sheet pan meals

How to Make a Chicken Sheet Pan Meal

~ SL ~ Leave a comment

This post was written in a paid partnership with Manitoba Chicken Producers. As always, all opinions are my own and I only promote products and services that I use and love.

Sheet pan meals are my absolute favorite quick weeknight meal because you can prep them entirely ahead of time. While they’re baking, your hands are free to do other tasks, like empty the dishwasher or prep for the next day’s meal. This Sheet Pan Pomegranate Orange Chicken recipe from manitobachicken.ca looks festive and contains warm spices like cinnamon and cumin as well as fresh orange and pomegranate.

Sheet pans are versatile

The great thing about this cooking method is that you can use any vegetable, and seasoning that you like. For example, this recipe contains squash, which we’re all not crazy about in our house so I’m swapping it for sweet potato. There are a few other substitutions you could make in this recipe if you don’t have the ingredients, for example, you can use carrots instead of parsnips, or cranberry juice instead of pomegranate juice.

This sheet pan builder shows you how to use any cut of fresh Manitoba chicken to make endless sheet pan combinations.

Choosing chicken

Depending on the cut of chicken you decide to use, your cooking time will vary. This is something to consider when you’re looking for a quick weeknight meal and want to keep the cook time within 30 minutes. Bone-in pieces such as breasts, thighs and drumsticks, wings and drumettes will take the longest to cook. Whole chicken breasts and ground chicken meatballs will cook within the 30 minute time-frame and you can even shave that down to 20-25 minutes by thinly slicing boneless skinless chicken breasts, for example for fajitas.

Prepping components

When prepping components for your meal, you can chop all of the veggies, and marinate the chicken. Combine your ingredients, marinate and store in a freezer bag or container overnight to let the marinade work its magic.

For the Sheet Pan Pomegranate Orange Chicken recipe, you will need to chop the vegetables and make the sauce, which is tossed with the vegetables and chicken prior to baking.

Alternatively, you can also use dry seasonings and spices that don’t require marinating. When I use this method, I like to drizzle a sauce on top when the pan comes out of the oven, like balsamic reduction, pesto, or a squeeze of roasted or fresh citrus like lemon, lime, or orange.

Cooking sheet pan meals

I have learned that the perfect temperature for these meals is 425°F for 25 minutes. It’s important to note that oven temperatures can vary and some cuts of chicken take longer to cook than others, depending on the size of the pieces and if they are bone-in pieces. Even if you are following a recipe, always use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. You know that chicken pieces are fully cooked when the thermometer reads 165°F or 74°C.

When cooking at this temperature, I like to cut veggies in approximately 1-inch pieces. This ensures that they don’t overcook and burn or get too mushy.

Space your ingredients out on your tray if you like crispier vegetables. If you crowd them on the pan, as shown in the image above, it will create a lot of steam, giving the vegetables a softer texture. Consider using two sheet pans if you like crispy veggies.

Different combinations

There are many great chicken sheet pan combinations on manitobachicken.ca like this Sheet Pan Lemon Chicken that we shared last week on the Cooking Comfort Facebook Live Event. You can watch it here if you missed it and would like some meal prep tips for making sheet pans.

Here are a few more of my favorite combinations:

Sheet Pan Chicken and Sweet Potatoes with Warm Spice
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
Chicken Teriyaki w/pineapple (chicken breasts, mushrooms, pineapple, bell peppers)
Lemon Basil Chicken meatballs w/tomatoes and pesto

Try one of these done-for-you ideas or use this sheet pan builder to create your own!

Perogy & Farmer Sausage Sheet Pan w/ Mushrooms

~ SL

I’m always looking for low-maintenance weeknight meals, so that I can get them in the oven, and tend to other tasks, like prepping for the next day’s meal, making lunches, emptying the dishwasher or sitting down for a break at the end of a long day. This perogy sheet pan does just that.

Use ingredients from your freezer

This is a great back-up plan if your intended meal doesn’t come to fruition. Frozen perogies, smoked sausage and vegetables (fresh or frozen) are all tossed on one tray so that you can pop it in the oven and do something else while you wait for it to be ready. You can also try to find local perogies (especially here in Winnipeg) like these ones from Sevalas, which we love.

Choose your veggies

I used mushrooms when I made this, because that’s what I had, but you could use any combination of vegetables that you like or have on hand. Onions, peppers, cauliflower and brussels sprouts will all work well in this dish.

Butter is better

I usually use oil for most sheet pan recipes but for this one, you really have to go with butter. It adds so much flavor to the perogies and the mushrooms. You’re going to want to drizzle some butter over it once it’s cooked too.

One sheet pan or two?

Typically, I like to use two pans when making sheet pan meals so that the veggies can crisp up. If the ingredients are too crowded on one pan, they will steam and be soft. For this recipe, I like to stick to one pan, because the perogies tend to dry out. Make sure the perogies are the bottom layer, so they can soak up the moisture from the veggies and the sausage.

Feeling adventurous?

You can take this to the next level and add some fun condiments to this like Three Herb Pesto or Big Batch Freezer Friendly Chimichurri. This Everything Spice, would also add interesting texture and flavor to this dish. Make a side salad with this Poppy Seed Vinaigrette to complete this meal.

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Perogy & Farmer Sausage Sheet Pan w/Mushrooms

A quick and easy weeknight meal using ingredients from your freezer.

Course Main Course
Keyword dill, farmer sausage, mushrooms, perogies, sheet pan, sheet pan dinner, sheet pan meal
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings 6
Author SL

Ingredients

  • 1 bag frozen perogies
  • 530 g farmer sausage (two links)
  • 2 cups sliced cremini mushrooms
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder
  • 1 tbsp dill weed
  • salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven at 425 F.

  2. Combine perogies & mushrooms in a large bowl.

  3. Melt butter and pour over perogies and mushrooms. Toss to coat.

  4. Sprinkle with dill, garlic powder, salt & pepper.

  5. Cover a sheet pan with parchment paper.

  6. Spread perogies and mushrooms evenly on the pan. Top with sliced farmer sausage.

  7. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

  8. Toss with another 1/4 cup melted butter before serving if desired.

Recipe Notes

Any vegetable can be used here. Some good options are: onions, bell peppers, cauliflower (fresh or frozen), broccoli, brussels sprouts. 

*If using brussels sprouts, cook them on a separate pan so they crisp up nicely.