This Crispy Rhubarb Lemon Chicken Bake makes an easy one pan meal! A tangy Rhubarb marinade caramelizes the chicken while baking. The lemon slices on top give it extra sweetness. A chicken bake that’s paleo friendly and super flavorful. Don’t forget the crispy rhubarb shavings on top! Crucial for texture and flavor.
I almost missed out. Missed out on Rhubarb’s PEAK season. That fruit..er… veggie.. gets all the rage when it’s in season. Rhubarb is a vegetable that is often categorized as a fruit. If I were a vegetable, I’d so want to be rhubarb. It’s trendy, only works 3 months out of the year, pretty in pink, sweet and savory, healthy, and sassy. Okay I added the sassy part, but don’t you think it’s true? I can hear it saying “Hey, I’m a pink plant stalk. I DO WONDERS with flavors. Am I sweet or sour or both? Oh I am ALL all that and a bag of chips!” Ya Rhubarb, you are that rad.
Despite my weirdly prophetic obsession with this produce, I do have a purpose to this recipe. This is a scrappy chef Cotter recipe, a resourceful yet darlingly trendy. Maybe? Yes, let’s go with it.
Crispy Rhubarb Lemon Chicken Bake. It’s paleo, naturally. But also, this chicken recipe involves using ALL parts of the rhubarb, except the leaves, don’t eat the leaves, warning. But the stalk, oh yes, you don’t want to miss all that nourishment coming from that pink stem. It’s loaded with minerals (such as calcium, potassium, manganese, and magnesium) , fiber, protein, vitamin C, vitamin K, B vitamins, and more. Like whoa! It’s also a great aid for digestion. Hmmm. maybe that’s why they put rhubarb in a strawberry pie. You’re gonna need that extra digestion boost post pie consumption. But I digress. Today’s lemon chicken bake recipe is all about tangy, sweet, and savory. This chicken bake is made with a maple rhubarb marinade, lemon, and topped with crispy rhubarb shavings (peeled and baked veggie skins make awesome snacks or toppings).
It’s one SUPER nourishing protein packed meal ya’ll!
You’re probably thinking… um… Lindsay, a rhubarb marinade? You crazy Cotter you! Why yes, I am crazy. But it works. Since rhubarb has a sour acidic taste, it pairs well with sweet tangy food. To make the rhubarb marinade all you do is shave the stalk (keep the shavings) with maple syrup, salt/pepper, lemon, and creamy balsamic dressing. Place that marinade in a pan with your chicken thighs (skinless). You then quickly bring to a boil in the pan with chicken until the marinade is a little caramelized, coating the chicken.
This Lemon Chicken Bake makes an easy one pan meal! A tangy rhubarb marinade caramelizes the chicken. Lemon and crispy Rhubarb shavings to top! Gluten free and Paleo friendly.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Chicken Marinade:
1/4 cup creamy balsamic dressing or vinaigrette
1/4 cup tangy BBQ sauce (gluten free)
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp each salt and black pepper
2 –3 rhubarb stalks (shaved/peeled. Keep the shavings for topping)
1/4 cup maple syrup
Lemon (1 tbsp juice)
For the Lemon Chicken bake and Crispy Rhubarb:
1.5 lbs skinless boneless chicken things (about 5 small thighs)
1 lemon
olive oil for pan and to toss shavings in
salt/pepper
Shavings from rhubarb stalks
optional 1/4 tsp lemon garlic seasoning or lemon pepper
1 cup pearled onions
tarragon leaves or thyme to garnish
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375F.
Clean rhubarb stalks and trim ends.
With a vegetable peeler, gently peel the red skin of the rhubarb off in order to create shavings. See pictures in blog post. Set shavings aside.
Place 2-3 small stalks of the rhubarb in a blender along with the BBQ sauce, balsamic dressing , maple syrup, and seasoning. Blend until creamy.
Clean and trim your chicken thighs. Set aside.
Add 1 tbsp olive oil to a oven safe skillet or cast iron skillet . You can use a dutch oven too.
Add your marinade and your chicken thighs to the pan. Squeeze fresh lemon juice on top. Bring the marinade to a to a quick bubble/boil. You will see the edges start to caramelize on the pan. Then reduce heat or turn off completely.
Flip the chicken thighs over and place lemon slices on top of each.
Add 1 cup of peeled pearled onions to the pan. Drizzle a little olive oil on top of them. Salt/pepper to taste.
Transfer to oven at 375F for about 20-25 minutes.
While the chicken is baking for the first 10 minutes, season your rhubarb shavings. Just toss with a bit of oil, salt, pepper, and optional lemon pepper or lemon garlic.
Place on greased baking sheet. Transfer to the oven (with the chicken) for the remaining 15 minutes of the chicken bake time. Toss the shavings half way to make sure they are getting crispy. thinner shavings will cook faster
Once chicken and shavings are cooked and crispy, remove from oven.
Serve chicken thighs in pan or to each plate. Add more marinade from the pan on top of each chicken. Then top the each chicken thigh with crispy rhubarb shavings and serve with pearl onions.
Salt/pepper to taste.
Sprinkle with fresh thyme to garnish (or any other herb of choice)
Notes
You can add in any other veggies while the chicken is baking, too. Just place on another pan with olive oil. I added broccolini.
The thicker rhubarb shavings will take longer to get crispy. So check after 10 minutes. If your shavings are thin, they will get crispy in less than 15 minutes in oven.
NUTRITION shown is for one chicken thigh with marinade sauce, onion, and crispy rhubarb
Prep Time:15 minutes
Cook Time:25 minutes
Category:main, dinner
Method:oven
Cuisine:American
Nutrition
Serving Size:1 thigh
Calories:262
Sugar:11.4g
Sodium:453mg
Fat:11.2g
Saturated Fat:2.8g
Carbohydrates:17.5g
Fiber:0.7g
Protein:23.4g
Cholesterol:102mg
Keywords: chicken bake, paleo chicken dinner, lemon chicken, one pan meals
Next add your lemon slices to your chicken and pop it in oven for just 20 minutes. BUT WAIT!!!! Here’s the EPIC part ya’ll. Take those shavings, toss in oil, pepper, garlic, salt, and place on baking sheet in oven (with the chicken) and bake the last 10-15 minutes with the chicken. They should get crispy! I added veggies in the oven while it was all cooking too. Saving time. Per usual. Anyway, the crispy rhubarb shavings totally make the dish. You top your lemon chicken bake with them and dig it. Like whoa.. so so fun and tasty!
You see, rhubarb really is a badass. It makes a chicken bake look like a rockstar. In my honest opinion.
P.S if you are watching your diet for oxalate containing foods, then cooking rhubarb may reduce its oxalate content. Sorry, nerdy nutrition note. Had to.
p.p.s why is so hard to spell Rhubarb? That and frittata. Gah.. I always mess up. Thank goodness for spell check!
Favorite rhubarb recipe? Ever baked it with chicken? Do share!
Hi, y'all, I’m Lindsay Cotter, a Nutrition Specialist with a focus on Gluten Free eating. I love creating delicious nourishing food that anyone can enjoy.
