Baked Chicken Thighs are wonderfully seasoned with a crispy skin and super juicy! Easy to bake in the oven and taste great with your favorite sides. No marinating needed. Enjoy this delicious chicken dinner!
If you love this chicken thigh recipe, try this Easy Dijon Chicken Thighs Recipeand Chicken Thighs and Bell Peppers Skillet too.
Table of Contents show
It doesn’t take a lot of fancy ingredients to have a delicious meal. This recipe is a great example of that. I’ve made this chicken recipe so many times, and each time it comes out perfectly.
I always believe that simple is better and can be exactly what you need on a busy weeknight. These chicken thighs in the oven is simple to make but the garlic butter sauce is amazing. This sauce is the base for so many recipes like these ones below:
- Baked Chicken Breast
- Baked Chicken Drumsticks
- Baked Salmon Recipe
- Garlic Butter Lamb Chops Recipe.
I think the best part is that butter sauce goes well with any kind of protein too. I enjoy using this sauce with pork chops, rainbow trout, shrimp, and cod recipes. It adds great flavor to my meals.
ingredients to Make Baked chicken thighs
- Chicken thighs– Use bone-in, skin-on to get the outside crispy while keeping the inside moist.
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil– Substitute any other neutral cooking oil like avocado, canola, or vegetable.
- Garlic– I like to use crush fresh cloves.
- Butter – I used grass-fed butter. Be sure to use unsalted butter.
- Fresh parsley –or use any fresh herb of your choice or use dried herbs such as Italian seasoning!
How to Prepare Chicken Thighs Recipe
Prep the ingredients
- I always use a paper towel to pat dry the chicken thighs.
- Season both sides of the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
Brown and cook chicken thighs
- Add olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Place the chicken thighs in a single layer and cook until skin is golden brown.
- If you’re using a regular nonstick pan, heat oil before adding chicken thighs to prevent sticking.
Make garlic butter and bake the chicken thighs in the oven
- On the side of the pan, melt the butter.
- Add in the garlic and stir to combine. Make sure it’s not on high heat as you don’t want the garlic to burn.
- Place the frying pan in the oven and cook the chicken thighs until they are done. If you don’t have a cast iron pan, transfer everything to a baking tray. If your chicken thighs start darkening excessively while in the oven, cover them with foil until they are fully cooked.
Baste and serve
- Remove from the oven and spoon the garlic butter over the chicken.
- Garnish this oven baked chicken thighs with the chopped parsley before serving.
How To Make Baked Chicken Thighs Video
how long to bake chicken thighs?
1. The cooking time for boneless chicken thighs is about15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of your chicken thighs.
2. For bone-in thighs, it cooks in about 25 and 30 minutes.
Expert Tips
- I always make sure to heat my oven before cooking chicken. A hot oven helps the chicken cook evenly and makes the skin crispy.
- I love using a meat thermometer to ensure that I cook my garlic butter chicken thighs to perfection without overcooking it. The internal temperature should be at 165°F (74°C).
- After you’ve baked the chicken thighs, let them rest for a few minutes before serving. This allows the juices to redistribute, resulting in tender and moist meat.
Storage And Reheating
To Store:Transfer the chicken thighs to an airtight container. I prefer to keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
To Freeze: Simply allow it to cool and then transfer it to a freezer safe container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
To Reheat: Thaw it in the fridge overheat and then, I like to reheat in the oven until warmed through. If you reheat it in the microwave, the skin will be soggy.
What Goes With Chicken Thighs?
- Roasted Vegetables – They’re great side dish to go with any kind of protein, especially with this chicken thighs. Or you can always serve it with mashed potatoes.
- I also love to serve this recipe with my Mushroom Cauliflower Rice Skillet.
- Roasted green beans or roasted sweet potato are good side dishes to go with these baked chicken thighs.
- Potato salad– My favorite potato recipe.
- Broccoli salad– Such an easy and flavourful salad.
Try!
Meat Thermometer
We like this meat thermometer because it ensures that we cook the meat correctly. It also helps cook the meat just right.
Recipe Variations
- Lemon herb: Add fresh lemon juice and zest to the garlic butter mixture. Season with a blend of your favorite herbs.
