Herb Roasted Chicken Thighs in Creamy White Wine Sauce rely on humble ingredients and just a single pan to bring out the most delicious flavors. Juicy roasted chicken is deliciously tender addition to your family dinner table. What an easy comfort food recipe!
Tender and juicy chicken with crispy golden skin in amazing herb flavor! We roast chicken thighs at 400 F in the creamy white wine sauce. The silky sauce is so smooth & addictive – perfect for weeknight dinner or weekend dinner party.
Tips on baking your chicken thighs
- First things first, pat the skin of the chicken thighs dry with paper towels in order to prepare the chicken skin.
- Use a cast iron skillet as we are going to roast the chicken in a very hot cast iron skillet.
- Once again, the chicken skin needs to be very dry and the pan needs to be very hot to get the best color and texture.
- Next, use tongs to handle the chicken so you don’t have to touch it.
- Make sure to brown chicken skin side first on medium high heat and brown it well. Resist the urge to move the chicken thighs while it’s being browned.
- How long does it take to roast chicken thighs in the oven? About 35 minutes at 400 F.
What kind of wine to use
I love cooking with wine. It has to be one of the best cooking ingredients out there, providing so much flavor with so little effort. And herb roasted chicken thighs are no exception. They are full of flavor and taste as a restaurant dish, yet the preparation is so simple and basic.
For wine I used a regular drinking dry white wine. The good choices are Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay or Riesling. But for this particular recipe I used Pinot Grigio.
So with a bottle of wine in one hand and a bunch of herbs in the other, these herb roasted chicken thighs can become the most decadent item on your weekly menu! But how about if you are unable to tolerate alcohol, can you still enjoy it?
Wine substitutions
- Chicken or vegetable stock. Substitute stock for white wine entirely if not a fan of vinegar or sensitive to sulfites in vinegar. For extra flavor, try mixing a tablespoon of lemon juice per cup of stock.
- Lemon. Squeeze 2 wedges of lemon (½ a lemon) into the sauce.
How to lighten up this recipe
Half-and-half. Use half-n-half instead of heavy cream, or omit it altogether and replace with chicken broth.
What skillet to use for herb roasted chicken thighs
Cast iron skillet. It’s important to use a good heavy skillet to brown chicken thighs, such as cast iron and a large one too. I used 12 inch Lodge Pro-Logic Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet in this recipe – it’s well designed, has a helper handle and sloped sides – very sleek looking for cast iron!
I have other cast iron skillets, but prefer this one due to its size (it’s very large with even more space due to its sloped sides), it also never sticks or leaves weird black dots on meat like other cast iron skillets do. And it’s one of my most used kitchen tools!
Can I use boneless chicken thighs instead?
WE NEED THE BONE! This recipe is designed for juicy chicken thighs that do need a bone to bring out the extra juices and flavor.
How to make creamy sauce
- BUTTER ONION BASE: Start by adding butter and chopped onions and sauté until the onion is browned, 3-4 minutes. Next add chopped garlic and Italian seasoning, and cook for another minute.
- ITALIAN SEASONING: I almost always use Thyme, Oregano and Rosemary combination, also known as Italian seasoning for this baked chicken recipe.
- SICILIAN SEASONING: The alternative is to use Sicilian seasoning in this dish. It has all the usual mixed spices of Italian seasoning (fennel, oregano, thyme and basil), but also includes red pepper flakes, roasted garlic and sea salt. This is the base of the Creamy White Wine Sauce, that will give it such a wonderful flavor.
- ADD FLOUR: Now add flour and cook it in the oil of the pan for only a minute, until it’s no longer white.
- POUR WINE: Next pour the wine slowly to the hot pan, increasing heat from medium-high to high and cook for a few minutes.
- Add chicken stock and heavy cream. And you know what? Creamy white wine sauce is almost ready! Stir to combine and let everything cook until it reduces slightly, about 5 minutes.
- Taste the sauce and add fresh thyme, salt and pepper, to taste.
More Chicken Recipes with Wine to Enjoy
Herb Roasted Chicken Thighs in Creamy White Wine Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 lbs chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on
- Salt and pepper
- Italian seasoning, (divided)
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 3-4 thyme sprigs (leaves only)
- 1 tablespoon flour, for thickening the sauce
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 cup chicken stock
- ½ cup heavy cream
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken thighs with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.Cook chicken thighs on medium-high skin side down first to brown it for 4-5 minutes. Flip and cook on the next side for about 4 minutes, for a total of 8-10 minutes. Remove chicken from the skillet.
