Lemon Za’atar Chicken
with Green Goddess Dressing, Turmeric Quinoa, & Honey Roasted Carrots
- Sesame
Za’atar is one of those spices that adds a bit of flare (and a whole lot of flavor) to pretty much any dish. Tonight, it’s dressing up chicken, marinated in a mix of the spice and lemon juice, for a tangy treat. We’re also seasoning quinoa with turmeric and roasted carrots with honey and lemon zest on the side. This meal is about to spice up your life.
Ingredients
½ cup
Quinoa
12 ounce
Carrot
4 tablespoon
Sour Cream
1 unit
Green Herb Blend
2 unit
Chicken Stock Concentrate
1 unit
Lemon
1 teaspoon
Turmeric
1 clove
Garlic
2 teaspoon
Honey
10 ounce
Chicken Cutlets
1 teaspoon
Hot Sauce
1 tablespoon
Za'atar Spice
(Contains: Sesame)
Not included in your delivery
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
2 teaspoon (tsp)
Cooking Oil
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Adjust rack to top position and preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash and dry produce. • Zest and quarter lemon (for 4 servings, zest one and quarter both). Peel and mince garlic. Trim, peel, and cut carrots into long, thin sticks (ours were 3 inches long and 1⁄3 inch wide). Finely chop parsley and chives.
• Pat chicken* dry with paper towels. Add to a medium bowl along with Za’atar Spice, juice from two lemon wedges (four wedges for 4 servings), salt, and pepper. Turn chicken to coat. Set aside to marinate.
• In a small pot, combine 1 cup water (2 cups for 4 servings), stock concentrates, half the garlic, half the turmeric (all for 4), and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then stir in quinoa; cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until quinoa is tender and liquid has evaporated, 15-20 minutes. • Keep covered off heat until ready to serve.
• While quinoa cooks, toss carrots on a baking sheet with a drizzle of oil; season with salt and pepper. • Roast on top rack until browned and tender, 15-20 minutes.
• While carrots roast, in a small bowl, combine sour cream, parsley, chives, juice from remaining lemon, ½ tsp water, and remaining garlic to taste. Season with salt and pepper.
• Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add chicken; cook until browned and cooked through, 3-5 minutes per side. TIP: Lower heat if chicken begins to brown too quickly.
• Drizzle roasted carrots with honey and hot sauce to taste. Sprinkle with lemon zest to taste; toss on sheet to coat. TIP: We recommend using tongs here. • Fluff quinoa with a fork and season with salt (we used ¼ tsp; ½ tsp for 4 servings) and pepper. TIP: For extra richness, stir in 1 TBSP butter. • Divide quinoa between plates. Top with lemon za’atar chicken and drizzle with green goddess dressing. Serve honey roasted carrots on the side.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the unique blend of spices, especially the za'atar chicken and honey-roasted carrots with a kick 🍯.
- Ease of prep: Some found it labor-intensive, while others praised how quick and easy it was to prepare.
- Suggestions: Consider serving with couscous or rice instead of quinoa; reduce turmeric in quinoa for milder flavor.
- Leftovers: Several mentioned it tasted great as leftovers, with flavors melding nicely.
- Portions: A few wished for more carrots; some found the quinoa portion too large compared to other components.
Reviews from our home cooks
Congrats to whoever came up with this one. It was incredibly good. Whoever would have thought to do carrots that way and the marinated chicken was over the top good. Superb taste profile with the quinoa and green goddess dressing.
Super delicious, love the Za'atar spice (never had it before & i've already gone to the store to purchase, found several brands). We've already duplicated this recipe 2 times. The roasted carrots & couscous are great companions to the chicken!
Not enough stars, lol! It was easy to prepare, quick cooking time (less than 30 minutes), and a great flavor profile. This was a total win! Can we please have za'atar spice mix made available in the "extras"? 10/10
Omg so flavorful! The carrots were a beautiful mix of sweet and spicy, the quinoa had a delicious kick to it and the chicken--never used the Za'atar spice before--can't wait to use it again!
So ridiculously good! This was an entirely different flavor than anything we've had before, and it was enough that I consulted a friend who is from Jordan, and she got me some za'atar spice so that I could make this and other dishes again!
Really interesting flavors. I'd never had the za'atar spice before and it was really nice. I'd also never had quinoa before, and while I wouldn't say it's one of my favorite grains, I enjoyed that also. The carrots were good, too.
My boyfriend wasn't sure about this meal, and tried to convince me to eat out. I am so glad we tried it. It was delicious! First time with Za'atar seasoning and first time making Quinoa, both were a huge hit!
We enjoyed each separate dish but felt there were too many competing flavors between the hot honey carrots, dressing, and za'atar chicken.
Sweet and spicy carrots were great. Chicken spice was delicious. The green goddess sauce needed less parsley and greater variety of other herbs to stand up to the other bold flavors in the dish.
Very easy recipe. Good flavor however personally didn't find like the use of Za'atar spice. It made it hard to tell whether the chicken was burnt or not.
