Simple Thirty-Minute Chicken Recipes

by Lynne Webb on April 15, 2020 (updated November 2, 2020) // 0 comments »

Our thirty-minute chicken recipes combine a variety of chicken cuts with other quick-cooking ingredients to make fast, flavorful weeknight meals.

Collage of four recipes: Lemon Pepper Chicken, Chicken Quesadillas, Roasted Chicken Sausage and Potatoes, Chicken Breasts with Shallots, Honey and Thyme

When it comes to planning weeknight meals, chicken is a popular go-to choice because it’s versatile, economical and always available, but we often get in a rut preparing the same chicken recipes over and over.

How to add flavor to chicken

Here are some ideas on how to spruce up your repertoire of chicken recipes without too much effort.

Key ingredients: Onions & garlic

Members of the onion family are the flavor building blocks of many savory dishes, and chicken recipes are no exceptions. As long as you have one of these staples in your kitchen, a delicious chicken dinner is yours for the making. Here are some ideas:

Onions: For an easy riff on French Onion Soup, top our Oven-Roasted Chicken Thighs with caramelized onions, a sprinkling of crunchy panko crumbs, and some shredded Gruyere cheese. Return them to the oven until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
RELATED: Chicken with Sherry Caramelized Onions
Garlic: Make a simple garlic sauce for pan-seared chicken tenders by sautéing minced garlic in a little butter until golden, then whisking in a teaspoon of Dijon-style mustard and a little cream or half-and-half. Drizzle over the chicken just before serving.
RELATED: Garlic Crumb Topped Chicken

Beyond the basics: Shallots & leeks

Shallots: Make a shallot vinaigrette by whisking together oil, apple cider vinegar, Dijon-style mustard, honey, and minced shallot and drizzle it over a garden salad topped with a sliced boneless chicken breast.
RELATED: Chicken Breasts with Shallots, Honey and Thyme
Leeks: Make a quick and easy sheet pan dinner of chicken tenders, leeks, and baby carrots. Arrange the leeks and carrots on the pan, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt, pepper and a pinch of dried tarragon. Roast at 375 °F for 15 minutes, then add the chicken and continue cooking until the chicken is done.

Finishing touches: Oranges, lemons & limes

Using fresh citrus juices and zest is another easy way to add fresh flavor to chicken.

Oranges: Mix up a glaze for roasted chicken thighs by combining equal parts orange juice and honey and brush it onto the thighs in the last five minutes of cooking.
RELATED: Chicken with Orange and Tarragon Pan Sauce
Lemons: Try compound butter on grilled chicken. Combine the zest of one lemon, a tablespoon of finely chopped parsley and four tablespoons of softened butter. Form into a log, refrigerate until firm, then add a pat to each chicken breast as it comes off the grill.
RELATED: Classic Chicken Piccata
Limes: Combine the zest of one lime with ground cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper. Rub it into skin-on chicken breasts, bake and drizzle with fresh lime juice just before serving.
RELATED: Chicken with Cilantro Lime Cream Sauce

Now that you have some easy flavor-boosting ideas, check out the following collection of easy-to-prepare chicken recipes that go from kitchen to table in just about thirty minutes.