Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken Legs
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These Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken Legs are loaded with flavor, perfect for a super quick dinner. The best part? No bowls to wash, super fast prep all in one pan!
What I love about this recipe is its simplicity. You do it all in a ziploc bag, no bowls to wash and cooked in just one pan, which in my book is huge. You basically add all these ingredients to a ziploc bag, close it up, then just shake shake shake!
There’s plenty of flavor in this marinade, chock full of bright lemon, tons of fresh garlic, and some punchy oregano and thyme. I do specify to marinate this for minimum of 30 minutes, although if you really want these flavors to penetrate the chicken all the way through, go for longer. So let’s get cooking!
Why Chicken Legs?
But why chicken legs, you ask. Why not, I say. They’re delicious, they’re portable which is great if you’re having a picnic, or are asked to bring something to a potluck, plus you can also eat them cold. Seriously, what more do you want?
Of course, who am I to say that you cannot use chicken thighs, or chicken breast, any cuts of chicken will actually work for this recipe, just check the recipe notes for instructions.
Ingredients
- Chicken – I’m using legs today, skin on for flavor and texture. Although any cut of chicken will work.
- Butter – I always use unsalted to control the sodium content of our dish.
- Olive oil – We want a nice neutral tasting oil to allow our chicken to crisp up beautifully.
- Herbs – I’m using dried oregano and fresh thyme.
- Smoked paprika – Now it’s not a roast chicken recipe with out a little smoked paprika in my books, just trust me on this one.
- Garlic – Use as much or little as you like.
- Lemon – Fresh sliced up.
- Seasoning – Salt and pepper to taste.
How To Make Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken Legs
- Marinate the chicken legs: In a large ziploc bag add the chicken legs, melted butter, olive oil, oregano, paprika, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Close the ziploc bag and toss everything together well. Place the ziploc bag in the fridge and marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes up to 24 hours.
- Preheat your oven: to 450 F degrees.
- Finish the dish: Transfer the chicken legs to a large casserole dish and place the lemon slices in between the legs. Bake uncovered for 30 to 35 minutes or until legs are golden brown and cooked through. Finally. garnish with fresh thyme and serve warm.
Can I Use Other Cuts Of Chicken?
Of course you can! Consider chicken the blank canvas for this tasty marinade, so feel free to have some fun! Moist, tender chicken thigh would cook down beautifully in this sauce and it would really kick chicken breast up a notch.
- Boneless skinless chicken thigh: 425F for 12-15 minutes.
- Bone-in skin-on chicken thighs: 425F for 25-28 minutes.
- Boneless skinless chicken breast: 425F for 15-20 minutes.
- Bone-in skin-on chicken breast: 425F for 40-45 minutes.
How To Check If Your Chicken Is Done
To ensure your chicken is cooked through, the best way is to use a thermometer. A thermometer inserted in the middle of the drumstick should read 180 to 185 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer, another way to ensure your chicken is cooked is to pierce it with a knife and if the juices that run out are clear, your chicken should be cooked.
How To Serve
These wonderful roasted chicken legs will go well with any of your favorite sides! Whether you’re looking for some carbs or a nice fresh salad check some of these recipes out:
Potatoes:
Salads
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Mediterranean Couscous Salad
- Deviled Egg Macaroni Salad
- Kale and Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
Veggies
- Garlic Parmesan Roasted Brussels Sprouts
- Old Fashioned Green Beans
- Garlic and Herb Roasted Carrots
- Cauliflower Poppers
Can I Make Chicken Legs In The Instant Pot?
You sure can, and it’ll make this recipe even quicker!
- Marinate your chicken to prepare it to cook.
- Pour 1 cup of water into your Instant Pot and insert the trivet before layering your chicken on over top. Lock the lid and allow to cook for 15 minutes on the poultry setting.
- You can crisp them up under the broiler afterwards if you’d like, just keep an eye on them so that they don’t burn.
Leftovers
Fridge
You can store this in the fridge for 2 – 3 days in an airtight container. Just be sure the chicken is cooled before placing it in the fridge.
Freezer
Stored in an airtight container these roasted chicken legs will keep for up to 4 months. Just allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight before warming back up to temperature in the oven.