- Spicy garlic butter: Add red pepper flakes, garlic powder or cayenne pepper to the garlic butter for a spicy kick.
- Honey Dijon mustard: Drizzle a bit of the mixture (honey and mustard) before serving for a luscious touch.
Recommended Tools
- Kitchen tongs: Help you flip chicken thighs one by one without touching the others, giving you better control and grip.
- Cast iron skillet: A cast iron skillet will help you get a nice golden sear on the chicken.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between chicken breast and chicken thighs?
Thighs are more flavorful because their higher fat content, providing moisture and more calories compared to chicken breasts.
Are chicken thighs dark meat?
Yes, they’re considered dark meat as well as drumstick (the legs of the chicken).
Can I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead?
You can definitely swap for boneless skinless chicken thighs. But you would not get that crispy skin though! Don’t need to place them in the oven to finish off as they cook in less than 15 minutes on the stovetop alone. Just sear each side for 5 to 6 minutes.
More Chicken Thigh Recipes
3.60 from 4398 votes
Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs
Garlic butter baked chicken thighs are easy to make and taste great with your favorite sides. Make this recipe for dinner tonight in just 30 minutes!
Prep: 10 minutes minutes
Cook: 35 minutes minutes
0 minutes minutes
Total: 45 minutes minutes
Servings: 5 people
PrintRate
Video
Ingredients
US CustomaryMetric
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 400F degrees. Moveovenrackto center. Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towel and season all over with salt and black pepper.
Heat olive oil in a cast iron skillet (10-inch) over medium heat. Place the chicken thighs skin-side down and sear until the skin is golden and crispy. It takes about 5 minutes to cook them through at this point.
Flip your chicken over once the skin is crispy. If your chicken thighs releases a lot of fat, dispose it using a spoon.
Place butter in the same skillet. When the butter melts, add minced garlic. Stir the garlic around the pan for 30 seconds.
Place the whole skillet in the oven and bake for 30 mins for until chicken gets the internal temperature at 165°F.
When the chicken is cooked, spoon some of the garlic butter sauce over the top of each chicken thigh. Top with parsley before serving.
Tips
- Click HERE to watch the web story.
- If you do not have an oven-safe skillet, you can transfer the chicken thighs to a baking dish (baking sheet or sheet pan) to bake.
- Make sure to get chicken thighs with the bone in and skin on for maximum flavour.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1/5 Calories: 214kcal Carbohydrates: 1g Protein: 15g Fat: 18g Cholesterol: 96mg Sodium: 130mg Potassium: 15mg
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.
© Author: Olivia Ribas
Similar Recipes:
Baked Chicken Breast Recipe
Garlic Butter
Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Drumsticks
Easy Baked Chicken Thighs
Reader Interactions
Leave a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Szilvia Patakine says
Was very tasty! It reminded me my Mother cooking back home.
Reply
Olivia says
Awww how sweet! I love to hear that 😉
Reply
David Conn says
So freakin fast, easy and awesome!! Any friends/family thinks I did something spectacular. Really didn’t do much! Thanks for an awesome easy recipe!
Reply
Olivia says
Awww your comment made my day! Happy you enjoyed this recipe 😉
Reply
Norma Mont says
Absolutely delicious. Great flavor and very juicy. It was so simple and quick too!!
Reply
Olivia says
Awesome! Happy you liked it.
Reply
Annie says
Excellent recipe. A really delicious meal, that I served with mashed yukon golds and sautéed zucchini. I did add a couple of things…I added one more garlic clove, and before putting it in the oven, I added about 1/4 cup of white wine, and quartered baby bellas. It was a huge hit, and NOT the last time I’ll make it. I also set a timer, and basted it with the butter every 10 minutes. Delicious!
Reply
Olivia says
Thank you! I’m delighted to hear you enjoyed the recipe and made some delicious additions. Your choice of serving with mashed Yukon golds and sautéed zucchini sounds fantastic!
Reply
Caroline Glaser says
Your recipe doesn’t include the oven temperature.
Reply
Olivia says
It does, it’s on the recipe card box below the post!
Reply
Older Comments
