Baked Chicken Thighs with Mustard-Panko Crust. Roasted chicken thighs with a crispy panko bread crumb crust, stuck on the chicken by a layer of dijon mustard. This is an easy way to get breaded chicken thighs on a weeknight, and a recipe I make many times a year.
Would you like to save this recipe?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Jump to:
This is a rewrite of a recipe from years ago, which is one of my go-to weeknight chicken recipes. (Also, I'm working on an air fryer version of the recipe - stay tuned.
America has a love affair with chicken breasts. I've complained before about how dry chicken breast can get. The flavor is, quite frankly, boring.
*…this is a dangerous time for you, when you will be tempted by the dark side…
The answer is to eat chicken legs. I love dark meat poultry, juicy and full of flavor. Because of America's white meat preference, you can get chicken legs, thighs, and drumsticks for a song at your local grocery store.
Yes, it's frugal, but I still prefer dark meat, and would buy it even if it was more expensive. Dark meat has more chicken flavor than white meat, and it is harder to overcook. A chicken breast should be cooked to 160°F for food safety, but if it goes past 165ºF it dries out. Chicken legs are more forgiving - you can eat them at 165°, but they are best cooked between 175° and 185°F, and even if you go past that they won't dry out like white meat.
*…that place…is strong with the dark side…a domain of flavor it is.
Adapted from Mark Bittman. It was titled, appropriately enough, Crossing over to the Dark Side. Come, join us on the dark side, we have better chicken!
Adapted From: Mark Bittman (and Gary Danko): Crossing Over to the Dark Side [nytimes.com]
How to make Baked Chicken Thighs with Mustard and Herbs (in Pictures)
Trim the chicken thighs
Trimming the excess skin and fat from the edges of the chicken thighs
Coat with mustard, then crust with Panko bread crumbs
Coat the chicken thighs with the mustard, then press into the panko on both sides to stick the bread crumbs to the chicken.
Roast the thighs at 400°F for 1 hour
Roast (aka bake) the chicken thighs in a 400°F oven for 1 hour, until the thighs are at least 175°F measured in the thickest part of the thigh, and the bread crumb crust is golden brown. Enjoy!
Equipment
A roasting pan or baking dish, preferably with a rack. I like using a half sheet pan This post contains Amazon affiliate links with a rack, because the chicken crisps up best if a rack is holding it above the pan. But, if a rack isn't available, I'll set the chicken directly on the pan.
Print
Baked Chicken Thighs with Mustard and Herbs Recipe
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 8 chicken thighs 1x
Description
Baked Chicken Thighs with Mustard-Panko Crust. Roasted chicken thighs with a crispy panko bread crumb crust, stuck on the chicken by a layer of dijon mustard. This is an easy way to get breaded chicken thighs on a weeknight, and a recipe I make many times a year.
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs (or 4 legs cut into thigh and drumstick portions)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup Dijon mustard
- 1 cup Panko Bread Crumbs (Japanese style bread crumbs)
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Coat chicken with mustard: Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Trim any excess skin or fat from the chicken thighs, and then put them in a large bowl. Sprinkle with the teaspoon of salt, then toss with the mustard until evenly coated.
- Add the panko bread crumb crust: Put the panko, thyme and salt and pepper in a pie plate, and stir to combine. Press the chicken into the panko mix on both sides, shake off any excess, and transfer to a rack over a rimmed baking sheet.
- Bake the chicken at 400°F for 1 hour: Put the pan of chicken in the oven and cook for until the chicken has an internal temperature of at least 175°F, and the panko crumb crust is golden brown, about 1 hour.
- Serve: Transfer to a serving platter, let the chicken cool for 5 minutes, then serve. Enjoy!
Equipment
Buy Now → - Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Weeknight Dinner
- Method: Roasting
- Cuisine: American
Would you like to save this recipe?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 thigh
- Calories: 488
- Sugar: 0.8 g
- Sodium: 682.7 mg
- Fat: 32.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 10.3 g
- Fiber: 0.7 g
- Protein: 33.7 g
- Cholesterol: 189.1 mg
Recipe Variations
- Herbs de Provence shortcut: Sprinkle the chicken with 1 teaspoon dried herbs de Provence spice mix before you coat it with the mustard, and skip the herbs in the panko crust.
- Different Herbs: Use 2 teaspons of any minced fresh herb in the panko. In the original recipe, they use minced garlic and tarragon. I always have some fresh thyme lying around, so that's what I use.
- Spicy coating: Add ½ teaspoon of chipotle powder or cayenne pepper to the panko if you would like to spice up your chicken.
- Homemade bread crumbs: Pulse 3 slices of sandwich bread in a food processor until it's chopped into crumb sizes. Add one tablespoon of olive oil and pulse a few times to mix it into the bread.
Tips and Tricks:
- Panko or fresh bread crumbs work much better than canned bread crumbs from the grocery store. The big chunks of panko don't get swallowed up by the mustard crust.
- I think it is easiest to put the chicken thighs in a big bowl, add the mustard, and toss them until they are coated - but I don't mind getting my hands dirty. If you want to be neat and tidy, brush the mustard on the chicken instead of tossing.
- If you insist, you can use chicken breasts - but be careful of overcooking. Cook them on the bone, skin on, and make sure you get them out of the oven at an internal temperature between 160ºF and 165ºF, or they'll dry out.
- If your thighs are cooked through (over 175°F) but your panko isn't golden brown, turn on your broiler and broil the pan of chicken for a minute or two to crisp up the panko bread crumbs. But, be careful! Bread goes from browned to burnt in a flash. Keep a close eye on the chicken while it's under the broiler.
- …if only you knew the power of the dark side… OK, if you promise to try this recipe, I'll stop with the Star Wars quotes.
What to serve with Baked Chicken Thighs
I serve this chicken with a salad, and since I've already got the oven heated up, I'll try to roast my vegetable sides at the same time. I love potatoes: Quick Baked Potatoes, Oven Roasted Crispy Fingerling Potatoes, or Cast Iron Spiral Skillet Potatoes all go great with this recipe. For a green vegetable, I'll make my Cast Iron Brussels Sprouts.
Questions? Comments? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
- Cast Iron Roasted Butterflied Chicken
- Grill Roasted Chicken Pieces: Basic Technique
- Sear Roasted Chicken Breasts with Shallot Herb Pan Sauce
- Sear-Roasted Chicken Pieces with Quick Lemon Pan Sauce
If you're looking for something else, here is my Recipe index page.
Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner via email and share this post with your friends. Want to contribute directly? Donate to my Tip Jar, or buy something from Amazon.com through the links on this site. Thank you.
Erin from Long Island says
I am SO with you on the dark meat! I really never buy breasts anymore. Brining helps, but I still feel the meat doesn't taste like anything. I am certainly going to try this now that it is too cold to grill!!
A Year on the Grill says
BAKED??? What happened to the grill???
And absolutely about the breast meat...same with over rated turkey white meat.