Easy Skillet Chicken Thighs
Updated March 11, 2025
Quick Summary
These crispy and juicy chicken thighs are made in one skillet with a rich, garlic cream sauce. The perfect dinner for busy weeknights or easy entertaining. Simple, flavorful, and easy to clean up!
Crispy Chicken Thighs Made in One Skillet: The Ultimate Easy Dinner
I have a winner, winner chicken dinner for you! This Easy Skillet Chicken Thigh recipe is a family favorite and the #1 dinner recipe on our site! It’s EASY to make and always gets rave reviews.
Chicken thighs are versatile, full of flavor, and absolutely delicious. They stay super juicy, no matter how you cook them. Plus, they are usually less expensive than chicken breasts.
For this recipe, we season the chicken thighs with a simple spice rub and cook them in a hot cast iron skillet so the skin gets nice and crispy, but the chicken stays tender and juicy on the inside.
We also whisk together a simple garlic cream sauce to serve with the chicken. The sauce is INCREDIBLE. We highly recommend serving the skillet chicken thighs with crusty bread or garlic bread to soak up all of that delicious sauce. You can serve a simple kale salad or easy green salad on the side.
This one-skillet chicken meal is the BEST! Make it for dinner tonight. I guarantee it will be a regular meal at your house.
Key Ingredients
You’ll find the full list of ingredients in the recipe card below, but here are some ingredient notes before you get started.
- Chicken thighs: I recommend bone-in skin-on chicken thighs for this recipe. The bone helps retain moisture during cooking, keeping the meat juicy and tender. The skin crisps up beautifully when seared, adding a rich, savory layer of flavor to the chicken. Of course, you can sub boneless chicken thighs, just note that they won’t take as long to cook.
- Spices: Onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika create a simple and flavorful rub for the chicken.
- Sauce: The garlic cream sauce complements the chicken perfectly. It’s made with butter, garlic, shallot, chicken broth (can use white wine), fresh lemon juice, thyme, and heavy cream. They heavy cream makes the sauce rich, creamy, and so luxurious, but you can also use half and half.
The Best Pan to Use
- For best results, use a cast-iron skillet to get that crispy, golden skin.
- A stainless steel skillet will also work. Both pans allow for excellent heat retention and ensure an even sear on the chicken.
- Avoid nonstick pans for this recipe, as they won’t allow the skin to crisp up properly and might not give you the same caramelized flavor.
How to Make Skillet Chicken Thighs
- Prep the Chicken. Pat the chicken thighs dry with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture. This helps ensure a crispy skin when cooking.
- Season. In a small bowl, combine the spices, salt, and black pepper. Season both sides of the chicken generously with the spices.
- Heat the Skillet. In a large cast-iron skillet or stainless steel pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken thighs, skin-side down.
- Sear the Chicken. Let the chicken thighs cook undisturbed for 7-8 minutes, or until the skin is golden brown and crispy. Avoid moving the chicken around, as it may stick to the pan or prevent the skin from crisping properly.
- Flip and Cook Through. Flip the chicken thighs over and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for an additional 12 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Transfer the chicken to a plate and let it rest while you make the sauce.
- Make the sauce. To the same skillet, add the butter, shallot, and garlic. Cook for 1 minute over medium heat. Stir in the broth, fresh lemon juice, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Reduce heat to low and stir in the heavy cream (half and half will work too). Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer. Let it cook for about 5 minutes, allowing the sauce to thicken slightly.
- Finish the dish. Place the chicken back in the pan with the sauce. Garnish with fresh parsley.
- Serve. Plate the chicken thighs and spoon the sauce over the top. Enjoy! If you are looking for a few simple vegetable dishes to serve on the side, try any of the following: roasted broccoli, roasted carrots, garlic mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, or green beans almondine.
Skillet Chicken Thighs Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs, (about 1 ½ pounds)*
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 small shallot, minced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- Freshly chopped parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Use a paper towel to pat the chicken thighs dry.
- In a small bowl, combine the garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, and black pepper. Rub the seasoning mixture all over the chicken thighs, on both sides.
- Heat a large cast iron to medium heat and add the olive oil.
- Place chicken thighs skin side down in the hot skillet and cook, until skin is crispy about 7 to 8 minutes, flip chicken thighs and cook for another 15 to 25 minutes or until internal temp is 165 degrees. The time will vary depending on the size and thickness of your thighs. Transfer chicken to a plate.
- Add the butter, shallot, and garlic to the skillet. Cook for 1 minute. Stir in the chicken broth, lemon juice, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Reduce heat to low and stir in the heavy cream. Simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until sauce thickens up a bit.
- Place the chicken back in the pan with the sauce. Garnish with fresh parsley. Serve the chicken warm with the sauce.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?
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Recipe originally posted May 2022, but updated to include new information and photos.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Teriyaki Chicken– better than takeout and only takes 20 minutes to make.
- Soy Ginger Chicken– the flavors are incredible!
- Honey Mustard Chicken– a family favorite!
- Lemon Butter Chicken– tastes gourmet but is super simple!
- Greek Sheet Pan Chicken– colorful and bursting with flavor! Clean up is a breeze too!
- Honey Mustard Sheet Pan Chicken with Brussels Sprouts– the perfect one pan chicken dinner!
Followed this recipe exact and it was so delicious! I could not stop raving about how good it was while I was eating it. My husband also loved it. I made mine with skinless thighs and served over bow tie pasta. Next time I will trying add some mushrooms. Thanks for sharing this super flavorful yet simple recipe!
I am glad you enjoyed the chicken thighs!
Easy and delicious! Wish I would have had some mushrooms to add to it!
