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Bon Appétit

Za’atar Chicken with Garlicky Yogurt

4.2

(26)

This image may contain Food Meal Dish and Plant
Photo by Stephen Kent Johnson, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski

To make the most of your chicken, you have to make the most of your pan drippings. Here the garlic- and lemon-infused chicken fat is mixed with a citrusy za’atar and spooned over the fall-apart meat. Make sure the garlic halves are turned cut side down and in contact with the pan for gloriously caramelized cloves.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    4 servings

Ingredients

4

chicken legs (thigh and drumstick; about 2½ lb. total)

2

medium red onions, cut into 1"-thick wedges

2

heads of garlic, halved crosswise, plus 2 cloves

1

lemon, quartered, seeds removed

Kosher salt

⅓

cup extra-virgin olive oil

1½

cups plain whole-milk Greek yogurt

3

Tbsp. za’atar

1

tsp. ground coriander

1

tsp. finely grated lemon zest

1

tsp. finely grated lime zest

Ingredient Info

Za’atar, a blend of sumac, dried herbs, and sesame seeds, can be found at Middle Eastern markets, specialty foods stores, and online.

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Preheat oven to 325°. Pat chicken legs dry with paper towels. Arrange chicken, onions, halved garlic heads, and lemon in a 13x9" baking dish; season liberally with salt (remember to season both sides of chicken). Pour in oil and toss everything to coat. Turn garlic cut side down and nestle it in so it is in contact with the baking dish. Roast, rotating pan halfway through, until meat is almost falling off the bone, 50–60 minutes.

    Step 2

    Meanwhile, finely grate 1 garlic clove into a small bowl. Add yogurt, a big pinch of salt, and 1 Tbsp. water and mix well. Set aside yogurt sauce.

    Step 3

    Remove baking dish from oven and transfer onions, garlic, and lemon to a plate. Increase oven temperature to 425° and continue to roast chicken until skin is golden brown, 10–15 minutes more. Transfer chicken to a cutting board and let rest 10 minutes. Set aside pan with juices.

    Step 4

    Finely grate remaining garlic clove into another small bowl. Add za’atar, coriander, lemon zest, and lime zest. Pour reserved juices in pan into za’atar mixture until you’ve reached an oily consistency (about ⅓ cup). Mix in a pinch of salt.

    Step 5

    Spread reserved yogurt sauce over a platter and arrange chicken legs on top. Scatter onions, garlic, and lemon around; drizzle with za’atar oil.

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Reviews (26)

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  • The flavor combo was delicious, but I changed the cooking times and temp drastically. I had just bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs and used those. 5 of them was the 2.5# the recipe called for. I cranked the heat to 415 degrees and cooked skin side down for 20 mins. Then flipped the thighs to brown for a remaining 20 minutes. In that time the skin crisped perfectly, the onions and garlic were well cooked and provide plenty of drippings to prepare the Za'atar oil. Next time I will use 1/2 the yogurt for the sauce and half the spices for the oil, just because there was a lot left after the chicken was gone. Overall a great recipe, just the temps seemed off to me. Will definitely make again.

    • Gregg C.

    • San Francisco, CA

    • 8/11/2021

  • This is the BEST RECIPE EVER! I have made this about four times now and every single time to rave reviews from friends. I find myself craving it regularly. Absolutely perfect and couldn’t be more delicious.

    • Ailsa

    • London

    • 5/9/2021

  • I made this because I had way too much chicken thighs in my fridge and was looking for something exciting to do with it. I had pretty much everything in my fridge/ pantry except lime so I skipped it and doubled up on the lemon zest. Man, this was deeeelish! I prepped a side of olive oil fried sourdough bread and my husband was dipping the bread in the leftover yogurt sauce and zaatar oil because it was all so delicious. The sauces are so good I'm thinking I can spread it all over some roasted potatoes too. Chicken came out juicy and cooked perfectly!

    • Hannah P

    • LA, CA

    • 2/2/2021

  • bangin' flavors, but I w/held 5 stars because: * I would've liked to have more of the spices flavor the chicken meat more than just the salt modifications I'd suggest making (some of which have already been commended in other reviews) : * use Greek yogurt, non-Greek whole milk yogurt was too runny for my taste when serving * cook the onions, garlic and chicken at a higher temperature than 325 (more like 375) for slightly less time allowing the onions to cook more thoroughly and soften a bit more * add lemon juice and a bit of zest to the yogurt mix (for a little bit of acid + tiny tiny bit of brightness) and fresh cracked black pepper (to taste)

    • godsylla

    • Los Angeles, CA

    • 12/26/2020

  • Delicious! Served with rice and warmed pita bread. Sooo good.

    • Loridp

    • Vancouver BC

    • 11/23/2020

  • Savory and homey--the lemon juice and zest give it a very nice aromatic note and echo the sumac in the za'atar. I salted my chicken the night before and left it to air-dry in the fridge overnight, then baked it in the top of the oven to help the skin brown and crisp. I served it with basmati, but couscous or flatbread would have been a good match too.

    • Anonymous

    • CT

    • 8/29/2020

  • I loved this recipe! To ensure the skin on the thighs got crispy, I seared just the skin-side for 3-4 minutes on a cast iron before putting the chicken in the pan with the rest of the ingredients and into the oven, and skipped the extra step of turning up the heat and continuing to oven roast. They came out perfect!

    • Anonymous

    • Brooklyn, NY

    • 5/13/2020