This Greek lemon chicken meal is made entirely in one pan, and is completely packed with classic Greek flavors!
This easy Greek lemon chicken and rice is made completely in one pan, and you won’t believe how incredible flavorful it is!
One Pan Greek Lemon Chicken and Rice
Dishes. Ughhhhh… are they the bane of your existence, or is it just me? Between the two blogs and two kids, I feel like all I ever do is wash dishes!
Back in 2016 when I posted this One Pot Chicken and Dirty Rice meal, you went crazy over it and I kept meaning to post different variations of the chicken and rice combo… but I got too excited about other new recipes to share, and it kept falling to the back burner. But no more!!
I do have some other versions planned (I promise!), but for now, let’s start with this Greek Lemon Chicken and Rice recipe.
Let’s talk about why I love this greek chicken version so much. There really aren’t any surprise or secret ingredients to make it so good, it’s more about HOW it’s cooked. The chicken cooks on top of the rice, which means all the delicious juices go right down into the rice. It’s like cooking the rice in a super concentrated chicken stock full of spices!
HOW TO MAKE GREEK LEMON CHICKEN AND RICE
- Marinate the chicken first. Overnight gives the best flavor, but even if you forget and only have 10-15 minutes… it still gives a great extra punch of flavor!
- Searing the chicken first is super important here. Not only does it ensure a beautiful golden color on the chicken thighs, but it gives the skin a great crispy texture. Plus, it gives some chicken fat, which is perfect to cook the onion in!
- If you don’t have a tight fitting lid, no worries. Cover the pan with foil and it works just fine.
If you’re into meal prepping, this lemon chicken is perfect for you. The leftovers get better and better!
WHAT TO SERVE WITH GREEK LEMON CHICKEN
It’s a personal decision, but I typically stick with a vegetable, since you already have the protein and rice covered in the recipe itself. Here are some great options!
- Skillet Peas and Prosciutto
- Spicy Bourbon Glazed Carrots
- Cheesy Brussels Sprouts
- Oven Roasted Vegetables
HELPFUL TOOLS
- Cast Iron Skillet – probably the most used pan in my kitchen, and for good reason!
- Enameled Cast Iron Skillet – All the great benefits of cast iron, plus the ability to soak in soapy water!
Want to try this Greek Lemon Chicken?
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Ingredients
MARINADE
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried minced onion
- 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1-2 Tbsp olive oil to make a loose paste
- 5 bone-in, skin on chicken thighs
RICE
- 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced
- 1 cup dry long-grain white rice (NOT minute or quick cooking varieties)
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- lemon slices, optional
- fresh minced parsley, for garnish
- extra lemon zest, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large resealable plastic bag, add all marinade ingredients (except chicken), and massage to combine. Add chicken thighs and turn/massage to coat. Refrigerate 15 minutes up to overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
- Add 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil to large cast iron or heavy oven safe skillet, and heat over MED-HIGH heat. Shake off excess marinade from chicken thighs and add chicken thighs, skin side down, to pan. Cook 4-5 minutes per side. Remove to plate and wipe skillet lightly with a paper towel to remove any blackened bits, reserving chicken grease in pan.
- Reduce heat to MED and add onion to pan. Cook 3-4 minutes, until softened and slightly charred. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Add rice, oregano, salt and pepper. Stir together and cook 1 minute.
- Pour in chicken stock, raise temperature to MED-HIGH and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, nestle chicken thighs on top of the rice mixture.
- Cover with lid or foil, and bake 35 minutes. Uncover, return to oven and bake an additional 10-15 minutes, until liquid is removed, rice is tender, and chicken is cooked through.
- Garnish as desired and serve.
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Chef Tips
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Recipe adapted slightly from RecipeTinEats
Lola says
This was very good! We’re cutting back on carbs so i used chopped cauliflower in place of the rice and reduced the amount of stock to less than a cup
Kim says
May I substitute orzo for rice?
The Chunky Chef says
I haven’t tested this recipe using orzo, so I can’t say for certain whether any changes would need to be made since orzo would likely need a different pasta/liquid ratio than the rice. If you do some experimenting, I’d love to know how it turns out 🙂
Dinah says
Looks very interesting…can you freeze and re-heat? Want to give it to guests but am tie limited!!
