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Greek Chicken and Potato Traybake

Greek Chicken and Potato Traybake

  • Makes
    4 servings
  • Cook Time
    45 minutes
  • Rating

The Greek dish known as kotopoulo skorthato typically is called “Greek garlic-lemon chicken” in English, but the ensemble also includes potatoes, making it a delicious complete meal. For our take on the classic, we use our trusty traybake technique—we roast the ingredients on a rimmed baking sheet in a hot oven to ensure the quickest cooking possible and to develop nice caramelization. At the end, we also toss in black olives, dill and capers to ratchet up the flavors. If using chicken breasts, try to purchase pieces that are close in size so they cook at the same rate.

Tip

Don't use extra-large bone-in chicken breasts if you can help it; 12-ounce pieces work best. If unavoidable, keep in mind that bone-in breasts weighing about 1 pound each require 40 to 50 minutes of roasting.

Ingredients
  • 1

    teaspoon dried oregano

  • ¼-½

    teaspoon red pepper flakes

  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper

  • 4

    12-ounce bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts or 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, trimmed and patted dry

  • 2

    tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • 1½

    pounds medium Yukon Gold potatoes, not peeled, cut into 1-inch-thick wedges

  • 2

    lemons, halved crosswise

  • 8

    medium garlic cloves, peeled

  • ½

    cup pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped

  • 2

    tablespoons drained capers

  • 3

    tablespoons roughly chopped fresh dill, divided

Step 1

Heat the oven to 475°F with a rack in the middle position. In a large bowl, stir together the oregano, pepper flakes, 1½ teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper.

Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of the mix onto all sides of the chicken. To the remaining seasoning mix in the bowl, add the oil, potatoes, lemon halves and garlic, then toss to coat.

Step 2

Place the garlic in the center of a rimmed baking sheet, then arrange the chicken, skin up, around the garlic; this placement helps prevent the garlic from scorching during roasting. Arrange the lemons, cut sides up, and the potatoes in an even layer around the chicken.

Roast until the thickest part of the breasts (if using) reaches 160°F and the thickest part of the largest thigh (if using) reaches 175°F, about 30 minutes.

Step 3

Using tongs, transfer the chicken and lemon halves to a serving platter. Push the potatoes to the edge of the baking sheet, leaving the garlic in the center. Using a fork, mash the garlic to a rough paste.

Add the olives, capers and 2 tablespoons of the dill to the baking sheet, then, using a wide metal spatula, stir and toss the ingredients, scraping up any browned bits.

Step 4

Transfer the potato mixture to the platter, placing it around the chicken. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon dill.

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