Roasted Chicken Provençal Recipe • 5★

Recipe from Steven Stolman

Adapted by Sam Sifton

Updated July 20, 2025

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

This is a recipe I picked up from Steven Stolman, a clothing and interior designer whose “Confessions of a Serial Entertainer” is a useful guide to the business and culture of dinner parties and general hospitality. It is a perfect dinner-party meal: chicken thighs or legs dusted in flour and roasted with shallots, lemons and garlic in a bath of vermouth and under a shower of herbes de Provence. They go crisp in the heat above the fat, while the shallots and garlic melt into sweetness below. You could serve with rice, but I prefer a green salad and a lot of baguette to mop up the sauce. —Sam Sifton

Featured in: The Enduring Appeal of Roasted Chicken Provençal

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4 chicken legs or 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ to ¾ cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons herbes de Provence

8 to 10 cloves garlic, peeled

4 to 6 medium-size shallots, peeled and halved

⅓ cup dry vermouth

4 sprigs of thyme, for serving

Step 1Heat oven to 400 degrees. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Put the flour in a shallow pan, and lightly dredge the chicken in it, shaking the pieces to remove excess flour.

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Put the flour in a shallow pan, and lightly dredge the chicken in it, shaking the pieces to remove excess flour.

Step 2Swirl the oil in a large roasting pan, and place the floured chicken in it. Season the chicken with the herbes de Provence. Arrange the lemon, garlic cloves and shallots around the chicken, then add the vermouth to the pan.

Swirl the oil in a large roasting pan, and place the floured chicken in it. Season the chicken with the herbes de Provence. Arrange the lemon, garlic cloves and shallots around the chicken, then add the vermouth to the pan.

Step 3Put the pan in the oven, and roast for 25 to 30 minutes, then baste it with the pan juices. Continue roasting for another 25 to 30 minutes, or until the chicken is very crisp and the meat cooked through.

Put the pan in the oven, and roast for 25 to 30 minutes, then baste it with the pan juices. Continue roasting for another 25 to 30 minutes, or until the chicken is very crisp and the meat cooked through.

Step 4Serve in the pan or on a warmed platter, garnished with the thyme.

Serve in the pan or on a warmed platter, garnished with the thyme.

I've made this about 5 times now, and it’s not much work relative to the super pay-off. I use a lot more garlic and shallots - like about 20 cloves of garlic and about 1.5 cups of shallots. I found a really good vermouth recently that blows the traditional Martini & Rossi away. The name is Dolin, and it's their blanc style. Found that it tastes great over ice too!Brands of herbes de Provence that have a good amount of fennel seem to flavor this dish the best.

Did you bake with chicken skin side down or up? It's not clear in the recipe.

These are some marvelous and helpful notes. They recall a couple of truisms about the kitchen. First, "a large roasting pan" means different things to different people. One with relatively high sides will yield more "juice" than one with low. Second, oven temperatures vary. Roasting chicken in a 400-degree oven for an hour should almost by definition yield crisp skin. No? Maybe 425 on your oven will yield true 400. Love the idea of adding some knobs of butter! Cook on!

This is the recipe you need for people coming for dinner on a weeknight, or just when you want something that leaves you time for other things. The payoff is high for little work. Honestly, no need to mess with it - 10 garlic cloves, 6 medium thighs and 5 shallots in a 9 x 13 worked out perfectly for us. Served with haricot vests, salad and crusty bread. 62nd street lemon cake for dessert with whipped cream and raspberries. 5 stars.

I have made this many times and am making it again tomorrow for my book club. It's a delicious and simple way to make a great meal. Perfect for when you don't want to be in the kitchen as your guests arrive. I agree more shallots and garlic and maybe more lemon but I prefer serving with a lemon wedge for a fresh finish.

I’ve made this dish, probably a dozen times, and it’s one of my go-to, really simple meals to put together. However, I struggle with a few things. First, there’s never enough liquid in the pan to start basting after the first 30 minutes, so I always have to add more in the second part. Unfortunately, it comes out a little bit too vermouth forward because I’ve added it in the second part of the cook. Second, I think I should be using the leftover liquid to make a gravy or some sort of roux. Lastly, I never find it seasoned enough. While I’m aggressive in my seasoning, I find that I could use more. I’d love to hear thoughts.

Does anyone brown the chicken first? I never do because mine comes out very crispy, but I was wondering if people do

Lastly, what do people like better, chicken leg or thighs?

@SRose pan size may be the issue. Use the smallest pan possible, not a sheet pan. I smash the lemon pieces before basting. Always enough sauce

Adapted from Steven Stolman

Source: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017327-roasted-chicken-provencal