photos, but one of my goals for the year is to try and let go of having everything perfect…though in my eyes nothing is ever perfect…ever. The truth is, I can often overthink and over complicate things. And you know what I’m realizing? I just don’t have time for that and I have to stop. So much easier said than done, but I really am going to try.
This is one step in the right direction. Because even though I don’t love the photos of this chicken, I sure do love the recipe. I mean there’s absolutely nothing not to love about buttery roasted chicken with garlic and lemon. There’s even goat cheese, it’s insanely good.
I’ve had the idea for this chicken for a while now, but it took me a few weeks to fully develop the concept. I knew I really wanted to make roasted chicken, And I knew I wanted there to be garlic and roasted lemon. But I also knew I wanted it to feel fresh and new. There are A LOT of roasted chicken recipes out there. And many are very very similar. I didn’t want this to be just like all the others, so the recipe took a while to get right.
But I finally got it right, and I’m finally sharing my go-to chicken dinner. It’s all made simple on one sheet pan. My hope is that this will become a new staple dinner for you all.
Here are the details.
I want you guys to read this closely because while this is a simple recipe, it was a confusing one for me to write out.
Start with the chicken. First, I like to use a mix of chicken thighs and skinless chicken breasts. Most of the people I feed regularly prefer chicken breasts, but I like to toss in a couple boneless, skin-on, chicken thighs for added flavor. Use what you like best…all thighs, all breasts, or a mix.
Find yourself a good sheet pan and toss the chicken together with some olive oil, a couple of cloves of chopped garlic, parsley, and oregano.
Now, on that same sheet pan add the lemons (one should be cut in half and the other should be sliced) and a handful of whole garlic cloves. Place pats of butter on each piece of chicken. Roast in the oven until the chicken is fully cooked through and the lemons are charring. It’s important to keep an eye on the lemons and garlic towards the end of cooking to ensure neither is burning. If your lemons or your garlic cloves are on the smaller side, they may cook up faster than the chicken, so just keep an eye on things towards the end.
That’s part one….
The dressing.
this dressing is extra special. Its main two ingredients are the roasted lemon slices and roast garlic. You use not only the lemon juice, but the lemon rind as well. Yes, I’m about to tell you to chop up the WHOLE lemon, rind and all, and add it to your dressing. I know this seems odd, but roasting the lemon removes any bitterness and makes them extra sweet and tangy. Once the lemon is finely chopped and stirred together with olive oil, parsley, oregano, and basil it’s the perfect marriage of flavors. They make for a vibrant, but also incredibly rich dressing.
Next, add the garlic, which adds a subtle, sweet flavor. Then toss in salty olives, for a little bit of a bite.
Finally, a splash of fish sauce…only if you enjoy it. Many recipes will use anchovies in their dressing, but I find anchovies a little annoying to work with. Fish sauce works in a pinch (its only ingredients are anchovies, water, and salt).
Finishing it up…
Once the chicken is finished I simply leave it on the sheet pan, remove the lemons and garlic, finish up the dressing, and add chunks of creamy goat cheese to the warm chicken. The cheese will soften as it sits. It’s the perfect creamy ingredient that compliments all the flavors happening here so well.
Then spoon the dressing over the chicken and cheese, and serve. And that’s it. It’s not hard or even time consuming, but tricky to write out and explain. I hope this has all made sense!
I love serving this with a simple side of rice or creamy orzo pasta. Add a side salad plus crusty bread and dinner is complete. It’s fancy(ish), yet still simple. The chicken is perfectly buttery, herby, and garlicky, and the dressing adds freshness and tang. An all-around great meal and definitely not your average chicken dinner!
If you make this Roasted Garlic Butter Chicken with Lemon Olive Dressing, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Watch the How To Video:
Roasted Garlic Butter Chicken with Lemon Olive Dressing.
