Honey thyme chicken thighs with root vegetables
Crisp chicken thighs and sweet roasted carrots and parsnips finished with a honey glaze, a cozy Sunday-style traybake for a weeknight.
- 60 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 4
- About $2.45 a serving
- 650 calories
- Good the next day
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 4 carrots
- 3 parsnips
- 1 red onion, cut into wedges
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 6 bone-in chicken thighs, skin on
- 2 tbsp honey
From your pantry
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1¾ tsp salt, divided
- ½ tsp black pepper
Each serving has about 650 calories, 36 g protein, 34 g carbs and 41 g fat, and costs about $2.45 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No red onions? White onions or yellow onions work.
- No bone-in chicken thighs? Chicken drumsticks work.
- No honey? Maple syrup works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the oven to 425°F.
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
the carrots and parsnips and cut them into 2-inch sticks, the thick ends .
Peel. Peeling means removing the skin with a vegetable peeler or a small knife. It takes off tough or bitter skins, though potato and carrot skins are fine to leave on unless the recipe insists.
How you’ll know: The color underneath is even all over, with no patches of skin left behind.
Halve. Halving means cutting something into two equal pieces. Even halves cook at the same speed, so one doesn’t dry out while the other finishes.
How you’ll know: The two pieces look like mirror images of each other.
Lengthwise. Lengthwise means cutting along the long side, from stem to tip, which gives long pieces. Crosswise is the other way, straight across the middle, which gives short, round ones.
How you’ll know: Lengthwise halves of a zucchini look like two little canoes; crosswise pieces look like coins.
Dolly’s tip: Halving the thick tops makes every piece about the same size, so they’re all tender at the same time.the carrots, parsnips, onion and garlic on a large with the oil, the leaves from 4 thyme sprigs, 1 teaspoon of salt and the pepper.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Sheet pan. A sheet pan is a flat metal baking tray with a low rim all the way around. The rim catches juices, and the wide surface lets food spread out and brown.
How you’ll know: Everything fits in one layer with a little space between the pieces.
the chicken dry, it with the remaining salt, and nestle it skin side up among the vegetables with the last thyme sprigs.
Pat dry. Patting dry means pressing paper towels onto food to soak up the moisture on its surface. Wet food steams instead of browning, so this is how you get a good sear and crisp skin.
How you’ll know: The surface feels tacky, not wet, and the last paper towel comes away barely damp.
Season. Seasoning means adding salt, pepper or spices to bring out a food’s flavor. A little at a few stages tastes better than a lot all at the end.
How you’ll know: When you taste it, it tastes bright and like itself, not flat and not salty.
Food safety: Wash your hands, the board and the knife with hot soapy water after touching raw meat, and don’t rinse raw chicken in the sink.
30 minutes.
Roast. Roasting means cooking in a hot oven, around 400°F to 450°F, usually spread out on a sheet pan. The dry heat browns the outside and brings out sweetness, especially in vegetables.
How you’ll know: The edges are browned and a little crisp, and a fork slides easily into the thickest piece.
Timer: 30 min
the honey over the chicken and vegetables and 10 to 15 minutes more, until glossy and the thickest thigh reads 165°F.
Drizzle. Drizzling means pouring a thin, slow stream over the top of something. A thin stream spreads a little flavor a long way.
How you’ll know: You see thin lines across the food, not a puddle collecting underneath.
Roast. Roasting means cooking in a hot oven, around 400°F to 450°F, usually spread out on a sheet pan. The dry heat browns the outside and brings out sweetness, especially in vegetables.
How you’ll know: The edges are browned and a little crisp, and a fork slides easily into the thickest piece.
Timer: 12 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Honey goes on at the end so it glazes instead of burning.Food safety: Chicken and turkey are done at 165°F in the thickest part. A thermometer is the only sure check. Without one, cut into the thickest piece: it should be white all the way through, with no pink.
Serve straight from the pan, spooning the juices over.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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