Sheet Pan Chicken with Fall Veggies

Chicken thighs are seasoned to perfection and roasted alongside sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and apples for a simple and delicious dinner in this sheet pan chicken and veggies.

My favorite kinds of weekends at home are those that could be considered borderline mundane; where we don’t have any plans except the regular ebb and flow of our routine, relaxation and adult responsibilities.

A highlight of these slower weekends is cooking dinners like Mom’s award-winning chili or this sheet pan chicken and veggies and spending leisurely Saturday mornings at the farmers market.

Why you’ll love this sheet pan chicken recipe

I thought I appreciated easy dinners when it was just my husband and me. But now that I have kids, I really love meals that are easy to make and require minimal cleanup.

This sheet pan chicken and veggies checks both of those boxes! Plus, it’s easy to meal prep. 

For this recipe, we combine juicy, perfectly seasoned chicken thighs with some of my favorite fall vegetables: Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, and apples. (I know that apples are a fruit, but in this recipe we treat them like a veggie!)

Everything gets roasted up on two sheet pans. You don’t even need to dirty any mixing bowls for this one. See? I told you it was easy cleanup! 

(Pro tip: Line the sheet pans with heavy-duty foil and you will have even fewer dishes to wash!)

You’ll get the perfect mix of savory and sweet in every bite—a mix that is totally perfect for fall.

You can serve the roasted chicken and vegetables with brown rice or enjoy them on their own, no extra sides required.

Sourcing seasonal ingredients at your local farmers market

One thing I adore about making this sheet pan chicken and veggies is that I can pick the ingredients up at any of my grocery stores, or I can source them from the farmers market.

I grew up going to the Eastern Market on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, with my parents. And now, one of my favorite Saturday morning routines is perusing the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market or one of our other Charlotte-area farmers markets.

If you are just starting to explore your local farmers market, I always recommend talking to the vendors.

Chatting with the farmers is not only fun, but super interesting. They are always happy to teach you about the products you’re buying, give recommendations on new things to try, and even share recipes or cooking techniques.

Through getting to know your local farmers, you may even find other programs to participate in, such as a CSA farm share.

Of course, there are tons of produce options at farmers markets! But beyond seasonal fruits and veggies, most markets will also carry local food products, dairy, eggs, baked goods, honey, wine, and even meat, like locally raised beef, pork and chicken.

At most markets, you can get what you need for this recipe, sweet potato breakfast hash, chicken salad, and my favorite breakfast casserole.

At bigger markets, you can even get what you need for chicken with muscadine grapes, seared duck breast, and roasted chicken with blueberry gastrique.

What you’ll need to make this recipe

This sheet pan chicken has a simple list of ingredients, allowing the flavors of each of them to really shine. You’ll need:

• Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs: I like to use chicken thighs because they have the most flavor and don’t dry out as easily. Using bone-in, skin-on chicken also helps add extra flavor. You can use chicken breasts if you prefer.
• Olive oil: For marinating the chicken and roasting the vegetables.
• Garlic: Use fresh garlic for the best flavor.
• Fresh rosemary: Rosemary goes great with the flavors of the chicken and the fall vegetables, but you can use thyme instead of or in addition to the rosemary if you like.
• Salt and pepper: We can’t forget salt and freshly ground black pepper to season the dish.
• Fall veggies: I like to use sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, apple, and red onion. You can use your own favorite seasonal vegetables, though!

Check out the recipe card below for the full recipe and list of ingredients, including amounts.

How to make sheet pan chicken and veggies

This sheet pan chicken recipe is SO EASY and only requires a couple of sheet pans.

First, marinate the chicken. Add the chicken to a bowl or gallon-size zip-top bag along with ⅓ cup of the olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Make sure the chicken is coated in the oil and herbs and let this chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

While the chicken is marinating, this is a good time to chop up your vegetables.

When your chicken is ready to go, line two sheet pans with parchment or foil sprayed with nonstick spray. Remember, we’re going for easy cleanup later!

To one pan, add the sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, apple, and onion. Toss with the remaining olive oil and another generous pinch of salt and pepper, then spread into an even layer.

Place the chicken pieces on the second pan.

Roasting the vegetables and chicken separately allows all of the ingredients to cook evenly without the veggies steaming in the juice from the chicken.

Soggy Brussels sprouts are the worst — I’m just trying to save you from that.

Using two pans also means you can easily take one pan out of the oven if the chicken is done before the veggies are, or vice versa.

Place the pan with the vegetables on the upper rack of your oven and the pan with the chicken on the lower rack. Roast at 425℉ for 30-40 minutes, or until the veggies are browned and cooked through. 

Take the pan with the vegetables out of the oven. Move the chicken to the top rack and turn on the broiler.

Broil the chicken for about 5 minutes, or until the skin is browned and crispy. The internal temperature at the thickest part of the meat should read 165℉ on an instant-read thermometer.

Meal prep tips

This is a great recipe for meal prepping. You can either prep the components ahead of time to roast later, or make the whole recipe on a Sunday for hearty, delicious lunches throughout the week.

You can marinate the chicken thighs overnight. Prep them the night before or in the morning before work and let marinate while you’re at work.

Cut up the vegetables and store them in an airtight container in the fridge until you’re ready to use them.

Then all you have to do is preheat the oven, get everything onto the sheet pans, and bake!

You can also cook the recipe as written, then let the chicken and veggies cool off before packing them up in individual portions and storing in the refrigerator. 

For lunch, we usually eat about 3-4 ounces of chicken atop the roasted veggies and just reheat the individual servings quickly in the microwave or warm it up in the oven.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs?

Yes! If you prefer white meat over dark meat, bone-in/skin-on chicken breasts will work just fine. The cook time would be the same. 

Can I use other veggies if I don’t like Brussels sprouts or they aren’t in season?

Yes!

But first…if you’ve never had roasted Brussels sprouts, I encourage you to give them a try first. Crispy Brussels sprouts—like the ones in this recipe—are so delicious and not at all like the soggy sprouts we were fed growing up.

But other veggies will definitely work here, too!

In the summer, squash and zucchini and peppers would not only be colorful, but super yum. In the early fall, acorn and butternut squash would also be delicious.

In the cold of winter, try using a variety of root vegetables such as carrots and turnips along with the sweet potatoes and red onion.

The flavors in this recipe are versatile and would compliment basically any type of vegetable! Just make sure to pay attention to the cooking times for softer veggies such as zucchini and peppers, since they won’t need to cook as long as root vegetables do.