You will love this oven baked Lebanese chicken thighs, marinated with a special blend of Middle eastern homemade 7 spice. It is a very simple dish to make, flavorful and simply delicious.
The chicken is marinated in the 7 spice blend and then baked in the oven to perfection. The result is a succulent and flavourful chicken that is melt-in-your-mouth delicious with a crispy skin.
Baked Lebanese Chicken recipe
What makes this dish so special is the combination of spices that are used to marinate the chicken. These spices include cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves.
The combination of these spices creates a unique and authentic Middle eastern flavor that is sure to please any palate. So if you're looking for a delicious and warming Lebanese chicken dish, be sure to give this one a try. You won't be disappointed!
This recipe is full of flavor and very versatile as you can use any cut of chicken for it, however, I prefer to use bone-in chicken thighs as they are more flavorful and moist.
The marinade takes the whole dish to a new level, the chicken is wonderfully fragrant. The lemon juice also helps to tenderize the chicken, making it incredibly juicy and flavourful. The onion adds a lovely sweetness to the dish, while the olive oil ensures that the chicken stays moist during cooking.
The chicken produces its own juice as it cooks and that can be used to make gravy or saved for later use in other dishes.
So what are you waiting for, let's get cooking! This dish is perfect for a quick and easy weeknight meal, or for entertaining guests. It can be served as a main course or as part of a larger spread.
What you will need
These are the ingredients you will need to make this delicious Middle eastern dish
Chicken thighs: I used bone-in chicken thighs, you can substitute them with chicken drumsticks, quarters, wings, or boneless chicken thighs or breasts.
Lemon: You will need additional lemon to make a bed for the chicken when roasting
Lemon juice: for marinating the chicken
Onion: I used yellow onion you can use any onion of choice including shallots
Olive oil: sub with any other flavorless cooking oil
Homemade Lebanese 7 spice: sub with store-bought 7 spice of any baharat of choice. My 7 spice consist of ground cumin, nutmeg, black pepper, allspice, cardamom, clove, and coriander. These are spices you may already have in your cupboard.
Salt and black pepper
How to make Lebanese chicken
Prep the chicken: Cut any visible fats and excess skin off the chicken thighs and transfer them to a Ziploc freezer bag
To the chicken, add Lebanese 7 spice, garlic granules, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper, and mix well until the chicken is coated in the marinade.
Let the chicken marinate: Place the freezer bag with the chicken in it, into a bowl (this will prevent any leaks) and into the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours, or overnight for best results.
When you are ready to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 400f/205c and bring out the chicken from the fridge so it comes to room temperature.
Slice onions and lemons into rings and arrange in a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer.
Bake the chicken for 35-40 minutes or until the internal temperature registers 165F/73C flipping halfway through for a crispier skin.
Remove the chicken from the oven and rest for about 5 minutes for the juice to redistribute before serving. Serve with any other sides of your choice.
Air fryer Lebanese chicken thighs instructions
This recipe can easily be adapted to the air fryer
Preheat the air fryer at 190C/385F for 3-5 minutes
Remove the air fryer basket for the air fryer and arrange the sliced onions and lemon rounds to make a bed for the chicken
arrange the chicken thighs on the lemon-onion bed skin side down and cook for 20-25 minutes flipping halfway through or until the internal temperature register 165F/73C. serve and enjoy
How long to bake bone in chicken thighs
This will be dependent on the size of the chicken and the oven temperature. For instance, if using a smaller chicken thigh or an oven set at 400F/205C, the cooking time will be shorter, say 30-35 minutes. If using a larger chicken thigh or an oven set at 375F/190C, the cooking time will be increased to around 40-45 minutes. Below is an estimated time for different oven temperatures and chicken thigh sizes.
400F/205C: 30-35 minutes
375F/190C: 35-40 minutes
360F/180C: 40-50 minutes
How do you know when the chicken is done
There are different ways to check for the doneness of a chicken. One is to use a cooking or meat thermometer, the internal temperature of a chicken that is thoroughly cooked should register at least 165C/73F. Another way would be to cut into the chicken and check that the juices are no longer pink but rather clear.
Cooked chicken will be opaque white inside (regardless of the marinade) and not pink.
Can I use frozen chicken thighs
Yes, you can use frozen chicken thighs for this recipe. However, it is important to note that the cooking time will be increased by a few minutes. I would recommend taking the chicken out of the freezer and letting it thaw in the fridge overnight before proceeding with the recipe. However, if you froze the chicken already marinated, then you can cook it directly from frozen.
More bone-in chicken thighs recipe you should try next
Air fryer chicken thighs cooked from frozen
Garlic mushroom chicken thighs
Chicken and mushroom with rice
Baked Lebanese Chicken
Ingredients
- 8 Chicken thighs I used bone-in chicken thighs
- 1 Lemon
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 medium onions sliced
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon Lebanese 7 spice
- Salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Prep the chicken: Cut any visible fats and excess skin off the chicken thighs and transfer them to a Ziploc freezer bag
- To the chicken, add Lebanese 7 spice, garlic granules, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper, and mix well until the chicken is coated in the marinade.
- Let the chicken marinate: Place the freezer bag with the chicken in it, into a bowl (this will prevent any leaks) and into the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours, or overnight for best results.
- When you are ready to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 400F/205C and bring out the chicken from the fridge so it comes to room temperature.
- Slice onions and lemons into rings and arrange in a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer.
- Bake the chicken for 35-40 minutes or until the internal temperature registers 165F/73C flipping halfway through for a crispier skin.
- Remove the chicken from the oven and rest for about 5 minutes for the juice to redistribute before serving. Serve with any other sides of your choice.
Air fryer Lebanese chicken instructions
- Preheat the air fryer at 190C/385F for 3-5 minutes
- Remove the air fryer basket for the air fryer and arrange the sliced onions and lemon rounds to make a bed for the chicken
- arrange the chicken thighs on the lemon-onion bed skin side down and cook for 20-25 minutes flipping halfway through or until the internal temperature register 165F/73C. serve and enjoy
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional data: Please note that the nutrition label provided is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients and brands you use. Under no circumstances will thedinnerbite.com be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information.
And there you have it, a simple and easy bone-in chicken thigh recipe that you can make at home in no time. As always, if you made this recipe, I would love to hear from you! Kindly rate the recipe 5 star and leave me feedback in the comment section below. Tag me @thedinnerbite on Instagram and save it away to your Pinterest. Please subscribe to the blog if you haven’t for free new recipes in your inbox. Until next time, happy cooking!!!
Sheila Norton says
This was tasty, although I made some modifications. I had to guess as to how much garlic granules to use since it wasn't listed. I used equal amounts of baharat and garlic granules. I marinaded the chicken overnight in the fridge. After I put the pieces of chicken on top of the sliced onions and lemons, I sprinkled more baharat spice mix on top of the chicken, then drizzled olive oil on each piece of chicken and some salt as well as over the lemon and onions. I ended up flipping the chicken every 15 minutes, 45 minutes bake time total. At the end, the mixture was really wet, so I put it under the broiler to crisp up the chicken and get rid of some of the excess liquid.
Ajoke says
I am glad you enjoyed this recipe, thank you for the amazing tips.