Healthy chicken traybake recipe – unofficial Slimming World chicken traybake

If you are looking for an easy weekday chicken meal then this healthy chicken traybake is perfect. With just 10 minutes to assemble and then popping it in the oven, it is a perfect dish for all the family. As a vegetarian myself I can suggest swapping the chicken for Quorn fillets for a vegetarian equally tasty option.

Disclaimer: Just Average Jen is not connected with any weight loss plan. Please check nutritional values and/or syns yourself.

Why chicken traybake is a perfect family meal

This dish is an excellent way to bring the whole family together for dinner. It’s a one-pan meal that is easy to prepare, with minimal prep and clean-up time.

Chicken tray bake is also versatile, allowing you to customize the recipe to your family’s taste. Whether you prefer zesty lemon and herb, classic garlic and onion, or spicy paprika and chilli, there’s a chicken tray bake out there for everyone with easy adaptions.

Plus, the leftovers are perfect for lunch or dinner the next day. Trust us when we say that your family will thank you for cooking up this tasty and satisfying meal.

What chicken should you use?

This healthy chicken traybake is great for any chicken you like. It works well with chicken thighs but if you are not so keen on them then drumsticks or breasts work just as well.

If you are following Slimming World, remove any skin off the chicken before you eat it or syn it accordingly.

Different-sized chicken pieces and different cuts can take slightly different times to cook. To ensure you don’t risk food poisoning the best thing to do is use a kitchen thermometer.

Making this traybake for weight loss

If you follow Slimming World, Weight Watchers (WW), Noom or any other weight loss plan you can usually count the ingredients within this recipe in your allowances.

It is, of course, important to check yourself any plan you follow and remember all nutritional information and ingredients are found in the recipe card below.

Syns of chicken skin

If you like the skin on chicken, then the skin itself is synned at 6.5 syns for 25g. Another way of counting the skin is by weighing the piece of chicken as a whole. For 100g of chicken breast with skin grilled, you would count 2 syns. Roasted chicken drumsticks with skin are 3 syns for 100g and a wing quarter roasted is 5 syns per 100g of chicken.

As you can see the syn value varies considerably so do remember this if you do not get the weight loss you want at the end of the week.

What makes chicken skin unhealthy?

While chicken skin does contain some beneficial nutrients like protein and B vitamins, it also packs a lot of unhealthy saturated fat. Consuming a high amount of saturated fat can increase your cholesterol levels, putting you at risk for heart disease.

So, the bottom line is that while it’s okay to indulge in some chicken skin every now and then, it’s important to keep moderation in mind. As always, it’s all about balance when it comes to maintaining a healthy diet.

Adaptions to try with this recipe

A few easy ways you can adapt this recipe are as follows.

To make a curried healthy chicken traybake marinate the chicken overnight in the fridge before cooking. The easiest way to do this is with fat-free yoghurt and curry powder to your prefered taste.

If you prefer a Chinese flavour, then try the same however with Chinese five-spice – an easy way to slightly change the taste of this popular dish.

If cooking for children, you can always flavour your chicken and leave theirs plain if they prefer.

Using frozen chicken

Chicken for this or any other chicken recipe should never be cooked from frozen, there are so many issues with this that risk food poisoning.

If you have just realised you only have frozen chicken there I have lots of tips to safely defrost chicken check them out in my defrosting chicken guide.

Making Quorn traybake

It is really easy to adapt this recipe to use Quorn, as a vegetarian myself I do it often. It is always worth remembering that Quorn takes less time to cook when substituting it for chicken. It is best with Quorn fillets for a similar flavour.

Check out my selection of Quorn recipes, all perfect for all the family whether vegetarian or not, some are vegan too.

More recipes you may enjoy

If you like a traybake have you tried my sausage traybake yet? Both store well in the fridge for a couple of days so are good to make in advance.

For more chicken recipes check out this huge list of chicken recipes!

Other popular recipes I have that are as easy as this are eggs in ham, chicken and mushroom curry and keema curry.

What sort of dieter are you? Will any of the following guides help?

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