Chicken and Chickpea Bake | Easy One Pan Dinner

This easy chicken and chickpea bake is a hearty one-pan dinner made with tender chicken marylands, chickpeas, green beans and a smoky tomato sauce. It is an easy chicken bake for busy family dinners, with plenty of flavour and very little hands-on cooking.

The chicken cooks slowly in the spiced tomato sauce before the chickpeas and green beans are added towards the end. That means you get tender chicken, chickpeas that hold their shape and vegetables that still have a little bite — all from one baking dish.

If you love flexible dinners that can be adapted for different people at the table, this one is a good addition to your rotation.

Why This Chicken and Chickpea Bake Works

This chicken and chickpea bake is an easy one pan family dinner that keeps prep and washing up to a minimum.

• The chicken, chickpeas, vegetables and sauce all cook together, so there’s less prep and washing up.
• Chicken and chickpeas make this a filling dinner with 50.5g of protein per serve.
• Chickpeas and green beans add fibre while helping make the meal more satisfying.

• Smoked paprika, cumin, coriander and garlic turn everyday ingredients into a really flavourful tomato sauce.
• Green beans cook right in the dish, with plenty of room to add extra vegetables if you have them.
• Serve it as-is or add rice, bread, couscous or potatoes depending on what everyone at the table needs.

Ingredients

Here’s everything you need to make this chicken and chickpea bake at home.

• 4 chicken marylands – Chicken marylands are ideal here because they are flavourful and forgiving. You could also use mixed chicken pieces, chicken thigh cutlets or chicken drumsticks. Cooking time may vary with different sized pieces.
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil – The oil helps coat the chicken with the spices and adds richness to the tomato sauce. Swap for your preferred oil.
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed – Fresh garlic adds plenty of flavour. If you’re short on time, jarred minced garlic works too. For a low FODMAP adaptation: Replace the olive oil with garlic-infused olive oil and omit the fresh garlic.
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika – This gives the dish its smoky flavour without adding chilli heat. For nightshade free, omit the smoked paprika and use black pepper to taste. The finished dish will have a different flavour profile.
• 1 tsp ground cumin – Adds earthy warmth.
• 1 tsp ground coriander – – Balances the smoky paprika and adds a subtle citrusy note.
• 1 tin cherry tomatoes – Cherry tomatoes create a simple, flavourful sauce around the chicken. Crushed tomatoes work just as well if that’s what you have in the pantry. For a nightshade-free option, you could use my nightshade-free pasta sauce thinned with ½–1 cup chicken stock. This substitution has not been tested in this recipe, so the amount of stock may need adjusting depending on the consistency of your sauce.
• 400g chickpeas, drained and rinsed – Chickpeas add texture, fibre and extra protein while helping stretch the meal.
• 1 chicken stock cube – The stock cube adds savoury flavour to the tomato sauce. Check the ingredients if you need the recipe to be gluten free. Chicken stock powder, or concentrate will also work.
• 150g green beans, ends trimmed – Fresh green beans work particularly well, but you can use another quick-cooking vegetable if needed.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Conventional Method

1. Combine the olive oil, garlic, smoked paprika, cumin and coriander.
2. Place the chicken marylands in a baking dish and coat with the spice mixture.
3. Stir the stock cube through the cherry tomatoes and pour them around the chicken.
4. Cook at 200°C for 40 minutes.
5. Stir the chickpeas and beans gently through the tomato sauce and spoon some sauce over the chicken.
6. Return to the oven for 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.

The full step-by-step method with exact quantities, timings and instructions is included in the recipe card below.

Flexible Family Cooking Notes

This recipe is designed for real family life — not perfect Pinterest cooking.

If one person wants extra carbohydrates, serve the chicken and chickpea bake with rice, bread or couscous. If another person prefers more vegetables, add extra green beans or serve a simple vegetable side.

You can also leave the chickpeas out of an individual serve if someone in the family doesn’t enjoy them, while everyone else still gets the same base meal.

That’s the beauty of a flexible family dinner: one meal doesn’t have to look exactly the same on every plate.

Tips for Stress-Free Cooking

• Use trimmed or frozen green beans to save preparation time.
• Keep tins of chickpeas and tomatoes in the pantry for an easy backup dinner.
• Mix the spice coating while the oven preheats.
• Put the whole baking dish in the middle of the table and let everyone serve themselves.
• Make extra if you want an easy lunch the next day.

Pantry Notes

These swaps help you adapt the recipe depending on what you have available.

