Sheet Pan Chicken Shawarma with Chickpeas
When you can't decide, this gives you a full dinner in one pan.
If you are too tired to debate dinner, make this. It turns chicken thighs, chickpeas, and a few pantry spices into a full sheet pan meal with very little thinking. The oven does most of the work, and you still get a dinner that feels put-together: browned chicken, toasted chickpeas, and soft onions with a lemony finish. Serve it with pita, rice, or just a quick yogurt sauce if that is all you can manage. It is not fussy, not time-consuming, and it is forgiving if you do not measure every spice perfectly.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs — Cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 cup canned chickpeas — Drained and rinsed
- 1 unit red onion — Sliced into wedges
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 0.5 tsp ground turmeric
- 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
- 0.75 tsp kosher salt
- 0.25 tsp black pepper
- 1 unit lemon — Half juiced, half cut into wedges
- 0.5 cup plain yogurt — For serving
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley — Optional, for serving
Method
- 1 Heat the oven to 425°F. On a large sheet pan, combine the chicken, chickpeas, and red onion.
- 2 Drizzle with olive oil, lemon juice, cumin, coriander, paprika, garlic powder, turmeric, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Toss until everything is coated, then spread into a single layer.
- 3 Roast for 20 minutes, then toss once and continue roasting 8 to 10 minutes more, until the chicken is cooked through and the edges are browned.
- 4 Finish with lemon wedges and parsley. Serve with yogurt on the side, if using.
Variations
- Vegetarian swap — Swap the chicken for 2 cups cauliflower florets and add 1 extra cup chickpeas; roast until the cauliflower is browned and tender.
- Faster swap — Use thin-sliced chicken cutlets instead of thighs and start checking for doneness at 15 to 18 minutes total.
- Substitutions — Use rotisserie chicken for a shortcut, swap yogurt for tahini sauce, or add bell pepper strips if you want more vegetables.
Notes
For the best browning, do not overcrowd the pan. If your sheet pan is small, use two pans so the chicken roasts instead of steaming. Leftovers keep well and reheat nicely for lunch the next day.
Equipment that helps
- Large sheet pan — Gives the chicken and chickpeas room to brown instead of steaming.
- Mixing bowl — Makes it easy to coat everything evenly before it goes on the pan.
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