‘Tis the season for comfort food like the Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs I’m sharing with you today! This budget-friendly recipe has been a go-to of ours over the past few months and I’m so excited for you to give it a try. It’s inexpensive, easy, made in 1 skillet, and my whole family cleans their plates. Ah, the power of chicken thighs!
Chicken Thighs vs Chicken Breasts
If you haven’t ventured into the world of chicken thighs, it’s time. Not only do bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs cost a fraction of boneless, skinless chicken breasts – we’re talking ~50% less – they knock them out of the park in the taste and texture department. Juicy, full of flavor, and that crispy skin? There’s nothing better. This particular dish calls for browning bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs on the stovetop until the skin is ultra crispy, then roasting them in the oven nestled in a pan sauce that’s delicately flavored with lemon, shallots, and garlic. I serve the chicken over cooked white rice to sop up the luscious pan sauce. Not only are these pan-roasted chicken thighs inexpensive and family-friendly, they’re a cinch to make. Follow the recipe once and it’ll be committed to memory for next time.
How to Pan Roast Chicken Thighs
Start by trimming the excess skin and fat from 2lbs bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 6 thighs.) You can see how much more inexpensive these are than chicken breasts – $2.99/lb vs the usual $5-7!
Season both sides of the chicken thighs with homemade seasoned salt and pepper then add 1/3 cup gluten free flour (or AP flour if you don’t need to eat GF) to a shallow dish and season liberally with more seasoned salt and pepper.
Coat each chicken thigh in the seasoned salt, tapping any excess off.
Heat a large, oven-proof skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high heat then add 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the chicken thighs skin side down then saute until the skin has browned, 3-4 minutes. Feel free to move the thighs around a bit if they start to scorch in places. Flip the thighs then saute until the second side has browned, then remove the thighs back to the plate.
The thighs don’t need to be cooked all the way through at this point.
Pour out all but ~2 Tablespoons fat from the skillet then turn the heat down to medium. Add 1 jumbo shallot or small onion that’s been chopped, season with seasoned salt and pepper, then saute until the shallots begin to soften, 2-3 minutes. Add 4 cloves minced garlic then saute for 30 more seconds.
Next add 1-1/2 cups chicken broth and the juice from 1/2 lemon then turn the heat up to bring the liquid to a boil. Turn the heat back down then simmer until the sauce has slightly thickened and would come about halfway up the chicken thighs once they’re placed back into the skillet.
Nestle the browned chicken thighs plus any juices from the plate into the sauce then carefully cover the skillet with foil – you don’t need a tight crimp or anything, just pat down the sides.
Roast for 15 minutes at 375 degrees then scoop a spoonful of the sauce + shallots/onions on top of each chicken thigh. Turn the heat up to 425 degrees (no need to wait until it gets all the way there) then place the skillet back into the oven without the foil to finish cooking and brown the onions on top, 12-15 more minutes.
When the thighs go back into the oven for the second time, cook a pot of rice to serve under the thighs and soak up all that delicious pan sauce. Scoop the rice into bowls then top with the sizzling chicken and a spoonful of sauce. You are going to LOVE these easy, pan roasted chicken thighs – enjoy!
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