When you rely on chicken as a weeknight dinner staple, it’s easy to fall into the habit of cooking it the same way, whether that’s broiled, breaded or baked. Not to mention that changing it up would require sorting through countless chicken recipes. So, when you come across a recipe for the bird on Pinterest that has been pinned 59,000 times, you take notice. And then you try it and realize, whoa. This dish is really good.
Lemony, creamy and buttery, this chicken recipe comes from Chungah Rhee, who writes the blog Damn Delicious and published a cookbook last year. The ingredients are ones you’ll find in any supermarket: chicken, butter, garlic, chicken broth, cream, Parmesan cheese, lemon, spinach, paprika and dried thyme. And it calls for bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, one of our favorite cuts, since they’re inexpensive and hard to screw up.
You start by browning the chicken in an oven-proof skillet. Once the pieces are golden, you remove them, and in the same pan, cook garlic then stir in chicken broth, heavy cream, grated Parmesan, lemon juice and thyme. As this bubbles away, you stir in spinach, letting the leaves wilt and the sauce thicken. You return the chicken to the pan, letting the sauce surround it, and slip the whole thing into the oven for about 25 minutes.
The finished dish is decadent, yet comes together impressively quickly and with minimal effort. And now it’s joined our regular rotation (and has a place on our own Pinterest boards).
Get the recipe: Lemon Butter Chicken
