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Crispy Oven Baked Chicken with juicy meat and crisp, flavorful skin can be on your dinner table with about 5 minutes’ worth of effort!
This crispy chicken is made in the oven without any breading at all; the only ingredients you need are the chicken, a drizzle of oil, salt, and pepper.
Crispy Baked Chicken
I am so very happy to have finally recreated our favorite chicken recipes, without the mess on the stove-top and with minimal cleanup.
I’ve been making these Pan Fried Chicken Thighs and Pan Fried Italian Chicken Thighs at least once a month ever since I first made them several years ago. The recipes are crazy easy and my whole family loves pan-fried chicken. (Who doesn’t?!)
Crispy Oven Baked Chicken
If you haven’t tried that very simple cooking method yet, you should, because you simply have to taste it to understand how amazing a single piece of chicken can be.
Over the past few years, I’ve tried a few different methods to recreate that flavor and crispiness in the oven and I am giddy to have finally nailed it.
I’m dubbing this the easiest dinner recipe ever because it requires no prep, no marinade, no special anything at all in advance.
How To Make Crispy Chicken in the Oven
Grab your chicken, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then bake. Seriously. That’s all the effort it requires.
Once you have that chicken in the oven, I highly recommend taking just FIVE minutes to stir together a batch of Corn Pudding.
Pop it in the oven and it will be ready when the chicken is. You’ll have dinner ready to go all at once and your family is sure to love it!
You’ve literally just gifted yourself an hour to crash on the couch, read a book, watch a show, and in general ignore everything else; while the chicken sizzles in the oven and fills the house with delicious smells.
This Oven-Baked Crispy Chicken will fool everyone into thinking you are actively cooking dinner. I realize that it almost sounds too good to be true, but the chicken really is amazing without anything extra needed at all!
Chicken Recipes
Want a few more dinner ideas that require almost no effort at all? This Sheet Pan Chicken Dinner is an all in one meal that family and friends all rave about every time they make it.
Southwest Chicken Salad with Spicy BBQ Ranch Dressing is a fantastic salad that is sure to satisfy the heartiest of appetites.
Chinese Beef and Broccoli Soup by The Food Charlatan comes together in minutes and this Cheesy Ranch Chicken and Potatoes by Taste and Tell is a kid-favorite that requires little more than slicing the potatoes.
These Stir Fry Noodles with Chicken and Vegetables happen in my kitchen on a regular basis. Once you’ve tried them, they’re going to be on regular rotation for you too.
This Southwest Beef and Potato Skillet by Aggie’s Kitchen is on regular rotation in my house as well. I LOVE the easy weeknight dinners.
Oven Baked Chicken Recipe
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking tray or half sheet pan with foil and place all the chicken pieces on it, skin side down.
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper and flip each piece skin side up. Drizzle about a teaspoon of oil over the skin on each piece of chicken and rub lightly to coat. Sprinkle again with salt and pepper.
- Bake for one hour, until most of the fat has rendered out of the chicken and the skin is golden brown and crisp.
- Remove from the oven and let rest about 5 minutes before serving.
Oven Baked Crispy Chicken
Ingredients
- 6 – 8 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Optional: ground paprika and/or granulated garlic
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking tray or half sheet pan with foil and place all the chicken pieces on it, skin side down. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and flip each piece skin side up. Drizzle about a teaspoon of oil over the skin on each piece of chicken and rub lightly to coat. Sprinkle again with salt and pepper.
- Bake for one hour, until most of the fat has rendered out of the chicken and the skin is golden brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and let rest about 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
{originally published 10/9/14 – recipe notes and photos updated 10/11/21}
Chicken thighs are my favorite, and I have been cooking them like this too. So so easy and very crispy skin. This is one of my favorite meals – both because of taste and simplicity.
Just made oven crispy chicken and it was a home run; easy and delicious. I did marinated my way for 2-3 hours then patted dry before baking.
Thanks for a great recipe!
That does look like the perfect chicken, Mary!
Looks very tasty, but my family doesn't like chicken thighs or legs–have you ever tried this with breast meat? I imagine it would turn out dry unless you brine or marinate the breasts first.
