Baked Paprika Chicken With Garlic And Lemon

I LOVE any supper where I can just mix a few things in a bowl, toss it onto a baking sheet, throw it in the oven and have dinner ready in an hour!   Super easy on a week day.  Here is one of such dinners we frequently make in our home.  My husband loves it and its a great go-to, even when we are relaxing at home with a day off.   Pretty simple way to feed a crowd too.   I came up with this one by accident, when I was in a big hurry.  My husband called me, saying he would be home in about an hour and he was STARVING.   He asked if I could make something good, and looots of it, lol.   I had been so tied up in what I was doing, I didn't think of anything for dinner.   Well, I just mixed up everything I thought would taste good and stuck it in the oven really quick, so I could finish the projects I was working on.   It came out pretty good, so I figured I should share it!

 Baked Paprika Chicken With Garlic And Lemon

Ingredients:

10 to 12 pieces of bone-in chicken, thawed, skin removed

1 medium onion, diced

1 tsp salt

½ tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp ground paprika

½ tsp ground dried rosemary

4 to 6 cloves garlic, minced (or 1 tablespoon pre-minced garlic from a jar/tube)

Juice of 1 lemon (or 1 to 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, depending how “lemony” you like it)

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 large potatoes, quartered (or 6 small, halved)

Directions:

1.        Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

2.       With a sharp knife, cut 2 or 3 random slits in the meat of each piece of chicken, making sure to cut to the bone, to help the flavor penetrate the meat. 

3.       In a large bowl, place all the chicken,  onion, salt, pepper, paprika, rosemary, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.  Mix everything together very well, to combine thoroughly.  Its best to use your hands.  Be sure garlic and spices are coating every piece of meat.

4.       Transfer chicken/onion/spice picture into a large baking dish, at least 2 inches deep.   Spread the chicken out evenly.  

5.       Place the cut up potatoes in and around the chicken.   Try to wedge them between the chicken pieces, so they absorb some flavor as they cook.   The chicken will create lots of its own juices to help this. 

6.       Bake for 1 to 1 ½ hours (depending if you used more or less chicken).  Remove from oven.  Let stand 10 minutes.   Serve, drizzling some chicken juices over the meat and potatoes.  

TIP:   You can also make mashed potatoes instead of baking them and use the juices from the baking dish to make gravy.