Chicken with lemon and artichokes! If you had three words to describe what you thought of when you read those ingredients, I bet they were “delicious”. And why not? Those are three scrumptious words. They’re what we cook up in our imaginations whenever we have the opportunity to put any of those things in our mouths. Their consistency is smooth, the flavours are bold and hearty, the texture is tender; a perfect match for each other.
Chicken with Artichokes and Lemon
You only need to use one skillet for this simple citrusy chicken thigh and artichoke entrée.
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Recipe Summary
Cook:
20 mins
Total:
25 mins
Prep:
5 mins
Yield:
Serves 6
Ingredients
Ingredient Checklist
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, patted dry
- Salt and pepper
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 cup white wine
- 1 12-oz. jar artichoke hearts, drained, coarsely chopped
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme
Directions
Instructions Checklist
- Step 1Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and dredge in flour. Warm oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 4 minutes total.
- Step 2Add wine and artichokes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until chicken is almost cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes. Scatter lemon slices over chicken, cover and cook until chicken is done, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Transfer chicken and lemon slices to a platter.
- Step 3Stir thyme into sauce and season with additional salt and pepper, if desired. Pour over chicken and serve.
Healthy Lemon Artichoke Chicken
This Lemon Artichoke Chicken Recipe is an easy, healthy one pan dinner the whole family will love! Serve it over pasta or rice!This healthy chicken recipe is paleo, and gluten free. Made with simple ingredients like chicken, artichoke hearts, and lemon juice, it’s quick to make and tastes amazing!
When you’re looking for a weeknight dinner that tastes fancy but actually is secretly simple and quick to make… this lemon artichoke chicken is for you!
lemon artichoke chicken
Lemon Artichoke Chicken
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Lemon, artichoke hearts and chicken get cooked together in a flavorful, dreamy sauce. Served over pasta, cauliflower rice, or risotto..the options are endless and no matter how you dish it out it’s delicious.
I’m a big proponent for ANY easy one pan dinners that taste amazing.. and this is without a doubt one of those types of meals. The chicken with artichoke hearts and lemon just goes perfectly together for a light and fresh meal, that despite not being that pretty, it tastes amazing!
lemon chicken artichoke recipe
I first made this recipe about 8 years ago, after buying *WAY* too many lemons (Lemon Blueberry Bread , Healthy Honey Mint Lemonade , and Healthy Lemon Basil Vinaigrette are just a few of the recipes that were born out of that week… all of which are SO good!)
Even though this recipe was a total ‘clean out the fridge’ meal – it has become one of our favorites. It’s simple but comforting, and SO full of flavor.
chicken artichoke recipe ingredients
To make this recipe you’ll need:
- olive oil
- chicken breasts
- salt, pepper
- canned artichoke hearts (halved)
- lemon juice/zest (we love this citrus juicer)
- chicken broth
- thyme and white wine
The wine is optional but recommended. I’ve also included substitutions for you below!
how to make lemon artichoke chicken
Making this Healthy Chicken Artichoke dinner is simple.
- Sear your chicken breasts until they’re browned on each side. while the chicken is cooking, mix together your sauce.
- Once the chicken is cooked add the sauce and let it simmer.
- Add your artichoke hearts, simmer for a few more minutes – and you’ll be ready to eat!
The dish takes about 30 minutes start to finish.
substitutions for lemon chicken with artichokes
To make paleo/ whole30: If you’re doing a Whole 30 or are strict paleo you could omit the wine from this sauce and it will still taste amazing!
Artichoke Chicken Thighs: You can use chicken tenders or boneless/bone in chicken thighs in this recipe
Oil: You can use avocado oil, vegetable oil, or even melted butter in place of olive oil
Thyme: You can substitute thyme with oregano or dried basil. Thyme is measured the same if it is fresh or dried.
Lemon Juice: We do not recommend using bottled lemon juice. It can be overly acidic. Instead, opt for fresh!
Wine: If you don’t want to use the wine, skip it. You can also use red wine. Pinot grigio or chardonnay works best.
Artichokes: This recipe does not work with raw, whole artichokes. Only canned artichoke hearts. If you’d like too learn how to cook artichokes
Creamy: I have not tried making a creamy artichoke chicken but I would think you could add some half and half or heavy cream to the sauce and it would be tasty!
Artichoke chicken pasta: I love serving this dish over fettuccine or with rigatoni – it’s delicious with pasta!
I love this recipe because it tastes fancy (almost restaurant quality) but it’s actually really easy to make, and made with healthy ingredients!
