Crispy Baked Chicken Thighs are roasted perfectly in 30 minutes and seasoned to your taste. Using a convection oven for crispy skin, these moist and tender chicken thighs will become a family favorite.
Ingredients
Chicken thighs
Seasoning—salt, black pepper, and garlic powder mixture (All-Purpose Seasoning) OR
Optional seasoning of your choice
Jump To (scroll for more)
- Ingredients
- 👨🍳How to Bake Chicken Thighs—Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
- ⏰ How long to bake chicken thighs and oven temperature
- 🐓What chicken thighs to use
- Seasoning tips
- 🌡️The best final internal temperature
- Related chicken recipes
- Serving chicken thighs
- What to do about smoking ovens
- Storing and reheating leftovers
- Food safety
- ❓FAQs
- 📖 Recipe
Featured Comment from Gretchen :
"This is by and far my FAVORITE recipe. I’ve always hated chicken thighs, and now I know why… the internal temperature. I generally will modify a recipe to my liking, however yours is hands down sensational."
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There are only a few secrets to making the best baked chicken thighs:
- Cook to the proper internal temperature of 185° to melt the connective tissue—don't stop at 165*.
- Use high heat in a convection oven for crispy skin—425° preferred, but other oven settings will work.
- Finally, using a rack to brown all sides and get the thighs out of the fatty drainage while they cook is best.
Make this recipe for chicken thighs in the oven with the easy step-by-step photo instructions with only 5 minutes of preparation and about 30 minutes of baking time. Cook along with baked chicken legs at the same temperature and time.
You can also fire up the gas grill for Grilled Bone-in Chicken Thighs or Grilled Chicken Drumsticks.
👨🍳How to Bake Chicken Thighs—Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F convection or 450°F conventional.
2. Pat dry and trim off any loose skin with no meat. Also, remove any fat that is easily removed.
3. Prep a sheet pan by lining it with aluminum foil. Add a rack and a heavy coat of PAM cooking spray.
4. Spice both sides with the seasoning of your choice. Place on tray with the skin side up and tuck any skin under the thigh.
5. Bake until internal temp of 185°F—about 30-35 minutes of cooking time. Rest for 5 minutes or more before serving.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
⏰ How long to bake chicken thighs and oven temperature
The best oven temperature to bake bone-in chicken thighs is 425° convection, which will take about 30 minutes to reach 185° (the best internal temperature). This will vary by the weight and thickness of the thighs and your oven.
Chicken thighs baked at 350°F conventional takes about 50-55 minutes—will dry more.
Chicken thighs baked at 350°F convection or 375°F conventional takes about 45-50 minutes.
Chicken thighs baked at 375°F convection or 400°F conventional takes about 40-45 minutes.
Chicken thighs baked at 400°F convection or 425°F conventional takes about 35-40 minutes—recommended.
Chicken thighs baked at 425°F convection or 450°F conventional takes about 30-35 minutes—recommended.
Times are approximate and provided for planning only. Cook to a final internal temperature of 185°, using a meat or instant-read thermometer.
ALWAYS COOK TO A FINAL INTERNAL TEMPERATURE. PLEASE, NEVER BY TIME ALONE.
🐓What chicken thighs to use
This recipe assumes bone-in and skin-on chicken thighs. Just trim any loose fat and skin, then pat dry. Bone-in skinless chicken thighs will work fine but cook faster since they are thinner, and there is no bone to absorb heat.
If using skinless boneless chicken thighs, brush them with vegetable or olive oil. They tend to be smaller, thinner and have no bone to absorb heat. Cooking time will be faster, generally by 5-10 minutes. But remember, you are cooking to a final internal temperature of 185°+ and not by time.
Since there is no skin, if you want crispy skinless boneless thighs, they will need some breading like Panko breadcrumbs or a coating like oven-fried chicken breasts, but not this recipe.
Seasoning tips
A good sprinkle of kosher salt and black pepper for seasoning will be enough. I usually use my All Purpose Seasoning, which has kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
You may use other spices like paprika, oregano, thyme, Italian spice mix, poultry seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and other spice rubs.
Make great baked BBQ chicken thighs with a BBQ dry rub and brush with your favorite BBQ sauce for the last 5 minutes of cooking. Or make some tasty marinaded chicken thighs with my butter, garlic, and lemon chicken marinade or any marinade you love.
🌡️The best final internal temperature
The best final internal temperature for chicken thighs is 185° to 195*. You are melting some connective tissue, according to American Test Kitchen (subscription required).
The USDA's minimum safe internal temperature is 165°, perfect for white meat like chicken breasts, but dark meat with connective tissue will still be stringy and tough.
