Roasted Chicken With Dates and Olives

Name: Roasted Chicken With Dates and Olives
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 9 h 30 min
Total time: 10 h
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
Cuisine: Jewish
Ingredients: 2 whole broiler chickens (about 3½ pounds each), cut into quarters, or 6 to 8 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken pieces, such as whole legs, thighs or breasts (see Tip); 2 teaspoons coarse salt, or to taste; 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste; ½ cup white wine; Juice of 2 lemons (about ½ cup); ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil; ¼ cup fresh rosemary leaves; ¼ cup fresh thyme leaves; 2 whole preserved lemons, seeded and coarsely chopped, plus 3 or 4 tablespoons of brine from the jar; 2 tablespoons chopped garlic (about 4 large cloves); ¼ cup chicken broth, plus more if needed; 2 cups dates (about 10 ounces), each pitted and sliced into 4 wide rounds; 2 cups green Castelvetrano olives, pitted and sliced into 4 rounds; 1 cup capers, drained (about 4½ ounces)

Recipe from Tara Lazar

Adapted by Joan Nathan

Updated March 31, 2026

Christopher Simpson for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Media 1 of 1

Ready In: 10 hr
: (2 hr; overnight marinating)
Rating: 4(102)
Comments: Read comments

If you want a bold-flavored chicken dish to please a crowd at your Passover Seder or any time of year, try this one, adapted from Birba in Palm Springs, Calif. Both sweet and savory, the roasted brined chicken caramelizes beautifully in the oven and gets garnished with bright green Castelvetrano olives, preserved lemons, capers and dates. The only tricky part is cutting up the whole broiler chickens, preferred for their dainty size by Ms. Lazar. If pulling out kitchen shears feels like overload, you can use store-bought chicken pieces instead. Marinated — and even roasted — in advance (see Tip), this chicken makes serving for a big crowd a seamless affair.

Featured in: A Passover Chicken With California Cool

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Ingredients

Yield:8 to 10 servings

2 whole broiler chickens (about 3½ pounds each), cut into quarters, or 6 to 8 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken pieces, such as whole legs, thighs or breasts (see Tip)
2 teaspoons coarse salt, or to taste
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
½ cup white wine
Juice of 2 lemons (about ½ cup)
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¼ cup fresh rosemary leaves
¼ cup fresh thyme leaves
2 whole preserved lemons, seeded and coarsely chopped, plus 3 or 4 tablespoons of brine from the jar
2 tablespoons chopped garlic (about 4 large cloves)
¼ cup chicken broth, plus more if needed
2 cups dates (about 10 ounces), each pitted and sliced into 4 wide rounds
2 cups green Castelvetrano olives, pitted and sliced into 4 rounds
1 cup capers, drained (about 4½ ounces)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

1. Step 1
  Trim away and discard any excess fat from the chicken pieces, then put the chicken in a large bowl or casserole dish. Sprinkle with the salt and black pepper, add the wine, lemon juice, olive oil, rosemary, thyme, preserved-lemon brine, garlic and ¼ cup chicken broth. Massage into the chicken. Cover and let marinate in the fridge overnight.
2. Step 2
  Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Put the chicken pieces onto a large sheet pan, skin side up, pour the marinade evenly over the top and cover tightly with the foil. Roast for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and let the chicken roast for about 15 more minutes, until cooked through and golden brown. You can put it under the broiler for a minute or two at the end to get it nice and brown.
3. Step 3
  Remove the chicken from the oven and, if serving immediately, carefully pour a few spoonfuls of the pan juices into a medium bowl and reserve.
4. Step 4
  Sprinkle the chopped preserved lemons, dates, olives and capers over the chicken and drizzle the reserved pan juices on top. Roast for 10 or 15 minutes more, just enough to heat through and caramelize the dates.
5. Step 5
  Transfer the pieces of chicken and their toppings to a beautiful platter, pour any remaining juices over top, and serve.

Tips

If you don’t want to cut up small broiler chickens, you can easily use your preferred standard cut-up chicken parts such as whole legs, drumsticks, breasts and thighs.
To make ahead, refrigerate or freeze the dish after Step 3. Defrost in the fridge overnight if frozen, then continue with Steps 4 and 5.

Private Notes

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Ratings

4 out of 5

102 user ratings

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Comments

Frederick Tibbetts2 weeks ago

Whenever you cook with dates, it’s helpful to let them soften first. Place split dates in a small bowl with white wine to barely cover, and let them soak for about twenty minutes before adding them at Step 4.

Prakash Nadkarni2 weeks ago

The recipe seems both simple and delicious. It's amusing, though, that Step 1 calls for discarding excess chicken fat: schmaltz (rendered chicken fat) is a staple of traditional Ashkenazi Jewish cooking, though this recipe appears to be Sephardic/Mizrahi-inspired. Poultry fat is also revered in country-style French/European cooking: it jazzes up potatoes and other starches, and adds umami to sautéed cabbage & broccoli.

JJ2 weeks ago

@Sybil Franklin At the end of step two, Joan instructs to put the pan of chicken under the broiler for a minute or two to get it nice and brown. This recipe is a nice change of pace for those of us who have been enjoying chicken Marbella for years. I love one commenter’s suggestion to soak the dates in white wine for 20-30 minutes to soften them up. That tip is a keeper!

Ralph Sessa1 week ago

I read the comments beforehand and saw a few people mention that while the flavor was great, the chicken didn’t brown enough and looked a bit underdone. I made a few adjustments that worked really well for me: I baked it covered at 350 for about an hour, then uncovered it, raised the temp to 375, and baked another 30 minutes to get a nice color. After that, I added the dates, olives, capers, and lemons and baked for a final 15 minutes. Delicious. BTW...this is my first time commenting here!

T1 week ago

The picture of the chicken in this dish looked raw. The instructions however speak of cooking the chicken until it browns.

Chris1 week ago

This recipe did not go over well. The chicken wasn't flavored with dates or olives, and only occasionally with lemon. I don't suggest it.

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