In Good FlavorThese Roasted Balsamic Rosemary Chicken Leg Quarters are marinated in balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, rosemary, and brown sugar then oven roasted till tender. Serve with pasta, potato, or rice for a simple and delicious meal.
This recipe was originally published in December 2014. The content and photos have been updated but the recipe remains the same.
For simple dinner, these chicken leg quarters are a perfect choice. They are juicy and tender and go well with all kinds of sides. For maximum flavor, marinate for at least 4 hours. They can also be prepped the night before or morning of, so when it’s time for dinner, just pat dry and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. The skin comes out looking delectable and has a rich amber color.
The marinade is made with balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, olive oil, rosemary, brown sugar, garlic and black pepper. There is a small amount of cayenne pepper for a little interest in the flavor profile, but it does not provide heat. Add more for a little kick if you like spice.
Recipe highlights:
- Combine all marinade ingredients in a bowl.
- Place chicken leg quarters and marinade in a large zip lock bag. Refrigerate for 4 hours to overnight.
- Pat chicken dry and place on a greased baking sheet.
- Bake at 400° F for 40 to 50 minutes.
- Refer to recipe card below for detailed instructions and tips.
So, I have a little confession. There are only three chicken leg quarters in these step-by-step photos, but the recipe makes four. I simply didn’t get a enough chicken to do the photo reshoot. My bad!!
Anyway, these chicken quarters go well with this Orzo Roni or this Quick and Easy Thyme Baby Potatoes. Baked potato or mashed potato, even couscous would also be great! Or serve with buttered and salted pasta for a really easy but tasty side.
This dish can easily be a weeknight dinner the entire family would enjoy. One thing for sure, you can’t beat chicken legs and thighs for affordability and being budget-friendly.
Recommended supplies:
(Affiliate links. The products I recommend are either what I use, are on my wish list, or come highly rated.)
- I have a larger version of this warp resistant non-stick baking pan. I have been very happy with it.
- Balsamic vinegar for the marinade.
- Mini whisk is ideal for little whisking jobs. I use it all the time.
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Roasted Balsamic Rosemary Chicken Leg Quarters
Description
These Roasted Balsamic Rosemary Chicken Leg Quarters are marinated in balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, rosemary, and brown sugar then oven roasted till tender. Serve with pasta, potato, or rice for a simple and delicious meal.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients, except for the chicken, in a bowl.
- Place chicken in a large zip lock bag. Pour marinade into bag. Seal bag and work the marinade into the chicken pieces with your hands. Lay flat on a tray and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. Flip over the bag halfway through for even marination.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Remove chicken from bag. Pat excess juices dry with paper towels. Avoid removing the garlic and rosemary bits.
- Place on a prepared sheet pan. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until juices run clear and has an internal temperature of 165° F.
Note:
- The small amount of cayenne adds a depth of flavor but not heat. Add more for a little bit of spice.
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This chicken is very photogenic, and it looks so flavorful, too! Roasted chicken is always a hit in our house — love this!
Thank you, Marcie! I'm glad you like it!
Your pictures are getting BETTER and better every time I come back- good move on waiting for the natural lighting, I like reading about your struggles with it, (and trying to put it back in the oven, etc.)- I've done all of the same things. I raced home from work the other week to try to take a picture of pot pie at lunch time since it's the only time (other than weekends) I can get natural lighting! Winters are tough! However your pics are perfect and this looks incredible, I love a good rosemary/chicken combo! 🙂
Then on top of all that, you experience accessory malfunction—you know? Like when the napkin is wrinkled and creased where you don't want it and you spend more time fussing around with it to hide the imperfections (and you don't have the motivation or time to iron it out) as the light quickly dwindles on you. Thanks for the vote of confidence on the photos! Always glad to have you stop by!
HAHA yes exactly! Or there is a spot on the plate that you have to get off… or something in the background is messing up the picture, it's endless sometimes!! 🙂 But then there's those VERY rare moments where a picture comes out pretty good fairly painlessly! I wish that happened more often 🙂
So right! Hopefully, with time we will get more of the good moments! But then there are times when you get feeling good about what you did with your pictures then your confidence gets stomped on when Foodgawker rejects your picture, haa haa!
Those are great flavours, it sounds looks great! Thanks for linking up to Sweet and Savoury Sunday, stop by and link up again. Have a great day!! Laura@Baking in Pyjamas
Thanks Laura!
We will just love your Roasted Balsamic Rosemary Chicken, it looks delicious. Thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and hope you are having a great week.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Thank you. We really like it here at my house.
Yum! This looks delicious! Thanks so much for posting this. I am going to make it as soon as possible. Keep posting awesome recipes like this I am way excited to see what is to come!
Thank you also for your sweet words, Kathy. 😉
What kind of pan Do you cook this in?
On a prepared sheet pan. I updated the instructions. Thanks for asking!!
This looks delicious. I am always looking for recipes that use the dark meat!
Thank you Inger! I love how dark meat does not dry out like white meat.
Confession back–I do smaller versions for my posts all the time. Then when I need to re-test, I feel much better about it :). Looks delicious!
It makes perfect sense, Inger. It reduces the excess when you have to test and retest 🙂