Skillet Chicken Thighs with Fennel & Asparagus
Skillet Chicken Thighs with Fennel & Asparagus
These skillet chicken thighs with the light and bright flavors of lemon and basil are the answer to your weeknight dinner crunch!
Ingredients
- 4-6 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 fennel bulb, sliced into quarters or eighths
- 1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed into 2 inch pieces
- A handful of fresh basil
- 1 lemon, halved
- 1 TBSP honey
- 3 TBSP olive oil
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta
- Salt and pepper for seasoning
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season your chicken breasts generously on both sides with salt and pepper. Slice half the lemon into slices to place on top of your chicken breasts lately.
- Step 2 Heat 2 TBSP of olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Cook the chicken thighs skin side down for 5-6 minutes until the skin is golden and crispy.
- Step 3 Flip the breasts and drizzle with the juice from the other half of the lemon, honey and remaining olive oil. Toss garlic cloves, asparagus, and fennel into the skillet, top chicken with lemon slices and roast in the oven for 25 minutes.
- Step 4 Remove the skillet from the oven, top with feta and basil and return to the oven for 2 more minutes. Remove from the oven and serve immediately!
It’s been a busy few weeks here between the whole family first coming down with coxsackie and then two back to back trips to New Hampshire and then South Carolina. I’ve really been missing my kitchen, but I’m getting so excited that fall is nearly upon us. Fall cooking and baking recipes make this season by far my favorite time of year.
I did manage to squeeze in this recipe last week between trips, when I was honestly just trying to use up every last thing in my fridge. Yes, these are clearly chicken thighs but this recipe is the epitome of what I call “WINGING” it. Believe it or not, some of my best recipes are the result of this strategy. It just requires a little bit of flexibility and lot of creativity.
I am a big fan of dark meat so I love cooking with chicken thighs. This may be a controversial statement, but I also find them so much more versatile than chicken breasts. And I love me some crispy chicken skin so I always by the bone-in/skin-on thighs. They’re a fam favorite and we probably eat them on an almost-weekly basis. I always pick them up on my weekly shopping trip, even if I don’t have a specific game plan in mind. I know I can find something fun to do with them; case in point – this recipe!
This one pan dinner was a total gamble but to be honest, it turned out pretty darn good! It’s unbelievably easy to throw together and just such a nice n’ light end of summer dish! Fennel and asparagus were the veggies du jour, but feel free to mix it up with whatever you have in your own fridge. Just drop us a note and let us know if you try it out!
