Chile-Roasted Chicken With Honey, Lemon and Feta

By Melissa Clark

Published May 12, 2021

Chile-Roasted Chicken With Honey, Lemon and Feta
Linda Xiao for The New York Times Food Stylist: Judy Kim.
Total Time
50 minutes, plus marinating
Rating
4(2,064)
Comments
Read comments

A little sweet, a little spicy and very citrusy, this easy chicken recipe hits all the right notes, making it the kind of weeknight dinner you’ll put on repeat. The feta adds a creamy, salty bite that’s softened by the lemon and honey, while rosemary and red-pepper flakes round out the flavors. Serve this with a loaf of crusty bread or flatbread for scooping up all the tangy pan juices. You won’t want to leave a drop behind.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 3pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs and drumsticks (to substitute breasts, see Tip)
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 2large garlic cloves, finely grated or crushed to a paste
  • 1tablespoon honey
  • 1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • ¼teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more for serving
  • 2fresh rosemary sprigs
  • 1lemon, preferably a Meyer lemon, thinly sliced and seeded
  • 2ounces feta, crumbled into large pieces (a heaping ½ cup)
  • Chopped mint, dill or parsley, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

646 calories; 38 grams fat; 11 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 16 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 grams polyunsaturated fat; 9 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 64 grams protein; 894 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Season chicken all over with salt and pepper. In a large bowl, mix together garlic, honey, olive oil and ¼ teaspoon red-pepper flakes. Add chicken and toss well with your hands, spreading the garlic paste all over the chicken pieces. (Don’t worry if the honey is a little clumpy.) Add rosemary sprigs and lemon slices and toss to combine. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes, or up to 8 hours in the refrigerator.

  2. Step 2

    Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a sheet pan with a silicone liner or parchment paper.

  3. Step 3

    Spread chicken and lemons across a single layer in the lined pan, tucking in the rosemary sprigs. Drizzle oil generously over everything. Roast for 20 minutes.

  4. Step 4

    Using tongs, turn over the chicken pieces, and give the lemons a stir. Sprinkle feta on top. Continue to bake for 20 to 25 minutes longer, until the chicken is deeply bronzed and cooked through, and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh or drumstick registers 165 degrees. Serve garnished with chopped herbs and more red-pepper flakes, if you like.

Tip
  • To substitute white meat, use bone-in, skin-on breasts and roast them for 25 to 30 minutes. Add the feta at the beginning and do not turn the chicken.

Ratings

4 out of 5
2,064 user ratings
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Comments

Michelle

For this recipe, I would cook them just skin side up. In this recipe, if you flip them, you will lose the crispy skin on top. When cooking chicken thighs in a pan, I cook them skin side down first, then flip. For the crispiest skin it's important not to move the pieces around in the pan.

Prakash Nadkarni

RE: Kosher Feta Substitute: Feta's umami can be subbed with Chinese fermented bean paste or miso (reduce the salt). Cheese's tang is mainly from lactic acid, and for sheep/goat cheese, caproic & caprylic acids also (see Harold McGee). Lactic acid also gives sauerkraut, kimchi & cucumber pickles their tang. (veganicindia.com/is-lactic-acid-vegan/). So try pickle juice (see foodandwine.com/recipes/pickle-brined-chicken). Or just use lemon juice or your favorite vinegar (including balsamic).

Kristen

Delicious dish! I’d read that people had issues with the lemon burning so I created a layer of lemon on the bottom and placed the chicken on top. I also did not flip the chicken for beautiful browned skin. It was such an easy and tasty mid week meal, served with whole roasted cauliflower.

Bart61

Cooked per instructions. My wife, a picky eater, said this is the best chicken dish she has ever tasted.

DK Webster

Try this with shrimp and goat cheese garnished with fresh parsley! Add a freshly baked baguette for soaking in the pan juices and, voila, dinner is done! This dish will be one of our new family favorites!

Marishkahargitay

Personally loved it (although not a hit with the husband who said it was too lemony). Followed the notes and put the chicken on top of the lemon and didn't flip for a crispy skin. Added baby spinach for the last 20 minutes to wilt. A bit too long for a weeknight recipe but very hands off and the flavour payout was incredible. Would make again with adjustments!

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