Lemon Chicken and Potatoes in Foil
The most amazingly moist and tender chicken breasts cooked in foil packets – so easy and packed with tons of flavor!
Foil pack dinners are the best. There’s minimum effort involved, and clean up is an absolute breeze. And you don’t even need serving plates here.
With individual foil packets, each chicken breast is cooked on a bed of baby red potatoes, seasoned with a flavor-packed mixture of Dijon mustard, lemon and herbs.
When ready to serve, each person has their own little packet of lemon goodness.
Now how easy was that?
Lemon Chicken and Potatoes in Foil
The most amazingly moist and tender chicken breasts cooked in foil packets - so easy and packed with tons of flavor!
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 16 ounces baby red potatoes, halved
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons olive oil, mustards, thyme, rosemary and lemon zest; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside.
- Cut four sheets of foil, about 12-inches long. Divide potatoes into 4 equal portions and add to the center of each foil in a single layer.
- Fold up all 4 sides of each foil packet. Drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste; gently toss to combine.
- Top each packet with the chicken. Using your fingers or a brush, work the mustard mixture onto both sides of the chicken. Top with lemon slices.
- Fold the sides of the foil over the chicken, covering completely and sealing the packets closed. Place foil packets in a single layer on a baking sheet. Place into oven and bake until the chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are tender, about 25-30 minutes.*
- OPTIONAL: Preheat oven to broil. Open the packets and broil for 2-3 minutes, or until caramelized and slightly charred.
- Served immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Notes
*Cooking time will vary depending on the size and thickness of the chicken and/or potatoes.
Did you make this recipe?
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I made this, but at 375 for 30 minutes, the chicken was almost completely pink inside still. I might recommend that the temperature be increased to 425 for 35-40 minutes. Once it was cooked, it was moist and delicious, as advertised! Also super easy to make.
I had the same issue. Completely raw inside!
Hello,
I am cooking it for my second 20 min interval after the initial timeframe. Thanks for sharing your recommendation!
I’m currently baking this and at 30 min it was still a little pink on the outside, so I put them in for another 10. I check again and they’re 90% pink on the inside still! And the taters were not quit tender. So I bumped it up to 425 and another 15-20 min. I got slightly thicker chicken, so expected a little extra time but not that much. We’ll see…I’m very hungry after the gym and didn’t think I needed so much time built in I’m very excited to try it once it finally cooks thru.
Definitely needs more time and/or temperature. Chicken was fine, but the potatoes were severely under cooked. I used very tiny baby potatoes, tricolor, from the Little Potato Company, sliced them in half. Note that I did throw in a small bunch about 8-10 fresh green beans to each packet, put a dab of the lemon mixture on them too and they were delicious.
Hello! This looks fantastic! One question, I like to prep the prep parts of meals for easy dinner fixin’ during the week. Do you think if I made the foil packs up on Sunday they would be good to bake mid week?
Thanks!
I have not tried making this ahead of time but I worry that marinating the chicken in the mustard mixture for a few days will be too much. But as always, please use your best judgment.
Hi Beth,
it has been over a year since you asked your question, but I am wondering how this worked out for you in you did try it. Thanks!
Hi this looks wonderful and think I will try it tonight. Looks like the perfect thing for a hot, humid night where I don’t want to heat up the kitchen.
I have one question… Do you think I could use other chicken pieces like thighs and legs? It is what I happen to have now and need to cook them today so just wondering your thoughts on that.
Thanks so much!
Yes, absolutely, but you may have to adjust cooking time as needed.
This looks so good and easy to make! I can’t wait to try it.
Love how easy and simple this is, but it looks like it’s bursting with flavor! Perfect for summertime!
This is a wonderful recipe! We live in the low desert and it gets so hot in the summer but because you only have to cook one thing it is SO much easier to cook. And I’m so glad you believe in as few dishes as possible! thank you
I made it and it turned out great, I just added a little butter & garlic for my taste and it was very good.
Looks simple, fresh and wonderfully tasty!
