California Lemon Herb Roast Chicken
California Wine Country tradition reading a quarter chicken roasted under a lemon, garlic, thyme, and rosemary herb oil at high heat for crackling skin, plated over a chunky panzanella of sourdough, tomato, basil, and capers for the celebratory main event dinner.
American
Categories
Nutrition per Serving
Ingredients
For 2 servings
Instructions
Prep
Pat chicken quarters dry. Tear sourdough into 3cm chunks. Halve tomatoes and quarter each half. Thinly slice red onion. Zest both lemons then halve them. Mince 8 garlic cloves, slice the remaining 4. Heat oven to 450F (230C).
Build 1
Whisk 6 tbsp olive oil, minced garlic, rosemary, thyme, lemon zest, 2 tsp sea salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Rub generously under and over chicken skin and meat.
Roast
Arrange chicken quarters skin-side up on wire racks over two sheet pans. Roast at 450F for 35–40 minutes until skin turns deep mahogany and thermometer reads 160F at thickest thigh. While chicken roasts, toss sourdough with sliced garlic, 2 tbsp olive oil, and 0.5 tsp salt on separate pans.
Bake
Drop oven to 425F. Bake sourdough 8–10 minutes until crisp outside with golden edges.
Build 2
Whisk lemon juice, red wine vinegar, Dijon, and remaining 2 tbsp olive oil. Toss with sourdough, tomatoes, red onion, and capers. Fold in half the basil leaves.
Rest and plate
Rest chicken 10 minutes tented with foil until internal temp reaches 165F. Pour resting juices into panzanella and toss. Separate quarters into thighs and drumsticks. Divide panzanella between two plates, lay chicken over, scatter remaining basil, rest lemon halves on rim.
Recipes use AI and Edamam. Always check for allergens before cooking. Spotted something wrong—email us at hello@grubplanit.com.