This Super-Flavorful One-Pan Meal Is The Perfect Healthy Weeknight Dinner
Easy sheet pan meals are the perfect foundation for a weeknight dinner, especially when they include veggies and protein. This super-flavorful meal, from Everyday Cook by Donal Skehan, features chicken thighs spruced up with a simple yogurt marinade.
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If you didn't know, yogurt is a great marinade base because it can help to gently tenderize the meat, which makes it a particularly good fit for a chicken dish. This particular marinade also includes some of our favorite functional spices: turmeric, especially.
Skehan also ensures that this recipe can be made to be seasonal: "Swap the butternut squash with sweet potato or eggplant if you like," he writes. While the veggies on the pan mean this can be served as a stand-alone, we might pair it with a favorite leafy green or a small portion of grains to round out the plate.
Spiced Yogurt Roasted Chicken Thighs With Roasted Squash
Serves 4
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Ingredients
- 7 ounces (200 grams) Greek yogurt
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 3 cardamom pods, crushed
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- Zest of 1 lemon, plus a squeeze of juice
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 8 free-range chicken thighs (bone in and skin on)
- 2¼ pounds butternut squash, deseeded and cut into wedges
- 2 red onions, cut into wedges
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 14-ounce (400-gram) can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- Handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- In a bowl mix the yogurt with the garlic, spices, lemon zest and juice, honey, and plenty of salt and pepper.
- Add the chicken and marinate for 30 minutes, if you have time.
- Toss the squash and the onions with the oil and tip into a roasting tray. Season them well with salt and pepper, then add the chicken pieces and nestle them into the tray.
- Roast for 30 to 35 minutes, turning the squash and the onions halfway through, then add the chickpeas and return to the oven for 10 minutes more.
- Scatter with cilantro and serve.
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Excerpted with permission from Everyday Cook: Vibrant Recipes, Simple Methods, Delicious Dishes by Donal Skehan.
Eliza Sullivan is an SEO Editor at mindbodygreen, where she writes about food, recipes, and nutrition—among other things. She received a B.S. in journalism and B.A. in english literature with honors from Boston University, and she has previously written for Boston Magazine, TheTaste.ie, and SUITCASE magazine.