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Herb Roast Chicken with Roasted Vegetables

Juicy herb-rubbed roast chicken with caramelized butternut squash, brussels sprouts, and carrots, all roasted together on one sheet pan for an easy AIP dinner.

By Camille McLaughlin, RDN, LD, registered dietitian nutritionist

Built forAIPDinner
Also fits DASH Heart-Healthy High-Fiber High-Protein Low-Carb Paleo Whole30
Chicken thighs crisp up dark and herby on one sheet pan while butternut squash caramelizes beautifully in the corners. Brussels sprouts fall apart into loose browned leaves, carrot coins soften through, and the garlicky oil at the bottom of the pan is what everyone scrapes up with the last thigh.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe

Chicken thighs roasted down in among the butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, and carrots rather than on a rack above them, so everything that renders out of the skin lands on the vegetables instead of in the bottom of the pan. That is the whole idea. The squash takes it up and goes sweet and dark at the edges, the sprouts get a crisp brown face where they meet the metal, and you sit down to a tray that tastes basted, because it was.

Thighs are the right cut here, and not merely a preference. They can sit in a hot oven for forty minutes without drying out, which is roughly how long the squash needs to go tender and take color at the edges, while breast meat is done in half that and spends the second half turning to string. The fat in a thigh is also what feeds the vegetables underneath, so the cut is doing two jobs at once.

Dark meat carries more iron and zinc than breast does, which is the quiet argument for thighs beyond the fact that they taste better, and the tray underneath covers the fiber that chicken cannot. Between the squash, the sprouts, and the carrots you get three different vegetables out of one pan without having to think about it, which is usually the part that falls apart on a weeknight. Our Baked Chicken With Butternut Squash pairs the chicken and squash more simply.

Golden roast chicken pieces nestled among burnished squash cubes, halved brussels sprouts, and carrot coins on a rimmed sheet pan. Save
Prep: 15 minsCook: 40 minsTotal: 55 minsMakes: 4 servingsServing: 1 portion chicken + veg

Ingredients

Serves4Amounts change with the number. The nutrition panel is per serving, so it stays the same.
  • 1 1/2 lbs chicken thighs
  • 3 cups cubed butternut squash
  • 1 lb brussels sprouts, halved
  • 3 carrots, cut into coins
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven and dry the chicken: Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towel, since skin that goes into the oven wet spends the first ten minutes steaming and never crisps. Toss the squash, Brussels sprouts, and carrots with half the olive oil, the garlic, and the salt.
  2. Spread the vegetables and tuck the chicken in: Spread the vegetables across a large sheet pan and tuck the chicken thighs among them, then rub the chicken with the remaining olive oil and a pinch of salt. Sitting the thighs among the vegetables rather than on top means the fat renders down onto everything around them, which is most of what makes the vegetables on this pan worth eating.
  3. Turn the sprouts cut side down: Before the pan goes in, turn every halved Brussels sprout so its cut face is against the metal, and leave a finger's width between the pieces. That flat face is where the browning happens: a sprout sitting rounded side down steams inside its own leaves and comes out gray and bitter, and a crowded pan does the same thing to everything on it.
  4. Roast 35 to 40 minutes to 165°F: Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring the vegetables once at the halfway mark, until the chicken reads 165°F (74°C) at the thickest part and the squash is tender and caramelized at the edges. Stir the vegetables rather than leaving them, because the sides facing up never see the hot metal and stay pale.
  5. Rest the chicken, then use the pan juices: Let the chicken rest 5 minutes before it goes onto plates, so the juices settle back into the meat rather than running out, then divide everything and spoon the pan juices over the top. Those juices are rendered chicken fat with garlic and roasted vegetable in it, and there is no sauce in this recipe apart from them.
Nutrition Facts
4 servings per recipe
Serving size1 portion chicken + veg
Calories436
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 16g21%
Saturated Fat 3g15%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 128mg42%
Sodium 359mg16%
Total Carbohydrate 23g8%
Dietary Fiber 6g21%
Total Sugars 6g
Includes 0g Added Sugars 0%
Protein 51g
Vitamin D 0.2mcg1%
Calcium 118mg9%
Iron 3.9mg22%
Potassium 1149mg24%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Values are computed from USDA FoodData Central and are estimates. Per serving (1 portion chicken + veg).