• No cherry tomatoes? Use crushed or diced tinned tomatoes.
• No chickpeas? Cannellini beans or butter beans are good alternatives.
• No green beans? Try zucchini, peas or another quick-cooking vegetable.
• Want more vegetables? Add extra green beans or serve with roasted vegetables or mashed potato.
• Need more carbohydrates? Serve with rice, couscous, potatoes or crusty bread.

Tools I Use For This Chicken and Chickpea Bake

• Large oven safe baking dish – so there is plenty of space around the chicken for the tomato sauce, chickpeas and vegetables cook properly.
• Sharp knife – a quality sharp knife makes cutting meat easier and safer.
• Wooden spoon – to stir the bake
• Measuring spoons – these double-ended magnetic measuring spoons are great for smaller herb jars.

How to Store Chicken and Chickpea Bake

Allow leftovers to cool before transferring them to an airtight container.

Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Reheat thoroughly in the microwave or in the oven until hot throughout.

The chicken and tomato sauce freeze well. For the best texture, fresh green beans can be added when reheating rather than frozen with the rest of the dish.

How to Adapt This Chicken and Chickpea Bake Recipe

These simple swaps make this recipe easier to adapt for allergies, food intolerances, sensory preferences and different dietary needs.

Flexible cooking doesn’t need to mean cooking separate meals for everyone.

👉 For easy adaptable cooking, learn how to confidently swap everyday ingredients like flour, stock, pasta, soy sauce, and baking staples.

⚠️ The more swaps you make, the more the final result may vary — start simple where possible.

J – Flexible Family Kitchen

Chicken and Chickpea Bake

This easy chicken and chickpea bake combines tender bone-in chicken, chickpeas and green beans in a smoky tomato sauce. Everything cooks together in one dish for a low-effort, family-friendly dinner that's easy to adapt.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 55 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mediterranean, Modern Family-Friendly

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 4 chicken marylands
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tin cherry tomatoes
• 400 g chickpeas drained and rinsed
• 1 chicken stock cube
• 150 g green beans ends trimmed

Method

 

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
2. Add the olive oil, minced garlic, smoked paprika, ground cumin and ground coriander to a small bowl. Stir until well combined.
3. Place the chicken marylands in a large baking dish. Spoon the spice mixture over the chicken and turn the pieces to coat them evenly.
4. Crumble the chicken stock cube into the tin of cherry tomatoes and stir gently to combine.
5. Pour the tomato mixture into the baking dish around the chicken, rather than directly over the chicken. This helps the spice coating stay on the chicken while it cooks.
6. Place the baking dish in the oven and bake for 40 minutes.
7. Remove the dish from the oven. Add the drained and rinsed chickpeas and trimmed green beans to the tomato sauce.
8. Stir the chickpeas and green beans gently through the sauce, taking care not to disturb the chicken too much.
9. Spoon some of the tomato sauce over the chicken pieces.
10. Return the dish to the oven and cook for a further 15 minutes, or until the chicken is completely cooked through.
11. Check the thickest part of the largest chicken piece before serving. Chicken marylands can vary in size, so cooking time may need to be adjusted slightly.

Notes

• Bone-in chicken works best for this recipe. Chicken marylands, thigh cutlets or drumsticks are all good options.
• Chicken pieces can vary in size, so check the thickest part of the largest piece before serving and adjust the cooking time if needed.
• Use canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed. Add them during the final 15 minutes so they keep some texture.
• For a nightshade-free version, see the substitution in the ingredient notes. This variation has not been tested, so the sauce consistency may need adjusting.
• Serve with rice, bread, couscous or potatoes if you want to stretch the meal or add extra carbohydrates.
• Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 3 days and are suitable for freezing.

Serving Suggestions

The chicken, chickpeas, vegetables and tomato sauce make this a complete meal on their own, but there are plenty of ways to adapt it.

• Rice is a simple option when you need to make the meal go further or have family members who prefer a more substantial carbohydrate.
• Bread is perfect for soaking up the smoky tomato sauce.
• Couscous makes this an especially quick weeknight dinner.
• A simple green salad, steamed vegetables or roasted zucchini can add even more vegetables to the meal.

More Flexible Family Recipes

Frequently Asked Questions

Real Food For Real Families

These recipes are designed to help you cook one flexible meal that works for everyone — without making multiple dinners.

I focus on simple ingredients, practical swaps and real-life cooking. You won’t find perfectly styled food or complicated techniques here — just balanced, adaptable meals for busy families.

Because food should nourish you — not control you.

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