One-Pan Meals
One-Pan Lemon Garlic Chicken
Bone-in chicken thighs give you crisp skin and a built-in pan sauce with almost no effort. Everything happens in one skillet — sear, deglaze, simmer — which means dinner is ready in well under an hour and cleanup takes minutes.
10 minPrep Time
25 minCook Time
35 minTotal Time
4Servings
EasyDifficulty
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 3/4 cup chicken broth
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
Method
- Dry and season. Pat the chicken thighs completely dry with paper towels — this is what gets you crisp skin. Season both sides generously with salt and pepper.
- Sear. Heat the olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Lay the thighs skin-side down and let them sear undisturbed for 6 to 7 minutes, until the skin is deep golden brown and releases easily from the pan. Flip and sear the other side for 4 minutes, then remove the chicken to a plate.
- Build the sauce. Lower the heat to medium and add the garlic to the fat left in the pan. Cook for 30 seconds until fragrant, then pour in the chicken broth and lemon juice, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Simmer. Nestle the chicken back into the pan, skin-side up, along with the lemon slices. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover, and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Finish. Transfer the chicken to a plate. Whisk the butter into the sauce until glossy, then spoon it over the chicken. Scatter with parsley and serve.
Note: Boneless, skinless thighs work too — just reduce the sear time by about a minute per side and the simmer time by 3 to 4 minutes, since they cook faster. Serve over rice or with crusty bread to soak up the sauce.
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