Oven Baked Chicken Thighs with a Za'atar Final Touch

When it comes to the chicken parts, I personally prefer the thighs. They are juicer and more versatile than the breast. You can make oven-baked chicken thighs or a lovely stew like my Slow Cooked Doro Wat. Either way, you will have a tasty dish.

However, in my opinion, to make poultry tasty, you need to spice it good. For this meal, I took some inspiration from more than multiple za'atar recipes. I ended up with these delicious za'atar chicken thighs served with a sweet potato mash.

This being said, let me tell you how to make this chicken thighs recipe in just one hour of your time.

• Peel and cut the onion into rings and place them at the bottom of your oven-proof dish. Take your garlic, and without peeling it, make a cut horizontally and add it along with the onion.
• In a bowl, mix the salt, pepper, cumin, garlic, and paprika. Pour the oil and stir well to combine.

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This is a boneless skinless chicken thighs recipe. Therefore this is the kind of meat you want. Even though the meat pieces are probably already cleaned, I suggest you give them another look just to be sure no small bone has been left behind.

• Place your meat pieces in the bowl and coat them very well with the spicy oil. Place the spiced thighs on top of the onion and garlic and pour all the oil on them.

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• Cover the dish with an aluminum foil and cook it in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes at 160°C (320 F).
• After this, take the dish out and increase the temperature to 220°C (430 F). Remove the onion and the garlic and cook the meat for another 10 minutes. Turn the meat on the other size and let it roast for the final 10 minutes. You want your roasted chicken thighs to be juicy but have a nice crust.

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• Take the thighs out of the dish and grate the final garlic clove on top of the hot oil. Add the za'atar and the lemon juice and stir well to combine.

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• For the mashed potatoes, peel and chop the sweet potatoes. Boil them in salted water until they are fork-tender. This should take around 20 minutes, more or less.

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• Drain the water and mash them good.

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• Heat up the milk with the butter and the thyme. When the butter is melted, pour the milk on the mashed potatoes and mix well to combine. I suggest using a strainer. This way, you will only infuse the taste of thyme and won't find small pieces in your food. Taste and add more salt if needed.
• The final part of this dish is the nutty mixture. Take a small pan and heat up the olive oil. Chop the hazelnuts and fry them along with the sesame seeds in the prepared oil. This should take a couple of minutes.

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• When you see that they start to get brown, transfer everything to a bowl and grate the garlic and the ginger on top. Add the chili flakes, salt, and honey. Stir well to combine until the honey has completely dissolved.

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• Serve the za'atar roasted chicken on a mashed potato bed and top it with the za'atar sauce and nutty mixture.

Even though I have discussed each component of this za'atar chicken at a time, I suggest using the waiting time for when the chicken is baking to boil your potatoes.

Anyhow, suppose you've never worked with za'atar before. In that case, you should know that this is a spice mixture that contains ingredients such as sumac and sesame seeds. It is very common in Middle Eastern cuisine and works wonderfully combined with olive oil.

* You can pour some additional lemon juice on your dish before serving. All components have a sweet taste, so you might feel the need for some extra acidity.

** Technically, you can serve this quantity for four people. However, we didn't have any problem finishing it in just two. This is why the nutrition facts are calculated for two portions and not four.

*** Don't forget to tag us on Instagram when making this recipe.