Recipe onlinefamilyhomerecipes.com/recipe/buttermilk-roast-chicken-with-lemon-and-dill/Scan the code to open the recipe on your phone

Main dishes

Buttermilk roast chicken with lemon and dill

Name: Buttermilk roast chicken with lemon and dill
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Slovak
Ingredients: 1 Whole chicken (cut into pieces); 2 cups Buttermilk; to taste Dill; to taste Lemon zest; 1.5 tsp Salt; 1 tsp Black pepper

Chicken quarters marinated in buttermilk, dill, and lemon zest, then roasted at 250°C for about 25 minutes. Makes 4 servings.

Slovak cuisine · Translated from Slovak · October 24, 2026

Save on Pinterest

Recipe at a glance

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Temperature: 250 °C (480 °F)
Servings: 4 servings
Difficulty: Easy
Cuisine: Slovak

Jump to recipe

Roast chicken in a buttermilk marinade with lemon zest is a simple dish that lets time in the refrigerator do most of the work. The marinade of buttermilk, chopped fresh dill, lemon zest, salt, and pepper comes together in a few minutes, and the quartered chicken can marinate in it for a full day. Buttermilk tenderizes the meat, keeping it juicy, while high-temperature roasting turns the skin golden and crisp. Before roasting, simply pat the pieces dry and put them in an oven preheated to 250°C (480°F) for about 25 minutes, or longer for the legs, making this a good option for dinner after work.

Ingredients

4 servings

Whole chicken (cut into pieces) 1
Buttermilk 2 cups
Dill to taste
Lemon zest to taste
Salt 1.5 tsp
Black pepper 1 tsp

1 cup = 250 ml (metric cup)

Tick off what you already have at home. Send the rest as a shopping list.

Instructions

Tip: tap a step to mark it as done.

Pour the buttermilk into a large bowl. Add the chopped fresh dill, grated lemon zest, salt, and pepper, and mix well. Taste the marinade and add more salt if needed.
Add the quartered chicken and coat it thoroughly in the marinade. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, ideally for a full 24 hours.
Preheat the oven to 250°C (480°F). Meanwhile, remove the chicken from the marinade and pat it dry with paper towels. Arrange the chicken in a roasting pan and roast at this high temperature for about 25 minutes.
Check the thighs near the bone: the meat must not be pink, and the juices must run clear. If using a thermometer, the thickest part should reach 70°C (158°F) for at least 2 minutes or 75°C (167°F) for 30 seconds, according to the British Food Standards Agency (FSA). The breasts usually finish cooking sooner; if the thighs are not yet done, remove the breasts and continue roasting the thighs.

Tip: Choose a roasting pan large enough to hold the pieces side by side without crowding; crowded pieces will release juices that keep the skin from crisping.

Nutrition facts

Approximate values per serving, calculated from the ingredients

Energy: 537 kcal
Protein: 46 g
Carbohydrates: 6.7 g
of which sugars: 7.0 g
Fat: 35 g
of which saturates: 11 g
Fiber: 0.2 g
Salt: 3.1 g

Calculated from the raw ingredients, without frying oil. Where an amount is “to taste”, typical amounts are used. Food composition: USDA FoodData Central and product labels.

This recipe was translated from the Slovak original: Pečené kurča v cmarovej marináde s citrónovou kôrou