Skillet Mediterranean Chicken Bake is a delicious one-pot meal that takes just over 30 minutes to prepare. This one-pan wonder includes juicy pan-seared chicken and pasta cooked in white wine and chicken stock.
Tangy preserved lemon and briny green olives add the finishing touch and are what gives this dish its Mediterranean vibe.
This flavorful chicken skillet dinner is family-friendly, and it’s not only a great weeknight dinner, but it’s also an excellent company-worthy dinner party entrée. Skillet Mediterranean Chicken Bake is the perfect answer to “what’s for dinner tonight”?
This dish starts in a skillet on top of the stove, but you finish everything off in the oven. So, you have a few extra minutes to put your feet up and relax while the oven does all of the work. And, hey, only one skillet to wash! That would be reason enough to make this for dinner even if it weren’t so good!
More Easy Chicken Thigh recipes:
If you like dark meat as I do, I know you will also love these easy chicken thigh recipes. A bonus: most recipes are also one-pan skillet meals.
Easy Honey Baked Bone-In Chicken Thighs
Easy Southern Crispy Oven-Fried Chicken
Bacon and Mushroom Skillet Chicken
Broiled Chili Rubbed Chicken Thighs
Healthy Chicken Cauliflower Skillet
If you want even more recipes for chicken, check out all of my chicken recipes here.
You also won’t believe how easy it is to make your own preserved lemons. Plus a jar of preserved lemons makes a beautiful hostess gift for the foodies in your life. Check out my easy recipe here: How to make Preserved Lemons.
And, finally, if you like olives as much as we do, be sure to check out my new recipe for Bruschetta with Citrus Roasted Olives and Burrata.
Mediterranean Chicken Bake Ingredients:
The ingredients are: olive oil, chicken, preserved lemons (you can substitute fresh lemons), butter, garlic, pasta, white wine, chicken stock, kosher salt, ground black pepper, pitted green olives and parsley for garnish.
How to make Mediterranean Chicken Bake:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper.
Heat the olive oil in a large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken and brown on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside.
To the same skillet, add the preserved lemon slices and green olives. Cook the olives and lemon for about 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Turn the heat down to medium. Add the butter, garlic, and pasta to the skillet and toast the pasta. This should take about 2-3 minutes. Don’t let the garlic burn.
Add the wine to the pan, then add the chicken broth and stir well to combine. Add the chicken, lemon, and olives back to the pan and increase the heat to high. When the liquid starts to boil, transfer the pan to the oven and cook uncovered for 20 minutes or until the chicken and pasta are done.
Remove the skillet from the oven. Optional: top the dish with fresh parsley and serve immediately.
Sharon’s Expert Tips:
I used chicken thighs in the video to make this dish, and you can see I also used different chicken pieces in the process photos. You can use any chicken pieces or combination of chicken pieces you like. Be sure to use bone-in, skin-on chicken.
If you use chicken breasts and they are large, cut them in half so they will cook in the same amount of time as the pasta.
If you are using preserved lemons, scrape the lemon flesh off of the peel and rinse the peel before slicing.
You can order preserved lemons online, or most specialty food stores also stock them. However, they can be expensive. It’s easy to make your own, and they last forever in your refrigerator. Check out this easy recipe: How to Make Preserved Lemons.
If you don’t have preserved lemon, no worries. Fresh lemon is a great substitute. Just peel a lemon using a vegetable peeler and cut the peel into thin strips. Follow the directions for the preserved lemon.
You may notice I used orzo in the process photos shown in this post and pastina pasta in the how-to video. You can use any small pasta you have on hand, including orzo, pastina or Israeli couscous which is also a pasta in this recipe.
Be sure to use a large oven-proof skillet. I used a non-stick skillet, but a cast-iron skillet works great too!
★ If you make this recipe, please give it a star rating below and leave a comment.
Skillet Mediterranean Chicken Bake
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 lbs chicken pieces skin-on, bone-in, can use thighs, drumsticks, or breasts
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 preserved lemon rinsed and sliced into thin strips
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 cup green olives pitted
- 1 cup pasta small, like orzo or pastina
- 1/3 cup dry white wine I used chardonnay
- 2-1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 Tbsp fresh parsley chopped, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat the olive oil in a large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken and brown on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside.
- To the same skillet, add the sliced lemon and green olives. Cook the olives and lemon for about 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Turn the heat down to medium. Add the butter, garlic, and pasta to the skillet and toast the pasta. This should take about 2-3 minutes. Don't let the garlic burn.
- Add the wine to the pan. Add the chicken broth and stir well to combine. Add the chicken, lemon, and olives back to the pan and increase the heat to high. When the liquid starts to boil, transfer the pan to the oven and cook uncovered for 20 minutes or until the chicken is done.
- Remove the skillet from the oven. Optional, Top the dish with fresh parsley. Serve immediately.
Sharon, I made this recipe for dinner last night and liked the flavor. I followed the directions exactly, however, the rice orzo was soupy. The meat was cooked perfectly and the orzo was tender, but there was way too much liquid. Please help.
Also, this light gray text is very hard to read when inputting a response.
Hi Patricia,
I’m so sorry you had a problem with this dish! I have made it many times and never had it turn out soupy.
You mentioned rice in your comment and orzo. If it was rice you used that wouldn’t have absorbed the liquid like pasta does. If you cooked it uncovered and used pasta, I don’t know what could have caused it unless it needed to cook for a few more minutes. Was it still soupy after it sat for a few minutes?
Sorry, I used orzo and cooked it uncovered. Yes, it was still soupy after standing. I appreciate your response.
Again, it is very hard to read what I am typing with the light greasy font color. Perhaps you could try to use the comment section to understand what I am saying. Thanks
I’ll definitely check out the comment section. I’m not sure if that’s something I can customize or not, but will see if it’s possible.
I don’t have any more ideas about why it was soupy. I’m sorry it didn’t work out. I know how frustrating it is to spend a lot of time making a dish and not have it turn out.