How Do You Get Crispy Skin When Oven Baking Bbq Chicken
To be rewarded with that super crispy skin when making oven-baked BBQ chicken, the most important step is to sear you chicken pieces before moving them to the oven to bake. By searing the chicken skin, you are crisping that skin up before it even starts cooking. Keep in mind that you are coating your BBQ chicken with layers of BBQ sauce so your skin wont be as crispy as say naked chicken but I promise you that taking the time to sear the chicken skin makes all the difference in the world!
Easy Chicken Recipes Chicken Dinner Ideas
Easy Chicken Recipes are some of my favorite things to make for weeknight dinners. Theres so much you can do with chicken and an oven, and I never get tired of making new baked chicken recipes to share .
Keep scrolling below for tons of EASY CHICKEN RECIPES!
This guide is here to show you how to bake chicken, how long to bake chicken, what temperature to bake chickenbasically everything you need to know to make these easy chicken recipes! Plus how to serve, store, and reheat baked chicken. If youre looking for Chicken Dinner Ideas, youve come to the right place.
Ive also included some of my favorite easy baked chicken recipes to show you how simple it is to make for a weeknight dinner or any meal. These recipes are absolutely delicious and I cant wait to share them with you! Easy Chicken Dinner Ideas here we come.
In this guide well be talking about:
- The basic tools you need in your kitchen
- How to make baked chicken
- Answers to all of your baked chicken questions
- Easy chicken recipes to make any night of the week
How To Roast A Whole Chicken In The Oven
You may be intimidated by the thought of roasting, or baking, a whole chicken in the oven. I have been there!
But, allow me to reassure you that you SO got this! It is one of those easy recipes, that you can prep, put it in the oven, and walk away. How easy is that?
No basting, no fluff! Using simple ingredients, and then you just cook that chicken!
With that said, this recipe will allow this baked whole chicken to stand out from the rest. You will have a flavorful chicken that is incredibly juicy, and has a perfectly crispy skin too! Because we all know the crispy skin is where its at!
- Rinse the inside and outside of the chicken and pat dry.
- Season inside and outside of chicken
- Stuff the cavity with veggies and herbs. ALL the flavors!
- Brush the outside of the chicken with the melted butter. Magical juiciness and crispy skin!
- Bake and roast until you reach whole chicken crispy perfection!
See, it is not that intimidating of a recipe at all! And, notice how there is no basting, or checking on the chicken every few minutes?
When it comes to recipes you need easy! First of all, you have about one bajillion other things you need to be doing besides checking on your dinner recipe every other minute. Because you knowlaundry, homework, and basically any surface in your home needs cleaned right about now.
Don’t Miss: How To Make Stuffed Chicken Breasts
How To Bake Chicken Breasts:
Alright, so heres the secret! To make perfectly baked chicken bbrrreasts, you simply need to follow this 5-step acronym: B.B.R.R.R.
Brine : Im telling you this step is an absolute must for anytime you want to bake chicken breasts in the oven. Brining chicken is super-easy, it makes your chicken extra juicy, and best of all, it can be effectively done in just 15 minutes. Plus, if you brine chicken in lukewarm water, it also helps bring the chicken to room temperature, which makes for more even cooking. Win-win!
To brine chicken, simply fill a big bowl with lukewarm water. Stir in a handful of salt until it mostly dissolves. Then add your chicken breasts and let them sit in the saltwater to brine for at least 15 minutes. If you are doing this in advance, you can cover and refrigerate the bowl of chicken and saltwater for up to 6 hours. But you dont want to let the chicken brine for much longer than that.
When youre ready to go, remove the chicken from the brine. Give it a good rinse it with cold water to wash off the salt, and then pat it dry with some paper towels. And voila your chicken is officially brined.
Really, dont skip over this step! It makes a world of difference.
Note: That said, some store-bought chicken breasts are now sold pre-brined. So double-check your packaging beforehand. And if your chicken has already been pre-brined in a sodium solution, just move onto step two. 🙂
I like to roast my chicken breasts on high heat.
And enjoy every last bite.
Oven Roasted Chicken Meal Prep Powerhouse
I am going to let you in on a secret. A pretty fantastical, magical, and life changing secret at that. Okay, perhaps life changing is a bit dramatic.
But, it will save you a TON of time in the kitchen! In particular your time in the kitchen that involves dinner. Ready?
TIP 1: Make 2 oven roasted whole chickens because
TIP 2: You will use the chicken for different meals the rest of the week!
This may come as a shock, but rarely does my family actually eat the oven roasted whole chicken as is. Say whaatttt?
