Creamy Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs with Capers
Juicy, flavorful, and deliciously creamy lemon garlic chicken thighs with capers…so easy to make in one pan. Serve with mashed potatoes, rice, and/or vegetables for a perfect weeknight dinner!
Ahhh…and just like that, here we are in November. Like, we’re less than two months away from 2020, y’all! And we’re also only weeks away from the holidays. How has this year been for you? Have you tackled anything you set out to accomplish in 2019? What recipes of mine did you make this year? You know I just had to squeeze that in, ha!
For me, there’s been a steady rotation of my beef chili, this honey mustard chicken, and this smoked gouda mac and cheese in my household lately. ‘Tis the season for all things cozy and a bit indulgent. And I hope you’re not beating yourself up for enjoying a treat or two either. I’ve also been rewatching some old shows on Netflix like Breaking Bad and Dexter; btw I’m always down for recommendations on what to binge next so lemme know!
Lately, I’ve been having so much fun in the kitchen experimenting with this and that. Some recipes being major wins and some not so much but hey they can’t all be great, right? I am unabashedly a major fan of all things with LEMON. Forever and ever and ever and ever. This is no secret at all to anyone who knows me, I *love* the scent of lemons. May it be lemon sweets, lemon in savory dishes, lemon slices in my water, lemonade, lemon candles; whatever…just gimme dat lemon!
Consequently, that leads me to tell you about these creamy lemon garlic chicken thighs with capers!
This dish is hands down one of my absolute favorites. Chicken thighs, for starters, are one of my most favorite pieces of chicken parts. They are usually super affordable in grocery stores, and if you’re lucky, they’re frequently on sale too.
Hello, we are trying to save our coins, right? Chicken thighs yield more flavor because of their tender dark meat. I prefer to always buy them bone-in and skin-on for extra flavor when braising and roasting. Additionally, did you know that chicken thighs are more flavorful than other chicken parts? Yup.
How To Make This Recipe (Video)
Other Easy Recipes You Might Enjoy
- Creamy Chicken and Mushrooms
- Salmon Cakes with Quick Aioli
- Easy Skillet Lasagna
- One-Pot Creamy Beef Pasta
- Chicken and Dumplings
- Easy Sausage and Peppers
- Creamy Spinach Artichoke Chicken
- One-Pot Casarecce Pasta
Creamy Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs w/ Capers Ingredients:
- Chicken Thighs: bone-in and skin-on!
- Lemon Juice: freshly squeezed lemon juice is the best of the best (so don’t even think about buying that pre-bottled nonsense, please!) for that bright kiss of lemony goodness.
- Garlic: look for either WHOLE cloves of garlic or grab an entire head of garlic and peel it; they roast beautifully in the pan and really make this dish pop right alongside all the other flavors!
- Chicken Broth: helps create the creamy sauce and adds more chicken flavor.
- Heavy Cream: also used to help make up the cream sauce.
- Capers: these itty bitty briny flower buds have a wonderfully tasty, salty, and sweet vibe to them.
- Butter and Olive Oil: the combination of both is used to sauté the chicken thighs!
- Seasonings: listen up, there is no bland chicken thighs here; for this recipe we’ll use lemon pepper and garlic powder to season the chicken thighs. Try and get lemon pepper seasoning that has salt already in it but if your lemon pepper seasoning is sodium-free, you’ll need to add a few pinches of salt.
A Few Notes About This Recipe:
As previously mentioned above, everything is made in one pan which makes this dish such a dream!
The seasoned chicken thighs get sautéed in the butter/olive oil first on both sides. Then transfer those chicken thighs to a plate to rest. Add the garlic cloves to the pan and let them cook until they soften and turn light brown, stirring throughout. Next, we’ll make that creamy lemon garlic sauce! In the same pan, add the chicken broth, and deglaze the pan by scraping up any leftover bits with a wooden spatula. Then add in cream and lemon juice. Allow mixture to get bubbly and continue cooking.
Now, you may think to yourself, garlic powder seasoning AND whole garlic cloves? Quin, are we doing too much with the garlic? The answer, my friends, is NOT AT ALL. You see, I find the garlic flavor to be subtle and not overwhelming at all because once the cloves cook, their flavor isn’t as potent. If you are a garlic head like myself, then you can eat the whole garlic cloves right along with everything else if you wish. Otherwise, they’ll just act as a beautiful flavor bomb in this creamy lemon garlic chicken thighs with capers recipe.
Finally, add in the capers and add chicken thighs back into skillet and continue cooking to let everything meld together in delicious harmony. The sauce will thicken and the chicken should be cooked throughout. Spoon sauce over chicken thighs and serve. I find the best ways to enjoy this dish is with some creamy mashed potatoes, white rice, a good salad, and/or vegetables of your choice!
As always, I really do hope y’all enjoy this one! ☺️
REMEMBER TO LEAVE A ⭐️STAR RATING⭐️AND TAG ME ON THE ‘GRAM IF YOU MAKE ANY OF MY RECIPES! I ALWAYS LOVE TO SEE IT WHEN YOU DO!
Until next time…love and butter,
Q.
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Creamy Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs with Capers
- Prep Time: 5m
- Cook Time: 35m
- Total Time: 40m
- Yield: 2-4 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Sauté
- Cuisine: American
Description
Juicy, flavorful, and deliciously creamy lemon garlic chicken thighs with capers; so easy to make in one pan! Serve with mashed potatoes, rice, and/or vegetables for a perfect weeknight dinner.
