Chicken Salmoriglio

4 Servings

45 minutes

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Salmoriglio, a sauce/marinade from southern Italy (specifically, Calabria and Sicily), is a simple mixture of extra-virgin olive oil, lemon, garlic and herbs. For this oven-cooked recipe, we make a fragrant base of grated lemon zest, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper, then use some to season bone-in chicken thighs and the rest as the foundation for the salmoriglio that sauces the finished chicken. Rather than use the juice of fresh lemons to make the salmoriglio, we squeeze lemon halves that have been roasted with the chicken. The oven heat mellows the acidity so the sauce has a subtle sweetness and a more restrained tartness.

4

Servings

Tip

Don’t skip the step of cutting slashes into the chicken. The cuts allow the seasonings to get into the meat for better flavor throughout and also help speed the cooking.

45 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1

    tablespoon grated lemon zest, plus 2 lemons halved crosswise

  • 2

    medium garlic cloves, finely grated

Directions

Reviews
Beth N.
February 11, 2023
Delicious and easy
This was so easy to make and the flavors really took it to a restaurant level dish. I couldn't find fresh oregano so I'm guessing it will be even better when I do.
John V.
November 10, 2022
Chicken delizioso
I am placing this recipe in my favorite section. And I’ll use the sauce in multiple ways.
Nathan S.
October 11, 2022
SHOW STOPPER
Easy to make, absolutely delish! I made several times for guests and they love as well. One may want to make a little more the less so you have left overs.
Emily L.
October 5, 2022
Flavorful simple dish
I was amazed how such a simple recipe could result in such a flavorful and delicious dish. I will definitely make again
Lise A.
November 30, 2022
Great Recipe
I have made this dish seven or eight times and it has always been well-received. I like to add quartered Yukon Gold potatoes to the baking chicken; they absorb the marinade, finish nicely under the broiler and are delicious! One adjustment I have made is to reduce the oil by a third, which doesn’t seem to hurt the dish at all.
Donald M.

Very simple to make, with lots of flavour. I added other raw veggies to the salad.

Justin J G.

A simple, flavorful delight. This is an ace recipe. Thank you.

Karen M.

Would love to be able to download my favorite recipes.

John J C.

You can, print them as a PDF. If you have a Mac it's built in, with a PC you just need the free version of Adobe reader.

Lynn M.

Buy the app Paprika and you can easily download. It’s a great app.

Tricia S.

Wow, was this good! I prepped the chicken (boneless, skinless thighs -- what I had on hand) and let it marinate in the fridge while I dealt with other stuff. Avocado and tomatoes rounded out the salad for a complete meal. Maximum flavor, minimum fuss.

Chris S.

Great recipe! Served it on a bed of arugula with roasted golden beets and some brown rice. Delicious meal!

John J C.

This was *really* good. Simple, fast and delicious.
My only question/issue was that the lemon-garlic mixture was only one Tbls. so I guessed at the division. Still came out great.

Cheryl P.

Served over mixed baby chard+ spinach+ arugula. Next time will try without slashing meat...it got a little dry in the time given.

susan a.

I halved the recipe. There was very little marinade in the large bowl so it didn't make sense to roll the chicken around. I just spread what I had out on the tops of the chicken. Other than that it was delicious. What did I do wrong? With 3 lbs of chicken and 3 tbs of marinade doesn't seem like it would have been different.

Barbara S.

I couldn't find skin on thighs, so I used some drumsticks. I didn't think they would cook in that time, but they did, and they were more tender than usual and delicious!

Carolyn C.

I loved this recipe, so easy and flavorful, I made it for company and it was a hit. Thank you!

Andrew S.

The best kind of cooking—simple and flavorful, and more than the sum of its parts. No need to change a thing. I added a few sliced radishes to the salad for color, but the recipe works perfectly as is.

Nikita J.

So simple and wonderful. Made this over a bed of yellow potatoes and it was *chef's kiss*.

Gloria H.

It was delicious and easy. It was a winner for the whole family. I made the Italian Alfredo as a side... great meal!

Arthur Y.

Delicious and easy. Can be easily doubled for a gang. At the end, I added the pan juices to the sauce, yum!

Eva R.

I was so excited to make this recipe, but my oven started smoking after ten minutes! It looks like the honey-oil mixture burnt. I had to take the tray out, move the chicken to a new pan, and put them back in at 375 to finish cooking. Did no one else have a problem with the 475?

Lynn C.

Hi Eva -

We are so sorry this didn't work for you! We aren't sure what went wrong since, as you have noted, others haven't had this issue and you can see Rosie make it in the linked video and she didn't have issues either. Did you make sure to slash the chicken down to the bone and rub the seasoning mixture deep into the slashes? We wonder if there was too much of the seasoning mixture on the exterior that may have burned on the pan. If so, it may be that your oven is running too hot. In the future we would recommend lowering the temperature to 450 degrees and cooking the chicken a little longer, following the visual clues for doneness.

Best,
The Milk Street Team

Mark D.

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