Our favorite roast it all in one pan recipe

[cimorene]

This dish has evolved over the years but we are still in the habit of calling it "Greek chicken". When I initially found a recipe, it recommended a copycat for a commercial "Greek Seasoning" blend, and since a homemade spice blend and feta and olives are the solid basis of the recipe there's some excuse. Otoh, seasoning blends like this are never very authentic; real recipes tend to use an individual mixture of the regional characteristic spices instead. But as Wax pointed out, "Oven-Roasted Chicken and Vegetables with Feta, and Sometimes without the Chicken" is not a very handy moniker.

And this blend is very handy, because we use it often and it's got several things in it in smaller amounts that could be difficult to measure out individually.


Greek-Inspired Seasoning Blend

• 1 part thyme, dried


• 1 part nutmeg, ground



• 2 parts marjoram, dried


• 2 parts dill, dried


• 2 parts rosemary, dried


• 2 parts parsley, dried


• 2 parts cinnamon, dried



• 4 parts basil, dried


• 4 parts oregano, dried

Roasting Pan Vegetables With or Without Chicken Topped with Feta, or
"Greek Chicken"

1. Preheat the oven (about 200 C or 400 F) and coat the inside of a large oven roasting pan with vegetable oil.



2. Add any combination of the following ingredients:
   
   • Chicken, with or without bone, in whole pieces or sliced or shredded or cubed (1 ordinary-sized package)
   
   
   • 3-5 medium potatoes, washed, cubed
   
   
   • One onion, coarsely chopped
   
   
   • 1-2 bell peppers, chopped into chunks
   
   
   • 2-4 carrots, chopped into chunks
   
   
   • 1 can of artichoke hearts, quartered
   
   
   • 1 jar of whole Greek olives, green or black as you prefer, pitless, whole or halved
   
   
   This should more or less fill the roasting pan, so adjust pan size and ingredient quantity accordingly.



3. Drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil (not extra virgin) or canola oil over all the ingredients and top with 2-4 tablespoons of the above Greek seasoning mix or with:
   
   
   • 2-4 tsp basil
   
   
   • 2-4 tsp oregano
   
   
   • 1-2 tsp cinnamon
   
   
   • 1-2 tsp dill
   
   
   • pinch or 2 of nutmeg
   
   
   • pinch or 2 of thyme



4. Add salt and freshly-ground black pepper, plus any garlic you're using (a pinch of dried garlic is all we use because Wax is sensitive to it) at this stage as well. Stir thoroughly. Bake in preheated oven about 25 minutes, then stir thoroughly and bake another 20 minutes.



5. Chop or crumble around 200 g of feta over it (this is one package of feta here, about an imperial cup of half-inch cubes once you cut it up, and the amount isn't that important - still good with twice as much or with less). Chop 2-5 tomatoes into cubes around the size of the other vegetable pieces. Add all these and stir thoroughly.

Because of the potatoes, this doesn't NEED to be served over a grain, but we typically eat it over couscous or brown rice. White rice also works.

Comments

[princessofgeeks]

Yum

Is the chicken raw or precooked at the beginning?

[cimorene]

Raw, that's why it needs 45 minutes (avg)! If you make this without chicken you can just take it out whenever the veggies are tender and getting browned a bit. It does not necessarily need all that time to cook, but it also shouldn't burn if there's a large pan full of vegetables around it since they have so much moisture.

[princessofgeeks]

ty!

[princessofgeeks]

sounds great; thank you!