I love the simple combo of the chicken with lemon and artichoke hearts, but if you wanted to jazz this up even more you totally could add kalamata olives or some sautéed cherry tomatoes (something similar to this Healthy One Pam Mediterranean Chicken Orzo or Dairy Free Creamy Tuscan Chicken dish).
I personally like it with just the artichoke hearts, but it’s also a dish that you can play around with towards your own tastes!
how to store lemon artichoke chicken
Storing: This chicken will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Freezing: We don’t recommend freezing this recipe.
Reheating: You can reheat this recipe in the microwave, toaster oven or on the stove.
chicken and artichoke faq
Are artichokes in a can already cooked?
Yes! Artichokes in a can are already cooked. They’re ready to eat as is and don’t need to be cooked!
Are artichoke hearts the same as artichokes?
No, artichoke hearts are not the same as artichokes. Artichoke hearts are the center of the artichoke and are very soft. Artichokes are the whole artichoke. They have leaves and the artichoke heart are in the center.
What foods pair well with artichokes?
Artichokes pair well with many dishes. They don’t have a ton of flavor so they’re a blank canvas and can go in pretty much anything! Lemon goes very well with artichokes.
Lemon Chicken Thighs with Artichokes
This lemon chicken recipe makes juicy, bone-in chicken thighs with the Mediterranean flavors of white wine and artichokes for an easy chicken dinner ready in 30 minutes.
30-Minute Lemon Chicken Thighs with Artichokes
Easy chicken dinners are always at the top of FoodieCrush readers most requested recipe list. Healthy, flavorful, and fast to make slides right along into that list too.
Guess what friends? I’m right there with you. And if a chicken dinner doesn’t make the flavor grade, what’s even the point?
I’m happy to report, this lemony chicken thighs with artichokes recipe ticks all those fill-in-the-blank boxes and then some.
While this skillet lemon chicken recipes is an easy one to make, there are definitely a couple of tips to follow for success every time.
Let’s skillet to it.
How to Cook Chicken Thighs
This chicken dinner is a cinch to prep and make.
The flavor is in the skin and bone. This dish calls for bone-in chicken thighs with the skin still on, lending flavor and moisture to the chicken as it cooks. If you’re not a fan of the crisped skin, you can always remove it before eating, or follow the directions for prepping boneless, skinless chicken breasts like I do in my Easy Chicken Piccata.
Season simply. There’s no need for a marinade or an egg/milk/flour dredge to make things messy.
All we need is salt and pepper and a little oil. So much of the flavor will come from the chicken itself.
It’s really that simple, quick and easy.
Start the chicken thighs in a cold skillet. This is the same technique used with frying bacon.
Why cook chicken thighs in a cold pan?
Starting the chicken thighs skin side down in a cold skillet reduces the chance of the chicken skin seizing and shrinking like it would when plopped into a pre-heated pan or oil.
Start on the stove finish in the oven. Searing the chicken on the stove not only produces a nicely bronzed skin before baking in the oven, but it also creates all those flavor bits left in the pan for the simple sauce. That’s what’s called the frond.
I finish the chicken thighs in the oven on a wire rack over a baking sheet so the air circulates and cooks all around the thighs. This step leaves me time and space to work on the sauce.
Flavor Builder: The Lemon Artichoke Sauce
The simple Mediterranean flavors of lemon and artichoke really pump up this chicken skillet meal. A dash of white wine doesn’t hurt either.
- I LOVE meyer lemons for their slight sweetness and extreme juiciness, so when they’re in season they’re my choice. Otherwise a regular juicy lemon will do.
- Use canned and quartered artichoke hearts in water instead of marinated artichokes—there’s no need for the extra oils or spices.
- When choosing the white wine for this recipe, choose a dry white you’d be willing to drink. I keep boxes of white and red wine in my pantry for cooking dishes that call for a cup here and there so a whole bottle doesn’t get wasted.
- A dab of butter gives the sauce body and mellows the wine and lemon flavors together.
- If you wish for a creamy sauce, add 2 tablespoons of cream or half and half then simmer slowly to thicken.
Why Use a Cast Iron Skillet
This Mediterranean chicken dinner recipe proves why a cast iron skillet can be your kitchen’s secret weapon.
In this recipe this 12-inch cast iron skillet does double duty. I prefer cast iron for recipes like this because they conduct heat so well, so the chicken browns more evenly and is less resistant to scorching the pan and burning all the little flavor bits.
The skillet skillfully sears the chicken thighs before transitioning to become a winey, lemony sauce-making machine.
The result is chicken with crispy bronzed skin nestled in a light but flavor-filled sauce that’s ready to spoon over rice or pasta and straight into the old pie hole.
