I chose rosemary to go with the lemon and garlic in the rub for the chicken, but you could easily use oregano or thyme or a mix of all three if you want. My father for one is not too fond of rosemary, so if I were making this for him, I would use thyme. The dish couldn’t be simpler. You first make a rub with rosemary, lemon zest, garlic, and olive oil, and marinate the chicken pieces in this rub with a little lemon juice for an hour or two. Then you brown the the thighs skin side down, turn the chicken pieces over, wiggle some garlic and shallots in between the thighs, and roast in the oven until cooked through. Do a little bit of thinking ahead to marinate chicken and then cook up the whole thing in less than half an hour. Easy!
Can substitute 1/2-inch thick wedges of red onion for the shallots if desired. As soon as the oil is shimmery hot, pat dry the chicken thighs with paper towels and lay them skin-side down in the pan. Sear the thighs without moving them for 3-5 minutes or until nicely browned. Turn the thighs over in the pan so they are skin-side up. Remove the pan from heat. Remove from oven. As a safety note (having burned my hand in the past), I recommend rubbing an ice cube on the handle of the hot pan as a way to cook it down quickly. Then be sure you keep the handle covered with a pot holder so that someone (including yourself) doesn’t inadvertently pick up the pan with the hot handle on their bare hands. Serve with a side of rice, pasta, bread, or potatoes, or over a bed of baby arugula or spinach leaves for a low carb option.