Related chicken recipes
For other inside quick chicken recipes, check out Baked Chicken Drumsticks, Seared Chicken Breasts, or Chicken Breasts in a Convection Oven.
Serving chicken thighs
Serve with one-pot mac and cheese, Stovetop French fries, Oven Roasted Baby Potatoes, and vegetables like a fresh spinach salad, green beans with almonds, or microwave corn on the cob. Finish the meal with Fresh Strawberry Pie with Jello or Old Fashioned Apple Crisp.
What to do about smoking ovens
Smoking ovens have been an issue for some due to high-temperature cooking. If you do have a problem, here are a few tips.
- If there is trimmable fat, trim it along with excess skin.
- The oven should be clean so the smoke isn’t coming from a previous splatter.
- Use a pan with some side to keep any splatter contained.
- Use the bake mode if your oven has a convection roast and convection bake. Or skip the convection entirely.
- You could turn down the oven by 25°-50°. This will increase the cooking time some and may cause some drying out. Remember to cook to an endpoint, not by time.
- Adding water to the pan under the rack will prevent smoking. It will cool the fat when it drips. This always works, but the moisture may interfere with some crispiness.
Storing and reheating leftovers
Store leftovers sealed in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 days or frozen for 3-4 months.
To reheat leftovers, thaw overnight in the refrigerator if frozen. Leftovers will have a much better texture when reheated in the oven at 350° for about 15 minutes. An air fryer works well, also. A microwave can be used, but it tends to affect the texture adversely.
Food safety
Raw chicken and other poultry should be considered contaminated and handled with care. Wash your hands carefully before and after touching raw chicken. We do NOT wash raw chicken routinely due to water splatter. See Chicken... To Rinse or Not To Rinse? for more information.
You must cook chicken to an internal temperature of 165° for safety—see the USDA for more information. You need to check this with an instant-read thermometer.
❓FAQs
No. It will interfere with the crisping of the skin. So, no aluminum foil or lids.
It is not needed, and I don't. Thighs are high in fat, and that will generally be enough. But you can, and the skin will still be crispy but a little thicker and with a different texture. So brush a few and see which you like.
A baking rack is highly recommended. Fat drainage will be rendered, and the rack will get the thighs out of the drainage for better texture. You can cook this without a rack, but you will be happier with a rack.
Use the rack on a baking tray with sides since there is drainage during cooking. Add aluminum foil to help clean up.
Most toaster ovens will be able to cook chicken thighs. The oven must have a controlled higher temperature and account for drainage. And like in bigger ovens, you cook to a final internal temperature and never by time.
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.
📖 Recipe
Crispy Baked Chicken Thighs
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Ingredients
- 2 chicken thighs - do as many as you want
- coarse salt and pepper to taste - or seasoning of your choice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F convection. If you don't have convection, use 450°F.
- Pat dry the chicken with paper towels. Trim off any loose skin with no meat. Also, remove any fat that is easily removed.
- Prep a sheet pan by lining it with aluminum foil. Add a rack and a heavy coat of PAM cooking spray.
- Place thighs skin down and sprinkle lightly with the spices of your choice. Flip and tuck in any thin parts underneath and sprinkle the skin side. Just coarse salt and black pepper are fine, or the seasoning you like. We use our homemade 7:2:2, which adds some garlic.
- With skin side up, bake until internal temp of 185°F—about 30-35 minutes of cooking time. Rest for 5 minutes or more before serving.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- DO NOT SKIP THE PAT DRY, or you will not have crispy skin.
- Trim off any trimmable fat or extra skin.
- Get the thighs up on a rack to let the rendered fat drain. It also gets them out of the drained fat. You can do this without a rack, but it is nicer with one.
- Cook at high temp and use a thermometer to be sure you get to 185°+. Do not guess. Thighs are safe to eat at 165°F but tender at 185°F.
- A convection oven is recommended but not required. Options for other oven temperatures are in the blog post above.
- Spice as you want. I often add a touch of Cayenne.
- Scale to any amount you need.
- This recipe can also be done in a toaster oven or an air fryer.
- Skip the seasoning and brush with your favorite BBQ sauce for the last 5 minutes to make great oven-baked BBQ thighs.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Editors Note: Originally Published January 24, 2014. Updated with re-edited photos and added information since the original version.