Now, do not get me wrong! This chicken recipe is amazing served with mashed potatoes and green beans or roasted broccoli. I mean comfort meal for days delicious!
But, you have a busy week ahead. Seems like one meal is simply not going to cut it! You need to stretch this baby as far as you can. And, not drive yourself crazy during the week on trying to decide what to have for dinner.
Enter doubling the recipe! You are already doing this thing, you may as well add another chicken to the list!
Once, your chicken is done resting. Simply shred the chicken meat, or chop, or whatever your precious heart desires. Because this recipe for you is flexible like that! Now you have chicken ready to go into dinner ideas for the whole week!
Don’t Miss: What Can I Make With Chicken Breast
Recipes To Complete Your Meal
Baked chicken is the BEST staple food. It goes with everything and leaves you with endless pairing options making every meal different! I especially like that baked chicken its so filling. It will totally be the star of the show but in the meantime, these are some tried and true favorites that will elevate your meal to the next level! Enjoy!
Side Dishes
A Juicy Baked Chicken Breast
Though I always stand firm that brown meat is better than white more flavour, more juiciness lean chicken breast is a regular in my shopping trolley, week after week.
So today, Im sharing my recipe for how I make Oven Baked Chicken Breast.
We can never have too many really great quick chicken breast recipes!
As simple as it sounds, if you whack a seasoned breast in the oven without thought, the chances are youll be chewing your way through dry chicken, furiously squirting over copious amounts of ketchup to try to salvage it.
It doesnt need to be that way. Enter a fabulous simple, magic chicken seasoning for baked chicken breast:
You May Like: How Long Do You Cook Chicken On Grill
How To Bake Chicken Breast
Baking chicken breast is one easy task but because they contain very little fat and are a lean cut of meat you have to infuse flavor anyway you can.
I try to skip the brining which is one way to force flavor into the chicken but it can be messy and.frankly, I forget to do it every single time.
So, I resort to a simple rub mixture to season chicken breasts. You could also use this Fajita Seasoning to flavor your chicken breast or this Taco Seasoning works really well, too!
Serve!
I like to bake my chicken on a sturdy baking sheet like this one HERElined with aluminum foil for easy clean up!
You can even make this chicken in the slow cooker by just arranging on the bottom, adding a 1/4 cup chicken stockand cooking on low for 3-4 hours.
+ Easy Chicken Dinner Ideas
Ive collected over 70 of the BEST easy chicken recipes from my site to inspire your next weeknight dinner. Whether youre looking for something simple, something cheesy, or something healthy, Ive got a recipe here for you that you will LOVE!
Recipes have been broken down into sections covering: baked chicken, grilled chicken, skillet chicken recipes, chicken casseroles, one pan chicken dinners, and finally, a few more recipes thrown in you can make in a slow cooker or Instant Pot.
Read Also: What’s The Difference Between Chicken Broth And Chicken Stock
Tips For The Best Crispy Wings
- Use thawed wings. If your chicken wings are frozen, make sure to thaw them completely before cooking. This will ensure that the wings can soak up the flavor of the cajun ranch marinade.
- Use parchment paper. This is a must for oven-fried foods. It helps with easy cleanup because it prevents the wings from sticking to the sheet pan.
- Bake at a high temperature. At temperatures under 400F, wings can easily dry out before becoming crispy. Cooking at a higher temperature will ensure that we get the skin golden brown and crispy while maintaining juicy and tender meat.
- Bake in a single layer. Dont stack the wings, otherwise, they will steam inside the oven. Leave a little bit of room around each one so they all get a chance to crisp up evenly while baking.
How To Make Juicy Baked Chicken
The best part of this chicken is the combination of the golden, caramelized outside with the juicy and tender inside. Because of this, the chicken falls apart in your mouth and fills you right up!
Recommended Reading: Recipe For Indian Chicken Curry
Ingredients You Will Need
Open up that spice drawer and I bet that you already have all that you need in order to make this rub for your chicken. You will love the subtle spice but mixed with the brown sugar, it doesnt take on too much heat so even the kids will enjoy it! See the recipe below for a list of full ingredient measurements.
- Chicken breasts: Make sure that your chicken is either fresh or thawed. The rub wont stick to frozen chicken!
- Brown sugar: This is the secret ingredient that will retain all of the natural juice from the chicken.
- Chili powder: Chili powder adds a mild spice to the dish.
- Paprika: Paprika naturally enhances the flavor and taste of the meat.
- Italian seasoning: Try using this Italian seasoning that will customize this dish!
- Garlic powder: The fine texture of garlic powder helps distribute this taste evenly through the rub.
