Parmesan Garlic Chicken Thighs

Everyone will relish these oven-baked skinless, boneless thighs with a fresh crumb crust spiked with garlic, Parmesan cheese, and herbs. Both the prep and eating are easy. These juicy morsels are so tender you can cut them with a fork!

Pretty good for a nutritious, protein-rich entree that’s out of the oven in less than 20 minutes!

On the side, serve pasta or rice and a salad with them, or simply roast some veggies onto the baking sheet alongside the chicken to complete the meal.

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Ingredients

• Garlic
• Parsley
• Whole wheat bread slices
• Parmesan cheese
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Cooking spray
• Chicken thighs
• Mayonnaise
• Red pepper flakes

• 🧄Garlic: Whole cloves give you the most flavor, but please remove any bitter green sprouts before using. You can sub powder if you don’t have any fresh or if fresh garlic bothers your digestion.

• 🌿Parsley: Flat-leaf (Italian) parsley works well. Other herbs you could add or swap in are rosemary, thyme, marjoram, or dried basil. Fresh basil will turn unattractively dark.

• 🍞Whole Wheat Bread: Any sliced, firm whole grain bread will be fine. Avoid any soft varieties of bread, wheat-based or gluten free.

• Parmesan cheese: Grated rather than shredded works much better. You can use any variety of Parm, from Parmigiano-Reggiano (max flavor!) to the stuff you shake out of a green can.

• Olive oil: The flavor note from extra virgin is very nice with the Parmesan and herbs.

• 🧂Salt: You could leave this out if you are watching sodium. The Parmesan contains a good amount of sodium, so the extra Kosher salt is not absolutely necessary.

• Cooking spray: It’s for the baking sheet. A neutral or olive oil variety doesn’t get in the way of the bold, rich flavors of the chicken and topping.

• 🐔 Chicken thighs: The recipe calls for skinless, boneless thighs, which, unlike skinless, boneless breast, stays juicy.

• Mayonnaise: A thin smear of this condiment on the meat helps with retaining moisture. You can swap in whole milk Greek yogurt if you’re not a mayo fan.

• 🌶️Red pepper flakes: Use more or less depending on how much heat you enjoy. I often use Aleppo pepper flakes, which have a milder and smokier heat.

How to Make

Begin by washing your hands, lathering with soap and rinsing with warm water for approximately 20 seconds. 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat with cooking spray. Set aside.

1️⃣ Mince the garlic in the bowl of a food processor. (Drop it down the feed tube while the machine is running.)

2️⃣ Add the parsley leaves to the processor bowl and finely chop, combining with the garlic.

3️⃣ Tear the bread into medium sized pieces and toss into the processor bowl. Add the grated Parmesan, oil, and salt. Process well, combining all the ingredients into a seasoned crumb mixture.

4️⃣ Place the thighs on the baking sheet and brush with mayonnaise (or yogurt). Give each thigh a gingerly sprinkle with the red pepper flakes.

5️⃣ Mound the Parmesan crumb topping onto each thigh.

6️⃣ Place in the oven and bake until the topping is golden brown and juices bubble up around the edges of each thigh. (Check for an internal temperature of 165 F by inserting an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the largest thigh.) 

Serve immediately or cool and refrigerate. Eat within three days.

Prep and storage tips

The crumb mixture can be made a few days ahead and stored in the refrigerator. You can even make a double batch and store in the freezer for about six months, using it as needed. (It's also great on salmon, tilapia, and pork tenderloin.)

You can also assemble the thighs several hours before you plan to bake them.

The cooked chicken thighs store well in the refrigerator for up to three days. Enjoy them at room temperature on top of a green salad with grapes or strawberries in it.

Variations and flavor ideas

You’ve probably heard the saying that a recipe is simply a road map. Most are altered by what’s available in your pantry and favorite grocery store. Of course, preferences and tolerances play a huge role in determining what your dish tastes like.

With this in mind, here are a few changes to the basic recipe:

Crumb topping:

• 🍋Add a teaspoon of lemon zest for a brighter flavor.
• If you’re short on time or don’t have any fresh herbs, add one and a half teaspoons of Italian seasoning to the processor with the bread pieces and cheese. 

