A one-pot recipe for crispy chicken thighs with lemon and fennel that’s easy to make and full of flavor.
It’s no secret that I love cooking with chicken thighs, and this recipe is no exception. The chicken skin gets nice and crisp in a cast-iron skillet, then slices of lemon and fennel are tossed in the rendered chicken fat before everything goes into the oven just to finish cooking. Only a handful of ingredients and you’ve got an impressive meal that will have people clamoring for seconds.
Pictured here are baby fennel bulbs, but regular-sized fennel will work too. With adult fennel, just remove the toughest, outermost layers and then cut into 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick slices. And don’t forget to save the fronds! I throw them on top of the plated dish as a nice garnish to use up the entire plant.
And yes, those are whole lemon slices—peel and all.
This dish is fairly similar to my skillet-roasted lemon chicken recipe except we’re using thighs instead of a whole chicken, the skin gets crisped up on the stovetop, and we’re using fennel instead of onions. Many people are fans of that recipe, so I’m sure you’ll like this one too.
Cast-Iron Skillet Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Fennel Recipe
A one-pot recipe for crispy chicken thighs with lemon and fennel that's easy to make and full of flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons (or so) olive oil
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 pounds)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Kosher salt and black pepper and garlic powder
- 1/2 pound baby fennel, bulbs quartered, stalks cut into sticks, and fronds reserved
- 1 lemon, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400˚F.
- Heat the oil in large cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle the chicken with garlic powder and some salt and pepper. Put the chicken in the skillet skin-side down and cook until the skin is golden brown and crispy, 6 to 8 minutes. Flip and cook until the chicken just starts to brown on other side, about 2 minutes.
- Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. Add the fennel and lemon and toss in chicken juices and rendered fat for a few seconds. Top with the chicken thighs and bake in the oven until the chicken is fully cooked (it has reached an internal temperature of 165˚F) and the fennel and lemon has softened, about 20 minutes. Serve garnished with the reserved fennel fronds.
Notes
If using regular fennel, just remove the toughest, outermost layers and then cut into 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick slices.
Leave a Reply