Mushrooms would be a great addition.
my boyfriend does not eat chicken. Ever. not even chicken wings at home or a restaurant. tonight I found myself in a pinch since we just got back from traveling. I had 2 frozen thighs so I par boiled the and cut away the chicken from the bone and removed anything that could resemble “gross” I didn’t tell him however I fried the chicken chucks with the skin and rub, I followed this recipe as close as possible. since I didn’t have cream I used sour cream as another person suggested and used 2 pinches of dried time to the red flakes and tbs of wine to let it soften a bit. once the whole meal was in the pan and coming together I could see his attention growing. the house smelled like a holiday. I only had frozen broccoli and a bag of white instant rice. he knows I usually don’t cut corners so was a bit apprehensive. HE LOVED THIS MEAL! told me to keep it in the rotation and now is more optimistic about chicken. growing up his mom used canned chicken or tuna for everything, including spaghetti. he is 57 years old and ready to discover chicken…… finally. thank you for making my life a bit easier. great recipe!
I am THRILLED he loved it. Nice job!!
Super easy and yummy recipe! My family liked it so much I made it two nights in a row!
So awesome!! A dinner winner!
Great recipe! The family loved it. I served it with mash and marmalade glazed carrots. I added about 2 tablespoons of capers to the sauce at the end to bring out the lemon flavour and some white wine when I deglazed the pan.
I am glad your family loved it!
Delicious recipe for sauce and raw chicken. Make sure your oven is ready to actually cook those chicken thighs once the sauce is thickening
Hi, I’d like to use chicken thighs bone in? Your thoughts?
Ev
You can!
That was a delicious chicken dinner. I added a splash of red wine and only had a lime so used that. I popped it in the oven for about 10 mins when the sauce just started to boil. Took it out of the oven and removed the chicken. The sauce was still runny so I reduced it to thicken. Lovely with mash and broccolini.
Sounds perfect! Thanks for sharing!
This recipe is so good. I highly recommend focaccia with it. The whole family raved about dipping the focaccia in the sauce. Thank you for a great recipe.
One change was I had no pepper flakes so, I added 1/2 tsp cayenne instead.
Oooh, focaccia would be amazing with the chicken. Thanks for sharing!
I made it a bit too spicy so I added cream of mushroom over some box ties. Yummy
Bow ties….
YUM!
Excellent sauce! Full of flavor and very satisfying dish that is now part of our rotation. I used a light white wine instead of stock and let it cook down a little to concentrate the flavor prior to adding the cream. It is a hit with my family. Thank you, Maria!
You are welcome!
First, let me say it was delicious and worthy of 5 stars. I don’t usually pan fry chicken and there was a lot of splatter. I used a 2 quart saucepan, which is pretty deep, but still needed to cover it with a paper plate. No splatter guard here. The thighs were not done after the recommended cooking time. My meat thermometer only made it to 140 degrees. So into the microwave at half power for a minute. Only moved to 150 degrees so used high power for a minute and it was 180 degrees. All good. I used white wine in place of chicken broth. Had to use dried thyme, but fresh would have made it even more awesome. I had to use yogurt to sub sour cream. It didn’t look the best as it got a little clumpy, but the taste was Mmmmm. Thank you for a wonderful recipe. And to the folks who made suggestions on substitutions. Helped me a lot.
I am glad you loved the recipe! Thanks for your comment.
Made this for dinner tonight! Everything was perfect except for it took wayyyy more than 15mins to fully cook my thighs (to be fair, I only have my cheap Walmart Teflon sauce man, not a cast iron pan (though I would LOVE one) so that might be on me). Took me closer to 30mins for the chicken, but I’m horrified of raw chicken despite my handy meat thermometer, so that may also be on me. I also added mushrooms and spinach to the sauce and served it over some brown rice! Wasn’t spicy enough so i added a bit more paprika & some sriracha, and it was perfect! TLDR; this chicken recipe is so good.
Hi! I absolutely love this recipe- it is in our regular family dinner rotation.
I’m planning to make this for an event soon (probably x3 or x4 the recipe). I’ve decided to cook it fully beforehand so that I can simply reheat it the day of the event. Any recommendations for how to reheat this dish in that way if it is prepped ahead of time?
You can reheat in 2 large baking dishes in the oven at 300 or until warmed.
This was soooo good!!
YAY! A dinner winner!
Tried this recipe tonight and it was incredible. Thank you!!!
I just made it , so delicious
Thank you!
You are welcome!
made this for me and my husband it went down really well. the flavours where so beautiful and could taste right through the chicken. highly recommend recipe and so easy to make
I am glad you enjoyed the recipe. Thank you for reporting back.
I made these tonight 02/21/2025. My family of eight rated these thighs a five star. We had them with rice, and mixed veggies. I made extra sauce and fifteen thighs. It did take a little longer but worth the wait. It took about an extra 20-30 minutes due to the quantity. We will have these pan thighs again. Thank you!
I am glad your family loved the recipe. Thank you for leaving a comment.
The recipe is delicious!
The VERY best! Thank you for letting me know!
Trying this tonight! Looks like it will be very tasty!
I hope you enjoyed it! It’s a very popular recipe!
From Australia.
Easy and quick. Looks and tastes like it took a lot more effort than it actually did.
I used skin on bone in chicken thighs, my favourite cut. Used Philadelphia ‘Cream for Cooking’ which doesn’t curdle ever – but not sure if it’s available outside of Australia. Can’t stand parsley (as Ogden Nash said “parsley is ghastly”) so my garnish is dill and tarragon. Will definitely make again.
I love the idea of dill and tarragon. Thank you for sharing. I am glad you loved the recipe!
This was very yummy! I used some champagne. Next time, I will add mushrooms!
Mushrooms are a great addition! I am glad you loved the recipe!