Rosemary Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs

Published: Feb 25, 2021 · Modified: May 4, 2025 by Stacey

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A number of years ago, in a pinch, I bought Trader Joe's Spatchcocked Lemon Rosemary Chicken. It's a bit pricey, but we needed dinner and somehow had no food in the house. I absolutely loved the flavor, and it seemed like something I simply had to make my own version of. My experiments took the form of these rosemary lemon garlic chicken thighs and came pretty damn close to that Trader Joe's spatchcocked chicken.

Chicken Thighs and trimming the fat

I love chicken. Love it. It's the most predominant protein in my diet. It's what I eat most days of the week. And in particular: chicken thighs. Dark meat is juicy, tender, more flavorful. I mean, I eat white meat chicken too, of course, and have a bunch of recipes on my site with white meat chicken. But dark meat has a special place in my heart. And these rosemary lemon garlic chicken thighs are one of my favorites.

Chicken thighs seem to have a bad reputation because of all the fat. And yes, there is a lot of fat on chicken thighs. If you have time, it will probably be helpful to check out the tutorial I made on how to trim the fat from chicken thighs. I take you through it step-by-step and show you where all the hidden fat is too. Once you get into the habit of trimming the fat from your chicken thighs, you will feel a lot better about eating them.

The Key to Rosemary Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs is the Marinade

This recipe has evolved over time, but the key is marinating it overnight. Whether you use the chicken-in-a-bag method like me or wrap it in a glass bowl - the chicken must be marinated.

First, I mix the marinade in a bowl, then I add the chicken, fork the chicken, and transfer to a Ziplock bag. Again, I like to marinate overnight and think this gives a great result. If I can't manage that because of my schedule, I will at least try to marinate the chicken in the morning and cook it in the evening. Marinades are such a great way to enjoy chicken recipes and if you love lemon and rosemary - this one's for you.

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Rosemary lemon garlic chicken thighs with a quick & easy side

For this recipe, I show you a quick veggie side as well. A simple mixture of carrots and zucchini with feta sprinkled on top. I don't know what got me started with this side dish. I was definitely going through a phase where I liked to dice zucchini and carrots and cook them as a side dish. And one night I probably had a little feta I didn't want to waste so threw it on top of the veggies. This is one of my easiest go-to side dishes and it goes with pretty much any protein.

The cooking method for the veggies is a sauté/steam method which is basically the same way I make my simple veggie medley sauté. It can be the best of both worlds because if you like to get your veggies a little browned, you can simply crank up the heat a bit when the lid comes off.

Got Chicken on Your Brain? Me Too!

Eat the Bite: Making the Choice to Cook at Home

I highly encourage all of you to get to know your kitchens and make homemade food for your loved ones. Eating out has become a very expensive luxury these days so there has never been a better time to cook from home. And if you're already making dinner - why not cook a little extra so you can take it for lunch? I'm often cooking with leftovers in mind and I highly encourage you to do so as well. If you plan your grocery shopping and meals ahead of time, you will save money.

And I know I'm getting smushy here, but preparing meals for our families and friends is a wonderful tradition to keep alive. It gives us a chance to slow down for a moment, put down our devices, and connect with the people we care about. I know I always feel better when I do this.

Rosemary Lemon Garlic Chicken

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Author: Stacey
Prep Time: 20 minutes (plus 24-hour marinade)
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: 4-6 portions 1x

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Description

This easy chicken-in-a-bag recipe is chock full of fresh rosemary, lemon and lots of garlic. A great weeknight option!

Instructions

Chicken Marinade

Prepare your marinade. Add the following to a bowl: finely diced cloves of garlic, zest and juice of lemons (set lemon pieces aside-do not throw away), olive oil, salt, dijon mustard, fresh chopped rosemary, balsamic vinegar. Whisk to combine all ingredients.
Trim fat from chicken thighs and discard.
Add trimmed chicken thighs to marinade. Toss around making sure all the chicken is coated in the marinade.
Fork the chicken to help ensure full flavor penetration.
Put chicken in a zip-lock bag, along with the lemons, and let marinate overnight.
After chicken has marinated overnight, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Place the chicken and lemon pieces in a baking dish and cook the chicken for about 50 minutes. Let chicken rest for five minutes before eating.

Basmati Rice

Follow instructions on bag but remember to add butter and salt before covering the rice to cook.

Vegetable Side

Always wash your veggies before cooking.
Carrots: Peel carrots, cut in half, cut into carrots sticks then cut into cubes. Put in pan on low heat with olive oil, salt and pepper. Give it a stir. Cover and cook on low for 5-10 minutes, depending on how large your carrots pieces are. Turn heat off and let sit, covered, a few more minutes. Test tenderness with a fork. They will be about 90% done and they’ll continue cooking later when we add the zucchini.
Zucchini: While carrots are cooking, start on your zucchini. Same method as carrots. Cut into zucchini sticks and then cubes.
Feta cheese: Have container standing by so you’re ready to sprinkle on top of your veggies.
Just before the chicken is ready, add zucchini to the carrot pan. Turn heat on low. There should be some residual olive oil in the pan with carrots so no need to add anymore here.
Toss veggies together, then cover and cook on low for 4 minutes. Uncover and cook a few more minutes. I like to cook until carrots are soft and zucchini is al dente. Cook longer if you want a softer zucchini.
When your chicken is finished - plate your delicious meal! I usually put the rice down, spoon my zucchini & carrot mixture on top of the rice, then sprinkle on the feta.