Easy One-Pan Lemon Chicken & Asparagus

This easy chicken skillet is a tasty low-carb dinner recipe for busy weeknights. Cripsy skin-on chicken thighs baked with asparagus, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar. Simply delicious!

We're using asparagus — the perfect low-carb vegetable that cooks fast. If you don't like asparagus, you can use other options such as green beans, broccoli or cauliflower.

To keep the skin nice and crispy, these chicken thighs are best served immediately but can be stored in the fridge for a few days if needed.

We all have different dietary needs so it's only natural that you may need to adjust the macros in this recipe. You can make any adjustments directly in the KetoDiet App by cloning any of the recipes from my blog and customizing them to fit your macros and preferences.

Save

Step-by-step

1. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. You can either use 4 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (about 450 g/ 1 lb) or 4 boneless chicken thighs (about 300 g/ 10.6 oz).

2. Preheat the oven to 220 °C/ 430 °F (fan assisted), or 240 °C/ 465 °F (conventional). Heat a skillet greased with half of the avocado oil (or ghee) over medium-high heat.

3. Add the chicken thighs, skin side down, and cook for about 5 minutes, until the skin is lightly browned and crisped up. Flip the chicken on the other side and cook for another minute. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside.

   

4. Add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to the hot pan to deglaze it. Add the asparagus spears and toss to combine. Top with the crisped up chicken thighs, skin side up, and drizzle with the remaining lemon juice, avocado oil (or ghee) and balsamic vinegar.

   

5. Transfer into the oven and bake for about 10 minutes (for boneless chicken thighs) or up to about 15 minutes (for bone-in chicken thighs).

6. Serve while still warm. This meal is best eaten fresh but can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.

   

Recipe

Easy One-Pan Lemon Chicken & Asparagus

★★★★★4.8 (33 ratings)

Crispy chicken thighs baked with asparagus, lemon and balsamic vinegar. Make this easy five ingredient ...

Hands on

10m

Overall

25m

Servings

2

4.4 g

Net carbs

30.1 g

Protein

39 g

Fat

489

kcal

1 serving2 servings3 servings4 servings5 servings6 servings7 servings8 servings9 servings10 servings11 servings12 servings

US + metricMetricUS

PrintPinRate

Ingredients makes 2 servings

• 4 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (450 g/ 1 lb) or boneless chicken thighs (300 g/ 10.6 oz)
• sea salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 tbsp ghee or avocado oil, divided (30 ml)
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice, divided (45 ml)
• 300 g trimmed asparagus spears (10.6 oz)
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• Optional: fresh herbs such as parsley, to taste

Instructions

1. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. You can either use 4 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (about 450 g/ 1 lb) or 4 boneless chicken thighs (about 300 g/ 10.6 oz).

2. Preheat the oven to 220 °C/ 430 °F (fan assisted), or 240 °C/ 465 °F (conventional). Heat a skillet greased with half of the avocado oil (or ghee) over medium-high heat.

3. Add the chicken thighs, skin side down, and cook for about 5 minutes, until the skin is lightly browned and crisped up. Flip the chicken on the other side and cook for another minute. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside.

4. Add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to the hot pan to deglaze it. Add the asparagus spears and toss to combine. Top with the crisped up chicken thighs, skin side up, and drizzle with the remaining lemon juice, avocado oil (or ghee) and balsamic vinegar.

5. Transfer into the oven and bake for about 10 minutes (for boneless chicken thighs) or up to about 15 minutes (for bone-in chicken thighs).

6. Serve while still warm. This meal is best eaten fresh but can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Nutrition per serving, 2 chicken thighs + asparagus

Carbs 4%Protein 25%Fat 71% of calories

Net carbs

4.4 g

Total carbs

7.6 g

Fiber

3.2 g

Sugars

3.7 g

Protein

30.1 g

Fat

39 g

Saturated fat

8.6 g

Calories

489 kcal

Sodium

392 mg · 17% RDA

Magnesium

45 mg · 11.3% RDA

Potassium

542 mg · 27.1% EMR

Nutrition by ingredient

Per 2 chicken thighs + asparagus	Net carbs	Protein	Fat	kcal
Chicken thighs, boneless, skin-on, raw	0 g	26.7 g	24.8 g	329
Salt, sea salt	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Pepper, black, spices	0.1 g	0 g	0 g	0
Avocado oil, extra virgin	0 g	0 g	14 g	124
Lemon juice, fresh	1.2 g	0.1 g	0 g	4
Asparagus, raw	2.7 g	3.3 g	0.2 g	30
Balsamic vinegar, dark (excludes sweet, syrupy vinegar)	0.5 g	0 g	0 g	2
Total	4.4 g	30.1 g	39 g	489

Serving size 2 chicken thighs + asparagus

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Nut free
• Nightshade free
• Pork free
• Avocado free
• Coconut free
• Fish free
• Shellfish free
• Beef free