In my house chicken is good, but Mediterranean chicken is even better. There’s just something about that particular cuisine that does it for me. This week, I’m leaning toward Greek flavors with these Oven-Roasted Greek Chicken Breasts. Split chicken breasts marinated in classic Greek flavors like lemon, oregano, and garlic. How can you go wrong with that? Well, it happens, but I’m going into this with a lot of optimism! Let’s find out how if this recipe lives up to that optimism.
Chicken breasts marinated in an herb and garlic yogurt sauce then slow roasted to juicy perfection. This incredibly flavorful Oven Roasted Greek Chicken Breasts recipe is so versatile you can make it with any variety of chicken pieces or even a whole bird.
The Ingredients
I always love a flexible recipe because sometimes you just can’t find the exact ingredients. That’s what happened with this Oven-Roasted Greek Chicken Breasts recipe. When I did my weekly grocery order, I bought boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I clearly wasn’t paying attention! But no worries because I needed to make a special trip for the other recipe I’m reviewing this week.
I planned to get the bone-in. skin-on chicken breasts on that trip, but once I got there I found the store didn’t have them. I settled on two halved chickens, thinking I’ll just cut them up for the breasts. That’s exactly what I did for the photo of the ingredients, below. But as I made the marinade and re-read the recipe notes, I realized I could add the leg quarters, and that’s exactly what I did.
And what about the rest of the ingredients? They were already on hand or easy to find, and some were even optional. If you can’t find fresh herbs or don’t want to bother, you can use dried. See? Flexible!
The Process
In addition to being flexible, this recipe is also very easy. I followed the instructions pretty closely, but you know I had to make a change when I saw a chance to make it even easier. The first step says to put all the marinade ingredients into a zippered bag, then add the chicken.
But there was one thing missing: how to mix it up. Tip: Before adding the chicken, push out the extra air, zip the bag, knead the bag until the ingredients are mixed. It only took a few seconds to do, and I liked that the marinade ingredients were now evenly distributed.
After that, I stuck to the recipe by lifting the skin on each piece and spooning a little marinade underneath. Then it was into the refrigerator overnight to let the chicken absorb all that tasty goodness.
The next day, I used a pair of tongs to (neatly) remove the chicken from the bag and arrange it in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet. Then I placed a meat thermometer into the thickest breast piece and popped the pan into a preheated oven. Here’s how long it all took:
- 13 minutes to prep
- 47 minutes to cook to 160°F
- 1 hour total
