Cajun Chicken Dinner {One Pan}
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This Cajun Chicken and Veggies features chicken thighs, bell peppers, potatoes and onions all baked together on a single sheet pan! Bonus: it tastes delicious AND it requires minimal clean up. My kind of dinner for that reason alone!
Baked Cajun Chicken and Veggies
You can never have enough easy dinner recipes, right? Especially this time of year when your kitchen already seems to be a disaster from all the holiday baking — yikes!
This cajun chicken sheet pan dinner recipe is dreamy because not only does it taste delicious but it takes minimal clean up. My kind of dinner for that reason alone.
This one pan chicken recipe is perfect for busy weeknights when you still want a homemade meal but you don’t want to put in a lot of effort.
This cajun chicken recipe is one of those recipes that doesn’t require measuring (other than measuring out the spice mixture, that is).
Cajun Chicken Ingredients
For this Cajun chicken dinner, you’ll need:
- Chicken thighs
- Yukon Gold potatoes
- Olive oil
- Bell pepper
- Red onion
- Fresh parsley
- Salt and pepper
And for the homemade cajun seasoning, you’ll need:
- Paprika
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Dried oregano
- Dried thyme
- Onion powder
- Black pepper
- Cayenne pepper
Can I Use Store-Bought Cajun Seasoning?
Of course! You don’t have to use the cajun seasoning I listed, you could even use a store-bought version if you’d like — but just be warned you can’t control the heat level on those.
You can even make a big batch of the spice mixture so the next time around you won’t have to measure all of that out — just use tablespoons instead of the teaspoons listed and store it in a labeled package in your spice cupboard.
How to Make Cajun Chicken and Veggies
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place chicken on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Then, season with cajun seasoning.
- Toss potatoes with olive oil and cajun seasoning as well. Transfer to baking sheet with chicken.
- Roast the cajun chicken and potatoes for 30 minutes. Remove baking tray from oven and add bell pepper and red onion over potatoes and toss.
- Roast for another 10 to 15 minutes. Serve warm sprinkled with parsley.
Can I Use Chicken Breasts?
You could also use chicken breasts with this baked cajun chicken recipe, but I’d roast the potatoes for about 20 minutes first since the chicken breasts should only take about 25 minutes.
I also recommend pounding the chicken breasts to an even thickness if using those, and add an extra 1 – 2 tbsp of olive oil with the veggies if needed since the chicken breasts won’t render any fat to coat the veggies.
Is This Cajun Chicken Spicy?
This is a spicy dinner but you can definitely adjust it to suite your taste. Add more cajun seasoning for a spicier version and add less or even omit if you don’t like heat.
Also season everything to suite your taste, you don’t have to go with the amounts I listed that’s just to help give you an idea.
Tips for the Best Cajun Chicken
- You could also use another kind of seasoning blend for these sheet pan chicken and veggies, like ranch seasoning or an Italian dressing seasoning blend.
- If you have one, I recommend using a dark non-stick pan for one pan chicken and veggies recipes. I don’t recommend them for baking, but when roasting veggies they can help brown them up better than an uncoated pan.
- If the chicken and veggies aren’t browning the way you’d like, you can broil them for the last minute or two in the oven.
- Chicken with the skin on will have the most flavor and is less likely to dry out in the oven.
More Chicken and Veggies Recipes to Try!
- Garlic Herb Chicken and Veggies
- Teriyaki Grilled Chicken and Rice Bowls
- Sheet Pan Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables
- Sheet Pan Pesto Chicken with Asparagus and Tomatoes
- Mexican Honey-Lime Chicken and Veggie Skillet
Follow Cooking Classy
One Pan Cajun Chicken and Veggies
Ingredients
Chicken and veggies
- 5 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, 2 1/2 lbs
- 2 lbs yukon gold potatoes, diced into 1-inch pieces
- 4 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 1 bell pepper, diced into 1-inch pieces (or half of 2 colors)
- 1/2 medium red onion, diced into 1-inch pieces
- Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Cajun seasoning
- 2 1/2 tsp paprika
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 - 1 tsp cayenne pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Whisk all cajun seasoning ingredients together in a small bowl or toss together well in a small resealable bag.
- Place chicken skin side down on a large rimmed baking sheet and drizzle and rub 1 Tbsp of the olive oil evenly over thighs. Sprinkle with cajun seasoning to taste (I did 1 Tbsp total).
- Rotate to opposite side and drizzle and rub tops with another 1 Tbsp olive oil. Season with cajun seasoning to taste (I did 1/2 Tbsp).
- Toss potatoes with 2 Tbsp olive oil (I just did this on the cutting board I used to cut the potatoes) and season with cajun seasoning to taste (I did 2 tsp) and toss.
- Transfer potatoes to baking sheet placing them around chicken thighs. Roast in preheated oven 30 minutes.
- Remove from oven and add bell pepper and red onion over potatoes and toss, then return to oven and roast about 10 - 15 minutes longer until chicken is golden and cooked through and potatoes are tender (you can broil during last few minutes to help brown a little more if desired).
- Serve warm sprinkled with parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste as desired.
Notes
- If you have one, I recommend using a dark non-stick pan for one pan chicken and veggies recipes. I don't recommend them for baking, but when roasting veggies they can help brown them up better than an uncoated pan.
- Recipe inspired by eatwell101 cajun seasoning from allrecipes