Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs
Is there any food that isn’t good when drenched in garlic butter? It’s the easiest, most fool-proof way to make something insanely delish. So, because it’s the week after Thanksgiving and I don’t feel like spending a lot of time in the kitchen, I whipped up these quick Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs. They only require about five minutes of prep, about 30 minutes in the oven, and then they’re ready to eat!
Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs
What to Serve with Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs
First things first, you’ll have a lot of delicious lemony garlic butter in the bottom of your baking dish, so you definitely want to serve this chicken with something to soak it up, or spoon it over. Today I served mine with Rosemary Roasted Potatoes and some simple steamed green beans, both of which benefited from a generous drizzle. Garlic Herb Mashed Potatoes would also be awesome, as would some Homemade No Knead Bread, or even just a bed of rice.
Can You Make This With Chicken Breast?
The cooking times and temperatures listed below are specific to boneless, skinless chicken thighs. If you prefer boneless chicken breast, I suggest following the instructions in my Garlic Herb Baked Chicken Breast recipe. Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs will require a longer cooking time, but unfortunately I have not tested this with that type of chicken so I don’t know the exact time needed.
For the Best Results, Use a Meat Thermometer
Ovens can vary, baking dishes can vary, the size of chicken thighs can vary. All of these factors can affect baking time, which is why it’s so important to have a meat thermometer. The digital meat thermometer (affiliate link) I use is extremely affordable and let’s me know without a doubt whether my meat is cooked to a safe temperature, and whether I’m in danger of overcooking my meat. ;)
Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp butter ($0.40)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced ($0.32)
- 1/4 tsp paprika ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- freshly cracked pepper ($0.02)
- 1 fresh lemon ($0.79)
- 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional) ($0.10)
- 5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1.25 lbs.) ($4.36)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place the butter in a bowl and microwave for about 30 seconds, or until the butter is melted. Stir in the minced garlic, paprika, salt, some freshly cracked pepper (about 1/8 tsp), and about a tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley. Stir to combine.
- Place the chicken thighs in an 8x8" baking dish. Spoon the garlic butter mixture over the chicken thighs, using the back of the spoon to spread it over the surface of the chicken.
- Slice the lemon into half-rounds. Scatter the lemon pieces around the chicken in the dish.
- Transfer the baking dish to the oven and bake the chicken for 30-35 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken thighs reaches 165ºF.
- Use a spoon to drizzle the baking juices over top of the chicken, then sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley over top just before serving.
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Add 4 Tbsp butter to a bowl and microwave for about 30 seconds or until the butter is melted. Add 4 minced cloves of garlic, ¼ tsp paprika, ¼ tsp salt, some freshly cracked pepper (about ⅛ tsp), and 1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley.
Stir the garlic butter ingredients to combine.
Place five boneless, skinless chicken thighs in a baking dish, then spoon the garlic butter mixture over top. Use the back of the spoon to spread the garlic butter over the surface of the chicken thighs.
Slice a lemon into half-rounds then scatter the lemon pieces in the baking dish with the garlic butter coated chicken.
Bake the chicken in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165ºF. Use a spoon to drizzle the juices from the baking dish over the chicken pieces, then top with another tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley just before serving.
Don’t waste a drop of that garlic butter from the baking dish! It’s great on the chicken, potatoes, to sop up with bread, or drizzled over your vegetables!
The Best chicken I’ve had in my 60 yrs of life !! OMG..I WILL FOR SURE MAKE AGAIN !!
Thanks Therese!
This was so easy and really tasty too. I had everything I needed in the pantry and freezer so no grocery shopping required. Teen boy and husband liked it too. Teen daughter is a vegan now … so she ate the rice and green beans. I used chicken thighs and the 35 minutes cooked them perfectly. Total prep took me 13 minutes – not 5, but for me, that’s a lightening fast meal.
I’d say that’s a win all around! Great work Heather!
Hard to believe that when I was growing up in the 50s, garlic was considered both vulgar and exotic–try to marry those concepts. I don’t think I could cook today without gobs of it! Great recipe–boneless breasts in our house, and while I know they are dryer than thighs, they still turned out delicious. A word of caution, however, to those using breasts–current huge sizes are a problem and I usually try to half mine horizontally and pound to uniform thickness and they will still take up more space in a pan. Once you do that, check on them after 20 minutes so you don’t overcook, since that is way easy to do. Thighs are definitely more uniform and easy to cook properly
Great tips Janet. Thank you for sharing!
This sounds ridiculously delicious, and similar to a recipe I sear the chicken in a pan first and use mix some cream into the butter. Not even remotely good for you, but it tastes so good!
Ha yes! Let us know if you give it a try!