• Instead of parsley, use a smaller amount of fresh oregano. The flavor of oregano is usually stronger, so you won't need as much. Fresh basil is not a good choice as it turns dark when processed with the crumbs.

• In place of the fresh clove of garlic, you could sub in a teaspoon of garlic powder for a milder flavor.

Mayonnaise swaps:

• 🍅Change the taste by stirring  a half teaspoon of tomato paste into the mayo before brushing it onto the chicken.

• Mustard? Although the mayonnaise helps tenderize the chicken thighs, you could use some piquant Dijon mustard instead. Keep in mind that mustard has more sodium and will make your thighs taste saltier.

What to serve with Parmesan Garlic Chicken Thighs 

I love the flexibility of this recipe! It can be a quick weeknight dinner or a pleasing, semi-formal lunch main.

A side of spaghetti or other noodles tossed in an olive oil butter sauce or a marinara is the classic side. Any starch with an Italian accent, such as gnocchi or polenta, would also be terrific. 

The thighs are also delicious on top of mashed potatoes, and you can’t go wrong with a simple rice pilaf.

For a quick veggie/salad side, try this superfast, super easy French-style Cucumber Salad. You can slice the cukes and make the four-ingredient dressing (not including salt and pepper) while the chicken bakes.

Weeknight win

An efficient way to make a side on a weeknight is to cut up some zucchini and/or yellow squash and cook it on the sheet pan with the chicken. Broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts are also good choices.

If you’re going to cook a veggie on the same pan as the chicken, choose tender ones that are full of water. 

Starchy root veggies and tubers like butternut squash, carrots, and sweet potatoes take slightly more time but should be okay if they are cut into smaller pieces. 

🥗The thighs also make a beautiful semi-formal cold salad entree. 

Try them on top of a bed of dressed greens perhaps with strawberries or grapes in the mix and a bit of feta or blue cheese, an excellent choice if you need to host a late spring or summer lunch (perhaps in the garden)!

Is this recipe healthy?

YES!

💪🏽Of course it has a nice helping of protein. Thighs offer more iron than breasts, so that’s another reason besides the extra flavor and juiciness to enjoy them.

🦴There’s also a surprising amount of calcium here, which supports healthy bones, teeth, and heart rhythm.

Depending on your choice of bread, you’ll also reap a few mineral benefits from whole grains and a bit of fiber.

Herb nutrition

Herbs are a powerhouse of nutrition, providing great flavor so that less salt is necessary to make the chicken thighs taste delicious.

They also serve up antioxidant vitamins and polyphenols, beneficial phytonutrient compounds that support overall health with anticarcinogenic, antibacterial, antimicrobial activity.

In particular, parsley is an excellent source of vitamins K, A, and C. The latter is one of the antioxidants it contains along with flavonoids and carotenoids. 

Oxidative stress causes dysfunction and chronic disease, so eating a diet high in antioxidant nutrition could possibly down-regulate oxidative processes in your cells. 

The flavonoids in parsley may have benefits against heart disease, colon cancer, and type 2 diabetes while the carotenoids may provide some protection against lung cancer.

Another nutrient in parsley, folate, may also benefit heart health by lowering levels of homocysteine. High levels of this amino acid are linked with heart disease.

Of course carotenoids are excellent when it comes to eye health.

Altogether, flavonoids, carotenoids plus antioxidant vitamin C could lower inflammation and boost immune health.

The vitamin K in parsley and calcium from the cheese are a synergistic combo when it comes to bone health. 

Eating a diet rich in a variety of healthful nutrients benefits overall wellness and reduces risk for many diseases. 

FAQ

Other recipes you might like…

If winner chicken dinners are your faves, here are two to try. They both rely on boneless, skinless chicken thighs.

• Lemon Chicken Traybake is another sheet pan special. This time with potatoes, slices of lemon, and plenty of garlic. Here again, it’s out of the oven in less than 30 minutes!
• You won’t be able to stop eating Umami Grilled Chicken Thighs, a great summer recipe with an Asian-influenced marinade. Yum!  

And how about a soothing bowl of chicken soup? This Chicken Soup with Rice is like a hug in a bowl!

Copyright © 2024 Jani H. Leuschel