Today I bring you one of my basic recipes for busy days. There is no shame in admitting that even as a full-time food blogger sometimes I find myself not wanting to cook — crazy huh?
And because I’m not intending to order a Domino’s pizza every time this happens, I have a good bunch of recipes that are so easy that it’s almost like ordering a takeaway.
For these oven baked chicken thighs, you will only need some olive oil and your herbs selection. I always try to keep a good variety of herbs in my kitchen. This has helped me to give different flavor profiles to the same ingredient— in this case, chicken.
So, for my most basic chicken thigh recipe I use an Italian inspired herb mix:
- Thyme
- Orégano
- Red pepper flakes
- Garlic powder
- Black pepper
- + drizzle olive oil
Chicken thighs are one of the most greasy parts of the chicken, especially if you let the skin on. This is not a bad sign, on the contrary, it gives way more flavor to the meat. For this reason, I keep the amount of olive oil lower than when I cook chicken breast. A drizzle is more than enough (1 tsp to coat the bottom of the baking tray).
Now the part where most people tend to fail when cooking chicken thighs in the oven: the cooking time.
A perfect oven baked chicken thigh must be fully cooked yet moist and have a crispy skin with some dark spots.
For medium size chicken thighs with the bone I use 20 minutes baking at 180ºC and 10 minutes broiling mode at 220ºC.
Also, I like to start baking with the skin down and then skin up when it’s time for broiling mode. This way I get a crispier skin.
I hope you enjoy this recipe and I see you in the next one!
Oven baked chicken thighs
Ingredients
- 4- 6 chicken thighs
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp thyme
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp olive oil
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix all the ingredients except for the olive oil. Make sure that the chicken thighs are evenly coated with the herbs.
- Grease a baking tray with the olive oil and place the seasoned chicken thighs skin down.
- Take it to the oven at 180ºC (350ºF) for 20 minutes. Change the oven setting to “broil” and raise the temperature to 220ºC (420ºF). Flip the chicken thighs skin up and cook for 10 minutes until the skin is crispy.
I’m Maria and I love cooking—and mostly EATING—food from all around the world. I’ve been sharing my abuela’s secret Latin-American recipes for the last 7 years with the world on this blog. I’ve been a full-time food blogger for many years and I’m always trying new delicious meals that don’t require a culinary degree or a Michelin-star chef. I also love traveling, cats, and knitting.