This sheet pan chicken thighs and veggies one-pan dinner is infused with a lemony garlic paprika rub. The flavors are robust but not overpowering, and makes for the most tender veggies and juicy chicken. Quick prep and easy cleanup with minimal effort, you will absolutely LOVE this sheet pan meal.
If you haven’t figured it out by now, I absolutely love one pan meals and have been making them for years. As a busy family of 5, with 3 kids involved in multiple activities, we need simple, healthy meal ideas. While we do our fair share of fast-casual meals, I aim to cook at least 4-5 nights a week from home, and sheet pan dinners are one of my favorite ways to achieve that goal. A couple of all time favorites are this sausage sheet pan dinner and this pesto salmon dinner. This chicken recipe is a family favorite that I hope will become a go-to for busy weeknights.
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Why we are obsessed with this recipe
- Easy sheet pan dinner that is customizable! Keep the chicken recipe the same, and just sub in whatever veggie you have on hand or prefer. It’s a great way to cut back on food waste since you can just sub in whatever you have on hand that will go to waste if not used.
- Super easy clean-up since you only need to worry about 1 sheet pan (and possibly a bowl).
- A healthy complete meal that the whole family will love.
- Perfect for a quick weekly meal prep to help set you up for healthy eating throughout the week.
Ingredients
- Chicken thighs – I prefer bone-in skin-on chicken thighs because they are more flavorful, but you can certainly use boneless skinless chicken thighs if you’re trying to watch your fat (juicy chicken thighs are so delicious because they do have a higher fat content)
- Broccolini and brussels sprouts – but as I said, feel free to sub in a different veggie you love or just happen to have on hand.
- Lemons, garlic, salt and black pepper, and olive oil of course!
- Herbs and spices – ground anise (or fennel) and lots of paprika. These will flavor the pan drippings and make for an excellent basting sauce, turning this simple recipe into a masterpiece!
Step-by-step directions
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil, and preheat the oven to 325. Place the chicken thighs on the sheet pan.
In a small bowl, combine the olive oil with the anise, paprika, salt and pepper, and minced garlic. Rub equal amounts all over each of the bone-in thighs, all over. Nestle some lemon slices and whole garlic all around the chicken.
Bake in a preheated 325 f oven for about 20 minutes.
While the chicken is baking, trim the veggies and toss in a medium bowl with some olive oil and salt and pepper.
After 20 minutes, remove the sheet pan from the oven and nestle veggies all around the chicken in a single layer. At this point you should see some nice pan drippings, so go ahead and spoon some of those onto the chicken thighs and veggies. Baste them if you will.
Cook until veggies are fork tender and internal temperature of the chicken reaches about 160 degrees. I highly recommend having an instant-read thermometer in your kitchen arsenal!
At the end of cooking, you’ll notice the best part is the lemons have almost caramelized. Feel free to squeeze the warm lemon juice all over the veggies and chicken. It will give the meal an even more intense and delicious flavor.
FAQ’s
The possibilities are almost endless, but I love red onion, red bell pepper and cherry tomatoes, or cauliflower and green beans. You could also add in a healthy starch like sweet potatoes.
Yes, absolutely but I personally prefer the flavor of bone-in chicken thighs. Their higher fat content and dark meat means they don’t easily dry out and aren’t as temperamental when cooking. To help keep your chicken breasts juicy and tender, I definitely recommend brining them first.
A few more tips!
- If swapping out veggies, be mindful of cooking time. Veggies that cook faster, like asparagus, bell peppers, tomatoes, and zucchini, can be added during the last 15-20 minutes. But if you are subbing in starchier veggies like potatoes, they will need to cook the entire time along with the chicken.
- Do not overcrowd the sheet pan or else neither the chicken or the veggies will quite cook right. Give them some room to breathe to achieve more even cooking.
- Aim for uniform sizes in your chicken pieces and size of cut vegetables. This way everything cooks along the same time frame!
- Keep moisture out by patting chicken and veggies dry before tossing with oils/marinades. Excess water makes it harder for the oven to nicely and evenly brown the chicken and veggies, so try to limit moisture.
- To store & reheat leftovers: Store your healthy sheet pan chicken one-pan meal in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave. Or make this a freezer meal to reheat on crazy nights. Freeze in single serve portions for quick thawing and reheating.
Sheet pan cooking is wonderful because they’re all basic, easy recipes you will make once and never really have to refer to the recipe card again. This type of cooking allows for so much flexibility, spontaneity and freedom in the kitchen, allowing more time for you to do the important things in life! If you make this for dinner tonight, please share in the comments what you thought of it! Enjoy!
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Sheet Pan Chicken Thighs and Veggies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 Chicken thighs Bone-in, skin-on preferred
- 1 tbsp Anise seed or fennel seed, ground with a mortar & pestle
- 2.0 tbsp Paprika
- 1 tbsp Kosher salt
- 1 tsp Black pepper
- 2 Garlic cloves finely minced
- ¼ cup Olive oil plus 2 more tbsp to toss veggies
- 1 bunch Broccolini
- 2 cups Brussels sprouts cut in half
- 2 Lemons cut into halves/quarters
Instructions
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil, and preheat the oven to 325
- In a small bowl, combine the olive oil. garlic, paprika, anise, salt and pepper and mix into a paste. Rub equal amounts all over each thigh. Nestle the lemon pieces around the chicken (and whole garlic cloves if you wish)
- Roast chicken thighs alone for about 20 minutes
- While chicken is roasting, trim brussels sprouts in half and trim off any brown bits from broccolini stems. To make really tender broccolini I sometimes shave the stems a bit with a vegetable peeler. Toss veggies in about 2 tbsp of olive oil with a sprinkle of salt and pepper and set aside
- After about 20 minutes, remove the sheet pan from the oven and nestle in the veggies all around the chicken, taking care to try and keep veggies in a single layer. If there are pan juices, you can take some and spoon the drippings over the chicken thighs to baste them a bit.
- Bake for another 20 minutes or so, until veggies are fork tender and chicken reaches 160 degrees. Squeeze juicy baked lemon juice over the thighs and veggies and spoon more drippings over everything. Serve and enjoy!
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