Posted on September 12, 2017 by Jenny Cromack

Non-gym goers love to make fun of people have an active lifestyle, saying that the food is boring and all they eat is chicken and vegetables. Obviously not true. However…chicken is one of the best sources of protein available and a good variety of vegetables is key to anyone’s diet or goals. I do agree that meal prepping seven days plain chicken and veg can be very boring and dull, so let’s see what I can come up with…

…. A healthy chicken bake.

Ingredients

• 8 skinless chicken thighs

• 600g baby new potatoes, halved

• Vegetables to taste – I’m recommending tomatoes, onions, courgettes, pepper (variety of colours), mushrooms and carrots. But feel free to add whatever takes your fancy (for quantities see method)

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• Low-calorie cooking spray or olive oil

• A small handful of fresh thyme leaves, chopped

• A large handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

• ½ tsp dried oregano

• 1 tsp dried red chilli flakes

• Dash of lemon juice

• 150ml chicken stock

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 200°C.

2. Season the chicken and spray it with low-calorie cooking spray or rub a small amount of oil into the chicken. Brown off the chicken for 4-5 minutes, turning once or twice. Leave on a plate to rest until ready to place in the baking dish.

3. Boil the potatoes for 2-3 minutes, then drain well and transfer them to a roasting tin. Add your vegetables until you have about half an inch of space at the top of your dish. Again, this is to taste, if you prefer a more meat based bake then leave more of a gap. If, like me, you love your veg then pile it on!! Top with the chicken and sprinkle over the garlic, fresh and dried herbs, chilli flakes and juice. Pour over the stock and cover with foil.

4. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft and the chicken is cooked through.

5. Serve immediately and the best thing is your meal prep is done for the rest of the week. Another bonus is everything looks so much better in a bake especially when the onion and lemon juice will caramelise to make everything that great golden-brown colour.

This healthy chicken bake recipe should be around servings, so perfect for some healthy lunches and quick evening meals.