The Chunky Chef says
I haven’t tested freezing and reheating this recipe, so I can’t say for certain.
Melinda says
Excellent! Used Basmati rice 35 min-didn’t need the last 10. Used Lemon Pepper in place of salt and pepper when making rice. Very good-will make again
Veronica says
I made this today and it was delicious! I actually forgot the lemon, but it was great. The rice was tender, the chicken was perfectly done. I can’t wait to make it again and include the lemon slices.
Angie Heath says
Could I use brown rice in this recipe? I am diabetic and trying to use brown rice instead of white rice.
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve only tested this recipe as written. So without testing and retesting it myself, I can’t say for certain, but I highly suspect brown rice won’t work. It requires a different liquid to rice ratio and longer cooking time. If you try it, I’d love to know how it turns out!
Liz says
Absolutely delicious! Made it for 12 people and everyone loved it! Don’t change a thing!!
Tracey says
Would this recipe be okay to make without the rice ?
The Chunky Chef says
You could use the marinade and cook the chicken, but if you use everything and just omit the rice, you’d have a really liquid-y dish.
Lisa says
This Greek chicken and rice dish was sooooo good! I followed your directions and it came out perfect. The family loved it! Thank you
Sharon says
Awesome! The dish was very delicious and flavorful! It made an amazing gravy to compliment the rice . I also used Greek dressing to get a more zesty flavor and turned it up a notch!
Shana says
Could have been more lemony
Brandi Smith says
Hi there! I have some saffron rice that I’d love to use up tonight with this recipe. Do you think the flavors will pair well with following the directions for everything else, just substituting the white rice with the saffron rice? Thank you for your help! I’m excited to try this recipe! I live near Tarpon Springs, FL which has the highest concentration of Greek people in the united states, so I LOVE me some Greek food!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Brandi 🙂 I haven’t tested this recipe using saffron rice, so I can’t say for certain how well those flavors would pair up. As long as the rice has a very similar cooking time (on the package) to the rice listed, it should work out 🙂
Debra says
It’s such a shame that people like Mizzz Liberty thinks that they have a right to speak their opinion without even checking their resources. Besides who probably cares about what she thinks. Your recipe looks yummy. Can’t wait to try it.
Jayne Liberty says
This recipe including the pictures were stolen from RecipeTinEats. Published in 2015. I recognized them. Plagerism is not cool at all!!
The Chunky Chef says
I actually know Nagi from RecipeTinEats, but these are MY photos, not hers. They may be similar, as it’s a similar recipe, but they are NOT the same, and I really do not appreciate your claim that my photos are plagiarized. Stolen content is rampant in the food content space, and I can’t stand it, and would NEVER steal another creators photos.
Susan J says
Right on, Chunky Chef!!
steven says
Checked out the RecipeTinEats web site and did not find this recipe or photos. FYI.
Jan says
Dang! Are you the food police?!😆😆
Rhonda says
Rhonda can you use pork chops instead of chicken
The Chunky Chef says
I think the flavors would go well, but the cooking time may change, so you’ll have to do some experimenting.
Amelia says
I came upon this recipe when I had some chicken thighs that I wasn’t sure what to do with and wanted something different!
It was easy to prepare, I had everything I needed and only one pot to wash! I used my large size ROCK pan and lid.
It was delicious! The chicken was super tender and the rice was flavourful. I will definitely make this again.
Brenda says
Made this tonight and it was a huge hit. So easy but taste great. Even my Greek husband approved. Thanks for posting this!!!
Line says
This was very good. The rice had perfect texture and just the right amount of spices.
Fran says
This recipe was so easy and tasty that I shared it with my sister, my daughter and my granddaughter. They all made it and loved it.
KG says
Need to make ahead of time. Can I do all the steps except baking the rice and chicken a couple of hours later?
The Chunky Chef says
I haven’t tested making this recipe ahead of time, so I’m not sure how well it would work or if any changes would need to be made. I would worry that the rice would start to potentially soak up some of the liquid. If you experiment, I’d love to hear how it goes! 🙂