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in and skin-on chicken thighs
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 6–8 peeled garlic cloves
- 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup nonpareil capers
- lemon pepper seasoning
- garlic powder seasoning
Instructions
- Season chicken thighs with lemon pepper and garlic powder seasonings. If your lemon pepper seasoning does not contain salt, add a few pinches of salt to chicken thighs. Cover chicken thighs with plastic wrap and transfer to refrigerator to let sit for at least 30 minutes to an hour.
- Add butter and olive oil into a large nonstick/cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Once mixture has melted and is hot, sauté chicken thighs on both sides for 5-6 minutes. Then transfer chicken thighs to a plate and set aside.
- Add garlic cloves into skillet and cook until cloves soften and turn light brown in color, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add in chicken broth and use a wooden spatula to scrape up any bits remaining. Next, add in cream, lemon juice, and stir to combine. Let mixture come up to a slight boil while stirring throughout. Then add capers and chicken thighs back into skillet and let cook for another 10-20 minutes or until sauce thickens AND chicken is cooked through completely.
- Spoon sauce over chicken thighs and serve with desired side dishes. Enjoy!
Keywords: dinner, entrée, chicken, lemon
27 Comments on “Creamy Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs with Capers”
Comfort food, at its best. Just made as written. Nagyon finom! (delicious in Hungarian) Thanks!
★★★★★
Hi, Just discovered your Instagram and Blog and it is awesome. I’m 60 years old and only now just trying to challenge myself to cook, especially with my Iron Skillet.
Seeing as we are all stuck indoors for the foreseeable future I am going to give this a try if I can find the Chicken.
I am curious that it only seems to take about 22 minutes to cook these Chicken Thighs and that doesn’t seem very long to me (again, I have not cooked much). Should I be confident in that time frame.
Best Wishes to you and I hope you are safe and sound.
Hi Scott! Thanks so much for the kind words. Depending on your heating, cooking time should be around 30 minutes. However, while my recipe card notes a specific timeframe; it also states to cook until chicken is cooked through completely. Sometimes heat factor and the use of a lid on your pot can alter cooking time. Happy cooking! 🙂
Hey, can I use chicken breast for this?
Hi Alexis…you can certainly use chicken breasts but adjust your cooking time to accommodate the thickness of the size of the chicken breasts 🙂
I’m definitely going to make this chicken dish this week!
Question. I just love Staub. In the photos, is that the 10” or 12” Staub fry pan?
Hi Thelma! I hope you love this dish, it’s so great. And I’m a huge fan of Staub as well…this specific pan is a 10″ skillet 🙂
Awesome! Just got the Staub 10”! Saw your recipe on Staub and had to find it!!! Looks yummy!
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Nice! If you try my recipe, I hope you love it!
How can I adapt this for a lactose intolerant friend? I’d like to taste rich and creamy , would coconut cream work or would the taste of coconut be overpowering the lemon?
Hi Cher- This recipe has only been tested as written- though, you can try coconut cream (it might give a slight coconut-y taste)…lmk how it turns out! 🙂
I had to substitute plain dairy free yogurt for the heavy cream as my husband has allergies. It was fantastic!
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Hi CK, so happy those substitutions still worked out fantastic for you 🙂
Can this be oven bake after it has been sautee and the broth added? If so, how long and what temp
Hi there, yes, I’d bake at 350°F for at least 15-20 min or until chicken is cooked through completely.
I have now made this 3-4 times while home during quarantine and could not love the recipe any more! So, so good!
★★★★★
Always love to hear that, so happy you enjoyed this recipe Megan! 🙂
I’ve made this recipe a few times and it’s always yummy and easy, even if you don’t usually cook meat (it was the first time I ever cooked chicken thighs and it turned out great!). Thank you, Quin. 🙂
★★★★★
This recipe is great. My husband was hesitant when I brought out the chicken thighs (I’ve cooked some horrible chicken thigh dishes), but he went back for seconds. We’ll be making this recipe again!
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This was tasty, but I found it tricky to know when the chicken was cooked through. Also, I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to flip the chicken as it cooked in the cream mixture. My chicken pieces were thick and the pan was large so they were only half covered on the broth.
Hi Dave- to be precise, the internal temperature of chicken doneness should be at least 165F and the sauce is not enough to cover the chicken. I recommend spooning/basting the sauce instead 🙂
I just tried this recipe out and could not love it more. I am dairy free so I used a touch more coconut oil than the olive oil called for instead of adding in any butter. I also used coconut cream instead of heavy cream. I browned up the chicken thighs skin for 6 to 7 minutes each side. I also used roasted garlic paste which shortened the time needed to cook down the garlic. After mixing all other ingredients, I put back in the thighs, spooning over them with the delicious sauce for 15 minutes more. I finished by popping it in the oven at 350 for an additional 20 minutes to cook the chicken completely and served it over sauteed spinach. The chicken thighs were cooked perfectly! I cant wait to make this again!
★★★★★
lots of ways to skin that chicken…
Loved this Dish
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Omgosh, this is absolutely delicious!!!!! Thank you for the recipe, served it with couscous couscous, so easy!!!!!!! Great date night recipe..
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Should I cover the pan after adding the thighs back to the pan?
Hi Corrine- once you add the chicken back into the pan, you can cover if you’d like, but not absolutely necessary 🙂
Great dish! Loved it! Thanks 🙂