Tin Chicken with Asparagus and Potatoes to Celebrate Spring! Everything cooks together until soft. Really easy and just one pan to clean!
If you’re grateful for spring and are dying to put fresh spring vegetables on your table, pull out your favorite sheet pan and prepare this easy dinner.
Start with new potatoes, super-sweet onions, sliced lemons, and aromatic sprigs of lemon thyme. Fry them all together on your sheet pan until tender, then add the chicken pieces. Continue frying and wait until almost done before spreading the asparagus in the pan.
My sheet pan becomes as much a workout as my favorite chef’s knife in my kitchen. In fact, most of the time I pull out my sheet pan even before I pull out my knife because I know it will come in handy someeven if only as a tray to bring dinner to the table!
The sheet pan I use the most is about the same size as a jelly roll pan — 11 by 17 inches — and it has stiff rolled edges. I think the aluminum pans are better than the nonstick ones because food browns more on aluminum.
Sheet pan chicken with asparagus and potatoes
- If you can’t find the chicken pieces called for in this recipe, you can buy a whole chicken and cut it up yourself (or ask a butcher to do it for you).
If you don’t have fresh herbs, you can substitute dried thyme. Use 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme with the veggies and sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon over the chicken.
ingredients
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16 small new potatoes (red or golden), halved
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3 small sweet onions (like Vidalia or Walla Walla), quartered through the roots; or 1 large super sweet onion, thinly sliced
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1 Middle lemonvery thinly sliced
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Big handful fresh lemon thyme or other fresh herbs (oregano, marjoram or thyme)
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5 tablespoon olive oil
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1 teaspoon Saltor more to taste
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1/2 teaspoon black pepperor more to taste
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2 big Bone-in chicken breast halves (1 1/2 pounds, 680g)
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2 all chicken legs, thighs and drumsticks attached; or 2 legs and 2 drumsticks (1/2 lb, 227 g)
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1 bunch (1 lb) fresh asparagus
Special equipment:
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sheet panat least 11 x 17 inches or larger
method
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Prepare the vegetables for roasting:
Preheat the oven to 375F. In a bowl, mix together the new potatoes, onions, lemon, a few sprigs of herbs, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and half the salt and pepper. Toss well and spread on a rimmed baking sheet.
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Fry the vegetables for 40 minutes:
or until the potatoes are nearly tender when pierced with a skewer.
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Prepare the chicken:
While the vegetables are roasting, sprinkle the chicken with 2 tablespoons of the remaining olive oil and the remaining salt and pepper. Remove the leaves from several sources of thyme and sprinkle over the chicken.
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Add the chicken to the vegetables and fry:
Push the vegetables aside in the pan to make room for the chicken. Place the chicken skin-side up in the pan so it doesn’t rest on top of the vegetables. Continue cooking for 30 minutes.
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Prepare asparagus:
Crack the spears near the base where they will break without much effort. Cut the poles in half for shorter lengths. In a bowl, toss the asparagus with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil.
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Add asparagus and fry:
After the chicken has been grilling for 30 minutes, pull out the tray and spread the asparagus around the chicken.
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Roast for another 10 to 20 minutes:
or until all the chicken pieces read at least 165°F at the thickest part of the meat on an instant-read thermometer (the thighs will cook a little faster than the breasts; you can pull them off the sheet pan when they’ve reached temperature and hold on to one as you like plate covered with foil).
What is the temperature of cooked chicken?CONTINUE READING:
All vegetables should also be cooked through. (Total cooking time is approximately 1 1/2 hours.)
If your chicken isn’t brown enough, place the pan under the grill for 2 minutes, watching carefully to avoid burning.
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How to serve the chicken:
Discard the cooked thyme sprigs. Use kitchen scissors to separate the legs to form 2 drumsticks and 2 thighs. Cut the breasts in half horizontally.
Arrange the chicken and vegetables on a platter. Remove the thyme from the remaining fresh sprigs and sprinkle over the chicken.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 1036 | calories |
| 27g | Fat |
| 157g | carbohydrates |
| 54g | protein |