Variations

  • Add more vegetables: Cauliflower, parsnip, and red onion all belong here. Cut them to match the squash, since the sprouts are already the fastest thing on the pan.
  • Make it spicy: Rub grated fresh ginger and a little turmeric into the chicken and toss the same blend with the vegetables. Roasted-in warmth beats a shake at the table, and neither one is a nightshade.
  • Change the herb: Rosemary and thyme with the chicken, or sage tossed with the squash. Woody herbs hold up to a long roast where soft ones scorch.
  • Use bone-in thighs: Skin-on, bone-in thighs give you crisp skin and better pan juices. They need about ten minutes longer, so start them before the vegetables go in.
  • Finish the pan: Lemon zest and parsley scattered over everything as it comes out, or a spoonful of Dijon whisked into the pan juices before you spoon them over.

Storage & Leftovers

This keeps four days, and the thighs hold up far better than the vegetables. Dark meat stays moist cold, so the chicken makes a decent lunch straight from the box, but Brussels sprouts soften and turn a little sulfurous by the third day. If you are cooking this to eat across the week, plan on the chicken and squash lasting and the sprouts not.

Reheat in a hot oven, about ten minutes at 400°F, rather than the microwave. The skin is the part worth saving here and a microwave turns it to wet paper, while dry heat drives that moisture back off and gives you some of the crackle again. The squash comes back better than anything else on the pan.

The chicken freezes and the vegetables do not. Thighs come back juicy after a month because dark meat carries enough fat to survive it, while butternut squash thaws to mush and Brussels sprouts thaw to something worse than mush. If you are freezing anything from this tray, take the chicken out and leave the rest behind.

Notes & Tips

A hot oven and a single, uncrowded layer are what give roasted ingredients their caramelized edges.
  • Stagger the hard vegetables: Squash and carrots take longer than Brussels sprouts. Give them a head start, or cut them smaller so everything finishes together.
  • Pat the chicken dry: Wet skin steams and stays pale. Dry skin browns, and the browning is where the flavor in the pan juices comes from.
  • Let the chicken rest: Give it a few minutes before serving so the juices settle back into the meat rather than running onto the plate.
  • Do not crowd the pan: Vegetables piled together steam instead of caramelizing. Use two sheets rather than one heaped one.
  • Thighs are forgiving: They stay juicy a few degrees past done, which breast will not. That is a good reason to use them on a pan with slow vegetables.
  • Flexible swap: No garlic? You can leave it out, or use a pinch of garlic-free all-purpose seasoning.

Nutrition & Mindful Eating

A single sheet pan does everything here. Chicken thighs crisp and render at the edges while butternut squash, brussels sprouts and carrots caramelize in the same garlicky oil underneath them.
  • Chicken thighs and three roasted vegetables make a whole dinner off one pan. The thighs give richness and protein, the squash and carrots give sweetness, and the sprouts give the browned, faintly bitter edge that keeps it interesting.
  • Chicken thighs stay juicy through a long roast because of the fat running through the meat, which is also where their deeper flavor comes from, and they bring complete protein that makes this plate hold you well into the evening.
  • Butternut squash is the carbohydrate on this pan, and roasting turns its edges dark and jammy while the middle goes silky. The orange it turns is beta-carotene, and it arrives with fiber and potassium rather than on its own.
  • Brussels sprouts roast cut side down, going crisp and almost charred on that face while the inside steams tender, which is where their nutty side comes out, along with fiber and vitamin C.
  • Garlic and olive oil coat everything before the pan goes in, so the garlic toasts into the vegetables, the oil carries the salt evenly across the tray, and the carrot coins brown into something close to candy.
  • As you eat, taste the difference between the crisped sprouts, the sweet carrots and the soft squash that all came out of the same oven, and let that variety keep you at the table a little longer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is roast chicken AIP-friendly?

Plain chicken roasted with AIP oils, herbs, and vegetables is fully compliant as long as you skip pepper and nightshade-based seasonings.

Can I make this ahead?

Roast it fully, then store and reheat within four days, or prep and refrigerate the cut vegetables the night before.

How long does it keep?

Four days. The thighs are the part that keeps; the sprouts soften by the third day, so eat those first and save the chicken and squash for later in the week.

Can I make it ahead?

For the week rather than for tonight, yes: roast two trays at once. The oven is already hot, so the second tray costs you nothing but the chopping. Keep the chicken and the squash together and eat the sprouts early, since they are the first thing to go.