Oven Baked Chicken Breast
This is the most popular of all chicken breast recipes that Ive ever published. Its a JUICY Oven Baked Chicken Breast sprinkled with a magic simple seasoning, baked until caramelised. Its simple, fast and incredibly tasty! This is a reader-favourite alongside Honey Garlic Chicken, this epic Parmesan Crusted Chicken and crispy Garlic Chicken.
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook Dinner!
Don’t Miss: Cooking Chicken In Pressure Cooker
How To Roast A Chicken
First, pat the chicken dry and truss the legs . Trussing helps to cook the chicken legs and thighs evenly and avoid drying out the breast since the cavity will be exposed.
Helpful tip: If you dont truss the legs, check on the chicken 10 to 15 minutes earlier, as it typically cooks faster.
Second, evenly rub the chicken with oil and pat in the seasoning. Dont be afraid to add a bit more salt, as this will help crisp up the skin. As for the oil, make sure to rub it underneath the chicken as well, so all sides are fully coated.
Third, lets get to roasting! Roast the chicken at 425°F for about 70 to 90 minutes, or until its beautifully golden! To make sure your chicken is cooked perfectly, check out my tips in the next section.
Should You Bake Chicken Covered Or Uncovered
Do you cover a chicken when roasting? We generally like to roast our chicken uncovered so the skin crisps up and turns an appealing golden brown. If the chicken starts to get too dark before it reaches the proper internal temperature, you can tent a piece of foil over the top to protect the skin from burning.
Also Check: When Can Chicks Go Outside
Baked Chicken Breast Ingredients:
To make this baked chicken breasts recipe, you will need:
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts: You can either purchase fresh chicken breasts or frozen chicken breasts . Some chicken also comes pre-brined nowadays, in which case you can skip step one below.
- Butter or olive oil: Your pick! I like the extra flavor that butter adds, but olive oil will also work well.
- Kosher Salt: An essential ingredient in our brine, and we will also use salt to season the chicken before baking.
- Seasonings: I included an all-purpose blend of smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt and black pepper in the recipe below, which is super-simple and goes with just about anything. But feel free to sub in any dry seasoning blend that you prefer.
Also, if you bake chicken regularly in the oven, I strongly having a cooking thermometer on hand too. It is the most foolproof way to ensure that your chicken is not over- or under-cooked, and works like a charm. I recommend either this:
- Instant-read cooking thermometer : which I have owned and used for years when cooking chicken, which retails for about $9.99 on Amazon.
- Dual-probe wireless meat thermometer: which I also own and love because it can be used inside of a hot oven , which retails for about $24.99 on Amazon.
Allrecipes Community Tips And Praise
“I made this a few weeks ago and will make it again today for dinner,” says joan. “Quick and tender and leftovers are just as good! For spices, I used a basic blend I found in one of the reviews with a little extra cayenne for my heat-loving husband. Do not overcook, remove from the oven, tent with foil and rest for ten minutes or so. Mmmm!”
“Great recipe to hold onto specifically for cooking time and temp,” according to cmartire. “Comes out moist and perfect every time. You can use any spice mixture.”
“This is my ‘go-to’ chicken recipe,” says bb2cook. “We have it often. I change up the seasonings, and use lemon flavored olive oil. The cooking time does vary according to the size of the chicken breast so check the internal temperature often. It is always moist and flavorful and so easy.”
Editorial contributions by Corey Williams
Don’t Miss: Calories For General Tso’s Chicken
The Juiciest Oven Baked Chicken Breast Right Here
For years I tried so many recipes and techniques for a juicy baked chicken breast. Disappointed every single time and having to chew though mouthful of dry chicken, dipping each forkful in mayonnaise just to get through it. If you love food as much as I do, this is usually a completely heartbreaking experience.
Enter our recipe: easy, fast and simple. No weird steps, no wrapping, tenting, brining or marinating needed. Just a good flavoured seasoning rubbed all over our chicken and let your oven do all the work.
This is how I make the most incredible baked chicken breast that retain all of their natural juices!
The best part about this recipe are the pan juices that mix through the seasoning to give you a little something extra to drizzle them with when serving.
How To Make Baked Chicken Breast Thighs Wings Or Legs
We usually buy whole chickens and either cut them up ourselves or have the butcher do it for us. It’s cheaper that way, and we get giblets for gravy. You can do that or just use a package of whatever chicken parts you likemake baked chicken breasts for white meat, and baked chicken thighs and legs for dark.
This way of cooking chicken couldn’t be more straightforward. It’s especially welcome on days when you’re busy and just want to put good food on the table.
Recommended Reading: How Long Do You Cook Chicken Breasts In The Oven