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 460 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 6 boneless chicken thighs and or breasts, skin on or off (choose similar sizes for even cooking)
- 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 6 cloves garlic, 2 finely chopped + 4 whole cloves
- 1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh oregano, chopped
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 lemons, 1 halved and 1 sliced
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, sliced into 6 pieces
- 1 cup fresh basil, chopped
- 1/2 cup green olives, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce (optional)
- 1/2-1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 4 ounces goat cheese broken into chunks
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. 2. On a rimmed baking sheet, combine the chicken, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 finely chopped garlic cloves, 1/4 cup chopped parsley, 2 tablespoons chopped oregano, and a large pinch each of salt and pepper. Toss well to evenly coat the chicken. Arrange the lemons and smashed garlic cloves around the chicken. Add 1 slice of butter to each piece of chicken. Transfer to the oven and roast for 35-45 minutes, cooking until the chicken is cooked through and the lemons are charred. Keep an eye on the lemon slices and garlic cloves to ensure they are not burning.3. To make the dressing. Combine the remaining 1/3 cup olive oil, 3/4 cup parsley, 2 tablespoons oregano, the basil, olives, vinegar, and fish sauce, if using. 4. Remove the charred lemon slices and garlic cloves from the baking sheet. Finely chop the lemon slices…rind and all, discarding any of the seeds. Add half of the chopped lemon to the dressing. Finely chop/mash the garlic into a paste, stir the garlic into the dressing. Season with crushed red pepper and salt. Taste adding more of the lemon as desired.5. Serve each piece of chicken with goat cheese and the dressing spooned over top.
Notes
Chicken: you can use thighs or breast, bone in or out. Just be sure to adjust the cooking time accordingly. Bone in chicken will need 10-15 minutes additional cooking time, depending on the size of the chicken.
This post was originally published on January 23, 2020
I love the recipe! The chicken tasted amazing. My family does not like olives, so I added capers for that salty bite. It was a hit!
Ooo love that! Thank you for trying this Amanda! xTieghan
I’m so happy I discovered your website/IG account during quarantine. Every single recipe I have made has been easy and amazing and my family agrees. This chicken was incredible- the topping, is the secret, and makes all the difference. Full of incredible flavour.
Thank you so much Candace! I am really glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
I’m planning on making this tonight with a side of roasted Brussels and green salad. I have a jar of artichokes I was thinking might pair well with this. How do you think i could incorporate them?
Thanks!
Hi Abbie,
You could add them to the pan for the final 5 minutes of cooking if you want them to be warm or just add them straight to your plate. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I made this tonight and it came out great! I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts and I had to skip the goat cheese because I didn’t have any. I’m definitely adding this to my heavy rotation! Between this, the Greek-style chicken with farro, and the French mustard chicken with white wine, you’re keeping me fed during quarantine. Thanks for making me feel like I’m actually capable in the kitchen!
Thank you so much Jen! I am really glad this one turned out so well for you! I hope you continue to enjoy recipes of mine! xTieghan
I’ve made this recipe multiple times and it’s amazing. The dressing is to die for! I’ve tried it with and without the butter and it’s equally delicious both ways. I’ve yet to come across a Half Baked Harvest recipe that I didn’t love, this one included 🙂 thanks for such frequent and consistent content.
Aw that is so amazing to hear!! Thank you so much Chloe! I hope you continue to enjoy my recipes! xTieghan
How many pounds of chicken breast halves (skinless/boneless) can I use in this recipe? Thanks
I loved making this recipe. I do feel like I have to make a few modifications. My oven may not be as professional as yours because my chicken dried up. At 35 minutes, the meat was looking pretty pale. By 45, it looked cooked but dry. I think next time I will have to cover it with foil while it bakes. Otherwise, it tasted heavenly. = )
Hi! I am really glad this still tasted amazing! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
This looks amazing. What kind of olives do you use?
Hi Ann! I use green olives for this! I hope you love it! xTieghan
Sorry, out my glasses on and found that the olives are in the dressing…sorry
Sounds delicious but you forgot to include when or where the green olives go???
Hi Linda! The olives go in in step number 3! I hope you love this recipe! xTieghan
I loved this recipe! I’m a no fuss cook and although I didn’t have goat cheese or fish sauce, it was a family favorite for dinner this week.
I am so glad you all enjoyed this Lindsey! Thank you so much! xTieghan
Very Spring-y dinner that I paired with orzo. This would be great for company too!! Everyone was happy!!
Thank you so much Elizabeth! xTieghan
Yummy
Thank you so much! xTieghan
This was totally delicious! Made it tonight for my husband’s family with a few minor modifications (my grocery store only had one small packet of basil – I blame covid!). The dressing was absolutely killer – it got raves all around, and I would put it on just about anything. I used a jar of pitted castelvetrano olives. On the side, I served a red pepper and corn risotto, which was also so good. Thank you for this recipe! I always love your stuff 🙂
Hi Samantha! I am so glad this recipe turned out so well for you both! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
Yep, made it. Followed recipe exactly. Super easy. Super flavorful. And really, very beautiful. Perfect for a cold night during a pandemic.
I am really glad this turned out so well for you Dan! I hope you are staying healthy through all of this! xTieghan