Mediterranean Chicken Thighs

Mediterranean chicken thighs are a simple but flavorful dish that brings the tastes and scents of the Mediterranean to your table. Here’s the recipe to prepare them:

Ingredients

• 4 chicken thighs
• 1 lemon (juice and grated zest)
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 100 ml of extra virgin olive oil
• 200 g of cherry tomatoes
• 100 g of pitted black olives
• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 sprig of fresh thyme
• Salt to taste
• Ground black pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C.
2. Take the chicken thighs and pat them dry with kitchen paper.
3. In a large bowl, mix the lemon juice and zest, crushed garlic cloves, salt, and ground black pepper to your taste.
4. Dip the chicken thighs in the marinade and make sure they are well covered. Let them rest for at least 30 minutes, better if for a few hours in the refrigerator.
5. Spread the extra virgin olive oil in a baking dish and arrange the marinated chicken thighs, cherry tomatoes cut in half, olives, rosemary, and thyme.
6. Bake and cook for about 40-45 minutes or until the chicken is well browned and cooked internally. For more even cooking, turn the chicken thighs halfway through.
7. Check the internal temperature of the chicken thighs with a kitchen thermometer; the safe temperature for chicken consumption is 74 °C.

Serve hot, perhaps accompanied by a side of baked potatoes or grilled vegetables.

Trivia

This recipe is very versatile and can be enriched by adding other ingredients you love and find common in the Mediterranean basin, such as capers, chilli peppers or aromatic herbs to your taste. The Mediterranean diet is known for its health benefits, so this dish can be a delicious way to incorporate some of these healthy ingredients into your diet.