Would you recommend boiling the potatoes first, before baking in the foil?
If you are using baby potatoes or small diced potatoes, there is no need for this extra step.
I have many fresh herbs I need to get rid of. What is the measurement if I want to use those instead of dried? Can you add a green veg in the pack to cook with the chicken and potatoes too? What would you recommend?
Thanks!
Kyla
Kyla, the ratio for dry to fresh herbs is typically 1:3. You can also add more veggies to the foil packs but you may have to adjust cooking time as needed so that they are not overcooked.
NOMZ!!! I love anything lemon. Can’t wait to try this 😛
I have made a bunch of recipes on this site. I enjoyed all of them. Last night I made this dish and it was the first time i was disappointed. The flavor was just ok and and I followed the baking instructions and the potatoes came out very hard. Maybe I cut them too big. I would pass on making this again. However, I love your site and i have had more great meals than bummer meals.
Justine, I’m sorry that this recipe did not turn out the way you had imagined. I only post recipes that have been successfully tested in my own kitchen, and as you can see from the comments here, many of these readers have had great outcomes in the final dish as well. But with a little bit more information, we can troubleshoot what went wrong to have a successful turnaround next time.
What kind of potatoes did you use? This recipe is best suited for baby red potatoes to compensate for the cooking time with the chicken.
I have been using potatoes from “The Little Potato Company” and they are ideal for recipes such as this one. The bag is a mix of both red and white potatoes, if you prefer only red, just pick them out… Voila!
I had the same issue I had to remove the potatos and cook seperately. It still tasted delicious! But my potatoes needed extra time. I used russet.
this was so easy and delicious thankyou so much.
Simply damn delicious and comforting tangy citrusy lemon chicken!!!
If I wanted to double the recipe, could I put it all in a flat glass baking dish, cover it with foil and then bake? Please advise. Thanks, Anna
I have not tried this myself but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. You can also broil the chicken at the very end (uncovered) to add a little bit of crisp and caramelization.
I am planning on doubling the recipe, baking in a 9×13 pan, covered. Would you recommend adding carrots, broccoli or other veggies to the pan, or cook separately?
I recommend cooking it separately as the baking dish may be too crowded.
Thank you for your timely response. I now cook many of my veggies in the microwave with a small amount of water. cooking times vary. I have found this method to be healthier as fewer nutrients “go down the drain.”
This sounds great but my family is not big on mustard. Can I make this recipe without mustard or is there another option?
Yes, you can certainly omit the mustard to taste but it may be best to increase the seasonings as needed to compensate for this omission.
I am not a mustard fan, is there anything I can subsitute or can I just skip that? Thanks!
Yes, you can certainly omit the mustard to taste but it may be best to increase the seasonings as needed to compensate for this omission.
I did just that and it was super tasty!
There are many types of very fine mustards; not all the hot dog and hamburger varieties. Expand your palate, and give this recipe a try. The flavors will mingle during cooking and you may be pleasantly surprised.
Made this last night and it was a big success and so easy to clean up afterwards.
This looks great, and easy. Do you think I could cook it on the grill like your shrimp fajita foil packets? Those were great and easy too. Thanks again for all your wonderful recipes Chungah.
Yes, absolutely.
My thoughts exactly… kind of a rich mans version of Hobo Stew..cant wait to put this on the grill and I think it would be a great camping meal as well, just add another layer or two of foil before putting on the coals.
The instructions are a little confusing, I am to fold up the foil packets before butting in the chicken? Or am I to fold up the sides making a “foil wall” then drizzle the oil and seasonings before placing the chicken on top of the potatoes? This sounds like a great recipe I just
want to make sure I am doing it right. Thanks .
It may be easier to create a foil wall before drizzling with olive oil.
This sounds delicious and I’m going to make this soon, but I’m going to toss the potatoes with oil and salt & pepper in a BOWL before putting them in the foil packet with the chicken. Seems easier.
I was thinking the same thing 🙂
I agree Lisa.
Yes, more than a little confusing. I used the photo as a guide.