Robyn says
Came out perfect! I have a gas stove so I put it at 425 and let the temp tell me when it was ready. Perfect crispy skin, amazing flavor and so juicy. Will definitely make again. It was my first attempt at thighs in the oven and I was not disappointed. All I did was add some onion powder to the seasonings!
kath g says
I found this recipe and tried it - LOVED it. Since then, I've made it quite a few times and I even cooked extra and froze them, then defrosted and warmed them in the microwave later -- the amazing part -- while they weren't quite as crisp, still, they were close....i was really surprised. Thanks for the easy, simple recipe...five stars for you!
DrDan says
Thanks so much for the note and rating. I love simple things like this.
Dan
Shelly says
Tried this seasoning for the chicken theigh said. Loved BUT....cut back on the salt! The skin was way too salty! Maybe from the combo of the salt and garlic
DrDan says
The suggested mix is not intended to be all applied. Season to taste and save the rest for late. I just keep the 7:2:2 in a shaker and add what I want. Part of the beauty of this sort of seasoning is you can adjust to your taste. Maybe make 4:2:2 if you want.
You are not the first to use the whole amount. I think I will do some rewording.
Thnks for the note.
Dan
Lori says
Will this recipe work in a toaster oven?
DrDan says
No, I don't think it would. Too hard to control temp accurately plus radiant heat loss. I think you could get the skin brown, but I doubt the meat would finish well.
Dan
Peggy says
This was - in my husband's words - absolutely astounding. So simple, yet so pround. :)
Dan Mikesell says
Thanks Peggy, I do believe in simple.
Michael Brumfield says
Just stumbled upon your website, love this chicken recipe was crispy on the outside and wonderfully moist on the inside.
This will be a go to recipe for chicken!
Debbie says
This was by far the best chicken recipe I have found in a long. Skin perfectly crispy and inside moist and delicious! Served with baked potatoes and steamed broccoli & cauliflower. Family loved it. Will be a go to dinner!
DrDan says
Excellent, thanks.
DrDan
NatesMom says
Used salt, fresh ground pepper, garlic powder and smoked paprika and on first try these came out great! Had to extend cook time to 40min but true to its name the result was perfectly crisped skin and juicy, flavorful meat. Cheap and super easy, even cleanup was a breeze. Adding this one to my go-to foolproof recipes!
Kathy O says
Saturday I always cook a meal to last a few days for my brother and bring it to him. Typically I just make some favorites that take a long time and can be costly. Purchased two large packages and cooked in disposable baking pans no smoke which has happened in my oven (small oven). My brother loved his meal and had seconds said they were juicy and delicious. Now cooking more for my husband not using salt for health lots of garlic, pepper and smoked paprika. Thanks for the tips and recipe I don't cook thighs so this was a first, done perfectly.
Laura says
My oven lit on fire after 15 minutes!! I followed all of your instructions on preventing smoke to a T, including placing these boys on racks over lined oven pans, but I was making a huge batch (20 thighs) for a party and apparently it was too much grease for the oven to handle. I panicked and shut off the oven and realized the fire went out so I decided to turn it back on and continue cooking them and guess what? The house smelled a bit smokey when the party started but the thighs were GORGEOUS and delicious and they gobbled them up. Also, chicken for 20 people cost me $9! This recipe is a keeper--though next time I'll be making a smaller batch!
DrDan says
Thanks so much for the story... my wife is still laughing that it came out so well for you. Thanks for the story and especially the rating considering the fire.
Dan
Nina says
These are great! So simple and delicious. My only suggestion is to make extra because they are really good cold the next day. Just like the drum stick recipe. Thanks!
DrDan says
You found my secret... it is the drumstick recipe but people kept asking about thighs so I did it again with thighs.
Thanks for the note and rating.
DrDan
David says
Awesome recipe. Easy and simple. Our new convection oven did a great job on ensuring this was cooked to perfection. I love chicken thighs better than breast meat. Tender and juicy. I'm making these tonight once my niece gets out of my kitchen. I'm getting hungry just thinking of these. Hurry up kid. Get out of my kitchen!
DrDan says
I always believe the simpler the recipe, the better... I'm a simple guy.
Thanks so much for the note and rating
DrDan
Barb Norton says
I use parchment paper on sheet pan.. This pretty much lets chicken fry in its own fat.. Similar idea to cooking bacon on parchment.. Seriously delicious.. Lightly coat in same seasonings flour, corn starch baking powder ( in a Baggie) gives almost Korean fried crunch. Yummm
John C says
do you think this could be adapted for turkey thighs?
DrDan says
I doubt it. Too much mass and too thick. It would take a lower temp longer to get the middle to the right temp without burning the outside.
DrDan
Joy Bang says
Yum. Thank you. I needed something easy and your tips were/are great. yum again
Diana says
This was the most moist chicken I have ever cooked. Do not walk away from your stove, it could start smoking.