Crispy Butter Dijon Parmesan Crusted Chicken Thighs. Oven baked to a crispy crunch! Dredged in a simple concoction of butter and dijon then dipped in panko crumbs and parmesan. Crispy on the outside and tender in the middle, this chicken is oven baked, but with all the crunch of fried chicken. One of our most favorite family chicken dinners to make!
Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Thigh Recipe
Mr. Laughing Spatula hums when he eats these….you know… the nom nom hum? Nommm, nommmm, nommmm…I just love it when he loves what I make. We make these crispy baked chicken thighs on repeat. Easy to prepare and love the leftovers over salad or rice. Baked, or air fried with easy clean up no matter the method. My kind of dinner!
Ingredients for Crispy Chicken Thighs
- 6-8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (bone in can be used as well, see recipe card for directions)
- Butter
- Salted or unsealed, just bear in mind that parmesan cheese can be quite salty as it is.
- Dijon mustard
- Panko crumbs
- Don’t sub for breadcrumbs. Panko crumbs are denser in texture, and have better crunch.
- Parmesan cheese
- Drizzle of honey if desired
Making Baked Crispy Chicken Thighs
This is a very simple, straight forward recipe. I’ve served it to a crowd, and I’ve also just made it for my family. The only difference in serving quantities is you just sometimes need a bigger sheet pan (and also increase the ingredients).
Cooking for a Crowd: Load up 2 sheet pans full of crispy chicken thighs in the oven. On a standard 18×26 inch sheet pan you can fit about 8-10 pieces of chicken, just be sure they have an inch or two apart so they cook evenly. When you serve it, put some condiments to spoon over the chicken on the side (ranch, honey mustard, honey, sriracha mayo, etc). Almost like a crispy chicken thigh bar! Clever, huh?
Assembling Crispy Chicken Thighs
- To get started, preheat the oven, and line a sheet pan with parchment paper. You can also use foil, just be sure to spray the foil with nonstick spray.
- In 2 separate bowls: 1) combine butter and dijon, and in bowl 2) combine panko and parmesan.
- I do recommend patting the chicken thighs dry, they will coat better in the butter and dijon mixture.
- Simply dip the chicken in the mustard mixture and press in to the parmesan and panko crumb mixture.
- Lay them on foil or parchment covered sheet pan for easy clean up!
PRO TIP: Spray the top of the chicken with non stick cooking oil spray to give it even more crunch. I like to use Trader Joes’ spray olive oil.
Bake it up and you have some of the yummiest Oven Baked Chicken Thighs around. The dijon gives it a nice kick and the couple tablespoons of butter make the crust crispy. There really isn’t a science to this recipe, which is what has made it so popular over the years. Coat, bake, enjoy. Simple!
Air Frying Crispy Chicken Thighs
You can absolutely use an air fryer and get the same (if not better!) results. Chicken thighs are a really forgiving as far as cooking them goes, because they have dark meat, which is very rich (and doesn’t dry out as easily as chicken breasts).
Air Fried Chicken Thigh Instructions
- Follow the directions, coating the chicken in the butter/dijon mixture and then the panko crumb mixture.
- Preheat your Air Fryer to 400 degrees.
- Spray tops of chicken thighs with nonstick spray, or spray olive oil.
- Air fry for 20 minutes turning once.
- Chicken is cooked when internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
We double the batch and use the leftovers for a crispy chicken salad the next day. These are also fabulous cold.
Serving, Variations, & Storing Chicken Thighs
Serving Suggestions
When I serve these easy chicken thighs, I plan on a serving being about 1.5-2 chicken thighs per person. I like them with a vegetable, or white rice. Here’s some of my favorite recipes to go with them.
- Rice goes so well. We bake ours in the oven and it comes out perfect every time.
- Caeser Pasta Salad – all the flavors you love with pasta.
- Creamy Caulifower Augratin – cream and veggies..yes.
- Cauliflower Rice with Mushrooms – 20 minute delicious and healthy side dish.
Variations:
You can add so many different flavors to this recipe! The most important part is using the base with the dijon, the butter, and panko crumbs. The dijon emulsifies the butter which is what helps give this chicken such a nice crust.
- Add lemon zest, and fresh chopped rosemary to your panko crumb mixture for added flavor.
- Instead of parmesan, try feta cheese & fresh lemon zest for a Greek twist.
- Make it spicy! Add hot honey drizzled on top if you like a kick.
- Want it even spicier? Consider topping it with chopped jalapeños.
Storing & Reheating Crispy Chicken Thighs
If you have leftovers, simple store them in a lidded container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. I like to reheat mine in the air fryer to freshen up the crispy exterior. If you are at work and don’t have air fryer access, you can simply microwave your chicken thighs for 30 seconds at a time, until heated throughout.
More Chicken Recipes
- Greek Yogurt Chicken
- Hot Honey Chicken
- Honey Roasted Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
- Chicken and Orzo
- Oven Baked Chicken Thighs
- Garlic Lemon Rosemary Chicken Thighs
- 13 Easy Boneless Skinless Chicken Thigh Recipes
- Garlic Honey Roasted Chicken with Sweet Potatoes
Let’s eat! – Kathi and Rachel
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Crispy Crunchy Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 6-8 boneless chicken thighs (bone in would be fine too just increase cooking time)
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 1/3 cup dijon mustard
- 1 1/2 cups Panko crumbs
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- honey for drizzle if desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with foil or parchment for easy clean up. Spray with non stick spray.
- Rinse and pat dry chicken thighs - set aside. Dryer the chicken, the more it will crisp up for you.