I think bone-in skin-on breasts would also work, but I really have no idea as far as the cooking times. You'd want to use a thermometer and cook to the temperature, not the above recipe time. If you try it, please let me know how it works!
Thank you, Mary, I will let you know! I just started brining chicken and pork this year, and am amazed at what a difference it makes in keeping the meat moist and tender even when cooking until well done.
Kathy ~ I would love to know what you use for your brine. I really want to try it as I have heard many good things about brining
I just began brining chicken and most pork a few months ago, as we prefer the breast meat in chickens, which usually gets so dry when cooking, and can't bear to eat pork that isn't well-done, also sometimes dry. All I can say is I wish I had discovered brining over 30 years ago! I you'd like to e-mail me at krkelley1027@gmail.com I will share my favorite brine recipe with you & also a link to a web site that explains this process very well & has great brining recipes!
Will you share your brine recipe with me also? I’ve never have tried bringing any meat, would love to try it..
How about bone in chicken breast and then take it off the bone before serving?
Chicken breast are thick so I cut them in half and use my meat cleaner to think them out. Then I seasone them with garlic powder salt and pepper and oregano. Rub them with some vegetable oil and bake them. Not for an hour but until the meat juices run clear.
I ment to say meat cleaner to pound the chicken breast a little.
This looks delicious!
I cannot remember us baking chicken but this looks delicious and I can imagine the smell filling the house.
This is how my grandmother baked chicken when I was a child.
So, I made these chicken thighs for dinner this evening. O…M…G… Amazing! So delicious and tender and juicy! My older two children raved about it and kept thanking me for making it! My youngest is extremely picky and keeps insisting he doesn't like chicken. I didn't count his opinion tonight, LOL 🙂 Thank you so much for posting the recipe. It will be used often!
I have been cooking chicken like this too but I also sprinkle a little Tonys on it. Oh my goodness it is so good!!!
Hi! I have a question for you: What is "Tonys"? Either I've never heard of it, or I'm having another "senior moment".
Tony's is a seasoning blend of spices. Here's a link:
http://bit.ly/creoleseasoning
I hope that helps!
Happy Saturday! Just letting you know I featured this recipe in my monthly round-up of 25 Deliciously Healthy Low-Carb Recipes from October 2015. Hope a lot of my readers will come over here and try it!
This came out so perfectly. Definitely my go to for baking chicken now.
Love it this is something I will make again and again!
I'm cooking this chicken for the second time, my family enjoyed it so much the first time I decided to cook it again. I love that it is so easy to make and the taste is great. Definitely will continue to make this at least twice a month if not more.
I've never cooked chicken thighs before and wasn't sure what to do with them (got some really cheap!). I searched pinterest, found this recipe and tried it out. They were really good! I actually had crispy skin! I need to try this same thing with drumsticks, because last time I tried, the skin was kinda soggy.
Thanks for a great and simple recipe! 🙂
I absolutely love this chicken, it is so good!
I have a simple chicken thighs recipe that will knock your socks off..place the uncooked chicken thighs in an oven pan (with sides) pour one bottle of any italian dressing you like over all the chicken. Then sprinkle garlic salt over chicken. Make sure to lift each thigh to let the dressing get under it. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 1 hour. Serve chicken thighs with couscous (which is available at walmart, if you've never had it, you will absolutely love it in place of rice. it's flavorful , delicious and cheap and cooks in 5 minutes on stove top) and can of peas. Spoon juice from pan chicken cooked in over chicken, couscous & peas!!! I guarantee your whole family will love it….enjoy!
This might be a dumb question. But does this pan need to be greased before cooking?
Not a dumb question at all. The pan does not need to be greased.
Can you use boneless skinless thighs?
I wouldn't recommend this recipe for boneless chicken. The skin provides a lot of moisture and keeps the chicken nice and juicy. You can, however, simply remove the skin after baking, if you aren't a fan of the skin. I hope that helps!
I made this last night and it was delicious! I added some rosemary and garlic powder, and I am excited to eat the leftovers 🙂
looks very delicous!
Made these last week & my hubby & I absolutely loved them! So juicy & we appreciated that they are so easy & tasty without any breading! Thanks for sharing