Baked Chicken Thighs
When my oldest daughter was in high school and a couple of moms and I took a group of girls on spring break, I was in chosen to be in charge of all the meals. I made a HUGE pan of these chicken thighs for our group at the beginning of the week. I prepared them in the morning, put them in the oven while we went to the beach or pool that day and they were ready to eat that night for dinner! We had a great meal with chicken, a rice dish, and vegetables. The best part was we had plenty of leftover chicken. Throughout the week, the girls could make chicken quesadillas for lunch and later that week, we had a pasta bar of Spaghetti and Meatballs and Chicken Alfredo. Some girls had just chicken alfredo and others had half plates of each spaghetti and meatballs and chicken alfredo. It was fun, filling, budget-friendly, and delicious!
Do you want a chicken thigh recipe that you can use for different dishes all week? Or freeze and save the cooked chicken for future recipes? Then this dish is for you! These chicken thighs are fall-off-the-bone juicy, and most of all, simple. I usually double the amount and use them in dishes throughout the week. You can use whatever spice you would like, but I placed my two favorite options below. You can make them right away or prepare them the night before and let them marinate. It is totally up to you. The chicken is slow-cooked in the oven at a lower temperature so it just falls-off-the-bone. The skin on the chicken is crisp and the meat is very juicy. Make it a meal and serve with a rice dish, salad or vegetable and cinnamon applesauce; or use the leftover chicken in soups, chicken salad, or make chicken Alfredo later in the week. The options are endless! Let’s get cooking!
Ingredients
1 large package of skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Seasonings – Pick an option
Option (1): Paprika, Onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, basil, parsley
Juice of a lemon (optional)
Option (2): Fresh Rosemary chopped, jarred minced garlic, fresh, sliced lemons
Combine the chicken thighs, olive oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add your desired seasonings. Place in a roasting pan or two smaller baking dishes. Top with a juice of a lemon.
For option (2), combine chicken with the rosemary and garlic. Place in a roasting pan or two smaller baking dishes. Top the chicken with the lemons before baking. Loosely top with foil and bake at 325 degrees F for 2 hours. Uncover, and bake for another 30 minutes to crisp-up the skin on the chicken. Serve immediately.
Before you Begin!
Make sure the pans are deep enough. There will be a significant amount of juice from the meat after baking. You can use a roasting pan with the rack to separate the juices, but I like the juices cooking with the chicken and spooning those juices over rice and the chicken.