- Mix together melted butter and dijon in a medium bowl. Combine Panko, parmesan, salt and pepper in another bowl.
- Add chicken thighs to butter/dijon mixture and gently toss to be sure each piece of chicken is fully coated.
- Press each chicken thigh into Panko crumb mixture and place on prepared pan.
- Spray top of coated chicken thighs with additional non stick spray. This really helps those crumbs get crispy!
- Bake 25-30 minutes until coating is crispy and brown and chicken is cooked though to an internal temp of 165 degrees.
- Serve with a drizzle of honey, or honey mustard if desired. We like this with mashed potatoes and a side of steamed broccoli.
Notes
- If using bone in chicken thighs increase cooking time to about 40 minutes.
- Internal temperature of chicken should be 165 degrees fahrenheit. Use a meat thermometer for accuracy.
- Air Fryer Instructions:
- Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees. Cook for 20 minutes flipping once. Cooking time may vary depending on the thickness of the chicken. Internal temp should be at 165 degrees.
Nutrition
MARY says
THANK YOU KATHI FOR GETTING BACK TO ME,I WILL USE YOUR RECIPIE ,I WANT TO SURPRISE MY NEIGHBOR WITH YOUR RECPIE.
mary says
just want to know can use the Italian panko crumbs for this recipie,thank you
Kathi Kirk says
Hi Mary – I am assuming that Italian Panko are just Panko with italian seasoning and if thats the case then yes. You can use them. Just know it will change the taste from my original recipe but I don’t think that is a bad thing…just some additional herb flavor.
Thanks!
Kathi
Deb E. says
Can I use creamy Dijon honey mustard dressing instead of straight Dijon mustard? If so, Should I then skip the butter? I want it to be crunchy, and not a gooey mess. Please advise.
Kathi @ LaughingSpatula.com says
Hi Deb – I think it would be too gooey and it won’t crunch up. But you could always try! Maybe a bit of the dressing and a bit of the butter? The butter is important, it’s what makes it crunch up. Just go light handed with both.
Carolyn Wolf says
Delicious!!! The family loves it and easy to prepare.
Lee says
This is absolutely delicious. Hubby really liked it too. We were very surprised at how crispy and delicious it was
Will make again for sure. Thank you!
Kathi Kirk says
Hi Lee! I’m so glad you guys liked it. It’s still one of my go to dinners.
Thank you for the kind comment!
Kathi
Sarah D says
My husband won’t stop raving about how delicious this was! He doesn’t normally like chicken thighs but he’s already begging me to make this again. It was so quick and easy with such great flavor. Thanks for a recipe I’ll certainly keep in the monthly rotation.
Kathi Kirk says
Yay! This is one of my favorite go to recipes. I’ve always felt it didn’t get the attention it deserved because it really is so easy and tasty! Glad your hubs loved it….
Kathi
Kenda says
There’s another version of this with Mayo instead of Dijon mustard as the base. Also, if you want to use the same recipe for Pork Tenderloin, that works too
Ed says
Easy and tasty. I will definitely make this again.
Laura@mangialicious says
Every word in the title of this delicious. Chicken thighs are my favorite. I am a horrible chicken fryer, it always come out to dry. This looks amazing!! I will try it Sunday when the kids come over 🙂
Sherry gottshalk says
I made this last night. It was a huge hit and a keeper recipe I already put on a card. So crunchy and flavorful!
Kathi Kirk says
Hi Sherry – I’m so glad you liked it! It’s a staple here at home. I use the same principal on chicken breasts and fish (without the honey).
Kathi
Sherry says
My husband found chk thighs on sale today. I did a searched for a quick recipe and found this. It was so quick to put together. I normally don’t care for thighs, but now I do. Turned out great. I used my new convection oven and the chicken had that nice crispy topping like in the pic, and its was quick too. Although mine had the bones in. Just took an extra 20 minutes for eight thighs. I took the skin off as well – healthy dish.
Kathi Kirk says
Hi Sherry! I’m so glad you like it. You can apply the same recipe to chicken breasts and even pork chops for a healthy “Shake and Bake” recipe! Thanks for writing!
Kathi
Scott says
This is one for when it’s too late / dark / windy for the grill. I will substitute the panko crumbs with a staled baguette blitzed in a food blender! I can’t wait to give this a go and report back.
Rachel Ballard says
I make this exact recipe with breast meat. It’s truly a classic and we love it!! Great one!
Helen @ Scrummy Lane says
Awww, I love how tasty this sounds and how few ingredients it uses!! I’m wondering if a version with lemon zest instead of the mustard would be good, too? I’m not sure if lemon goes with mustard or not, otherwise I’d go ahead and keep it in! Anyway, sounds like a great mid-week meal idea!
Kathi Kirk says
I think lemon goes with anything and it sound fabulous. Great way to make the recipe your own!
Kathi
Anne|Craving Something Healthy says
I just got home from the grocery and bought some chicken strips to use on a salad tomorrow. Wish I opened up this email earlier! This looks yummy 🙂
Dahn says
yum!! The honey looks great on these, what a good idea! I’m with you on the leftovers, I love making leftovers new again…. chicken salad… check!
Maggie says
The dish looks lovely! I like the idea to spray the chicken with no-sticky spray. I once tried to bake fried chicken without dripping out oil on top, the chicken didn’t turn out as golden as the one you made.
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Kathi Kirk says
Hi Maggie – if you have convection in your oven, that really helps to brown up the tops as does the parm cheese. Glad you like it!
Bill says
You know I”m from the south and I love fried chicken. Unfortunately I’ve reached an age where I can’t eat like I used to. This oven fried chicken might be just the ticket for me to eat something that I love so much!!