Craving More Chicken? Try These Delicious Recipes:
- Garlic and Paprika Chicken
- Lemon Chicken Piccata
- Honey Soy Chicken Drumsticks
- Honey Mustard Glazed Chicken
- Roast Chicken
- Buttermilk Fried Chicken
- Roasted Cornish Hens
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Lemon Garlic Roasted Chicken Legs
Ingredients
- 12 chicken legs (skin on)
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter (melted)
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 lemon (sliced)
- fresh thyme (for garnish)
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
- In a large ziploc bag add the chicken legs, melted butter, olive oil, oregano, paprika, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Close the ziploc bag and toss everything together well.
- Place the ziploc bag in the fridge and marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes up to 24 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 450 F degrees.
- Transfer the chicken legs to a large casserole dish and place the lemon slices in between the legs. Bake uncovered for 30 to 35 minutes or until legs are golden brown and cooked through.
- Garnish with fresh thyme and serve warm.
Equipment
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
This was delicious! The sauce had a brightness about it that was a good foil to the richness of the dark meat. My daughter particularly enjoyed this one, saying we ought to make it when guests come. I like that Jo has given lots of notes, including directions for using alternate cuts.
Thank you so much for your kind words! I’m thrilled to hear that you and your family enjoyed the recipe, and it’s especially wonderful to hear that your daughter loved it too! Your description of the sauce is music to my ears. I’m glad you found the notes and alternate directions helpful. It’s always a pleasure to know that my recipes are not just being made, but truly enjoyed. Thanks for your feedback and keep on cooking! 🌟🙌
What is the exact amount of the ingredients I’m supposed to use
It’s all in the recipe card, you can either scroll down to it, or click on the “jump to recipe” button at the top of the post.
Recipe was delicious. Heated the zip lock bag in micro for a few seconds to disengage solid juices from bag after the marinated time. Added diced onion to baking pan and potatoes also to take up all the flavours. It will be a repeat recipe. Love lemon!!
Made this recipe last night. It was delicious! Only thing I did differently was I used fresh oregano because I have it. The smoky from the paprika and the touch of lemon really went well together.
Glad you enjoyed it, Michelle!
Interesting marinade ingredients, but if I make this recipe again I will omit the melted butter. It ended up congealing in the refrigerator and sticking to the sides of the ziploc bag….. along with all the herbs and spices. It would have had more flavor had I used just olive oil. Thanks Jo!
Bloody delicious …served with potato bake …sumac cauli and greens …made gravy out of the juices 💕
The kids loved this! I’ve made it twice now with thighs and they get eaten. I was wondering if grilling it would work…so we are going to grill it tonight!
Your picture above the recipe shows thyme in the pan instead of oregano. Can thyme be used instead of oregano?
Yes, but I would go with fresh thyme, if using.
This is so easy to make and the chicken skin was so crispy, while the meat remained succulent. Definite thumbs up from me. Served with home made chips and spinach with mushrooms.
Thank you! We are so glad you enjoyed these so much!
Loved it 🙂
Is the large casserole dish required or can I just place it in a metal baking pan?
You can use what you have that works!
Can you freeze uncooked chicken in this recipe
Absolutely!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It was easy to follow and very delicious! My husband and daughter gave it rave reviews!! This was my first time to your page , thanks to Google images, but it won’t be my last.
Made this last night. So good and so much flavor! I had legs and thighs so I cooked it 10-15 mins longer and it turned out great.
Thanks Jo! Can’t wait to try more recipes!
I was wondering the same thing, why the large drop in temp for thighs? There’s a pretty big difference between 375 for thighs & 450 for legs or breasts.
Good catch! Fixed 🙂
Hello. I want to use bone in, chicken thighs. I want to be sure of the temperature as well as the time. I read that when using thighs the temperature should only be 375 and increase the time to 35-40 minutes. However in the actual recipe it does not mention the lower the temperature. I read the reviews buy those who used chicken thighs didn’t mention the temperature or time that they followed. Can you tell me?
The actual recipe is made with chicken drumsticks so that’s why it doesn’t include instructions for thighs! We wrote separate instructions for thighs and breasts in the blog post to help those out who have different cuts in their fridge.