- Add 2 tablespoon butter, onion and sauté until the onion is browned, 3-4 minutes. Add chopped garlic, thyme and 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning and cook for another minute.Next add 1 tablespoon flour and cook it in the oil of the pan for only a minute, until it’s no longer white. Add the wine slowly to the hot pan, increasing heat from medium-high to high and cook for a few minutes.Now add chicken stock and heavy cream. Stir to combine and let everything cook until it reduces slightly, about 5 minutes. Make sure to taste the sauce and add salt and pepper, to taste.
- Return chicken thighs back into the pan with sauce. Put in the oven uncovered and cook at 400 for 35 minutes. Once time is up, take the pan out of the oven, check if chicken thighs are done. Sprinkle with fresh thyme and serve with roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes or rice.
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only. This information comes from online calculators. Although whatsinthepan.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
Sarah says
Do you recommend removing the skin from the chicken thighs?
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
I think skin makes a nice crispy finish for these chickens. It does have a lot of histamines in it, which makes it harder to digest for some people and definitely can be removed prior to cooking.
Sarah says
Do you know what the nutrition is per serving?
And what portion constitutes a serving?
Thank you!
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
It’s 1 chicken with sauce per serving for a total of 8 servings. Calories per serving: 397. I’m implementing nutrition for the recipes in the next couple of weeks so unfortunately you can’t see it yet. It’s 30 gram total fat, 147 mg cholesterol and 27.4 g protein.
Christina Abdallah says
Can I substitute the white white for something else that’s non-alcoholic? Thanks!!
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
You can use rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar, but use half the amount than the recipe calls for and replace the remaining half with chicken broth.
Heidi says
Can I add quartered red potatoes to Dutch oven when going into oven?
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
You will have to up the oven temperature to 400 F and roast everything for 60 minutes. I made a similar recipe with roasted chicken and potatoes here (the only difference is Dijon Mustard in the recipe here): https://whatsinthepan.com/2017/12/herb-roasted-creamy-chicken-potatoes-dijon-mustard-wine-sauce/
It should turn out well! Make sure to also raise the temperature to 425F for 10 minutes at the very end to get some browning on top.
Kelly says
Sorry if I missed this but where does the thyme come in? It looks like the entire sprig is added during the baking process? Or do you strip the thyme from the sprig?
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
I stripped the thyme from the sprig to add them to the sauce directly and also added a couple of sprigs on top as well.
Sandy says
Is this salted butter or unsalted butter?
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
It’s unsalted butter
Dawn says
I made with skinless boneless chicken thighs just as recipe instructed otherwise and was delicious! Especially left overs the next day
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
So happy it turned out well!
Jackie says
Just awesome! This was our Sunday night dinner. Loved it!
Nicole says
Should I cut the time down if I use boneless, skinless thighs? This looks amazing!
Olya says
You can cook the entire thing on the stove top if using boneless skinless chicken. After searing the chicken and making the sauce, cover the pan with a lid and simmer everything for 10 minutes. I’m curious how it will turn out!
Sandy says
It turned out fantastic! It was so yummy that My family even licked clean the plates! Thanks for sharing such a great dish.
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
Thank you!
DIANE says
If I use boneless skinless thighs because that’s all my grocer sales, you said to simmer it 10 to 15 minutes. Is it done then or do I put it in the oven? Please reply to my email address. I plan on making this Friday morning for my client. Thank you
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
Diane, I sent you a message. You don’t have to put it in the oven if there is no bone in the chicken thigh. Stove top will do in that case.
Diane says
Thank you, I got it, but couldnt remember which recipie you were replying too… I wrote about a couple. thanks. Can you reply, How would my client reheat this, and can I freeze it? When would be an ok time to freeze? time and temp?
Diane says
I go in the day, prepare recopies and he comes home at night and heats and eats, So it might be frozen or it might be refrigerated…
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
I see. If you make it Friday morning for your client (assuming he will eat it the same day at night) – refrigerate it in a relatively large container so that chicken is on top of the sauce and not on top of other chickens (at least that’s what I prefer to do when I cook for other people). Does he reheat it on the stove? If he does, putting a little bit of chicken broth would make the sauce smoother when reheated.
Olya at Whatsinthepan says
Diane, if are you planning on freezing it, keep in mind that cream based sauces have a tendency to curdle and become a little grainy if frozen and then reheated. To avoid it, do not add cream if freezing it, instead, add it after it thaws and while reheating.
Lynn says
I made this for dinner today. It was easy and delicious. Thank you so much for this recipe.