Serving suggestions

This chicken meatballs recipe is a delicious easy dinner idea and healthy dinner recipe that’s versatile for serving with many different sides. Here are some ideas:

• Pasta: Serve with penne, rigatoni, spaghetti, bucatini, linguine pasta, or the noodles of your choice.
• Rice: Add white rice or basil rice.
• Orzo: Add this orzo recipe.
• Broccoli or broccolini: We like serving with pan fried broccoli, boiled broccoli, or sauteed broccolini
• Salad: Pair it with a salad, like chopped salad, kale salad, kale Caesar salad, pear gorgonzola salad, or radicchio salad.

Ways to make it a meal

This French onion chicken bake is a celebratory meal, great for holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas or dinner parties. We like to pair it with dishes that don’t use the oven (since it’s busy with this chicken!).

It’s great with mashed potatoes or horseradish mashed potatoes, or green vegetables like green beans almondine, sauteed broccoli or sauteed broccolini. It’s also ideal with a crisp salad like arugula salad, apple salad, pear salad, or apple fennel salad. Or, pair it with a simple whole grain or pasta like lemon rice, quinoa, farro, orzo or couscous.

Here are more of our favorite easy side dishes if you’re looking for more ideas!

Ingredient notes for honey garlic chicken thighs

Here are a few ingredient notes and substitutions for this recipe:

• Boneless skinless chicken thighs: This recipe uses skinless boneless chicken thighs. To substitute bone-in chicken thighs, cook a few more minutes when baking until the temperature is reached.
• Olive oil and seasonings: Olive oil is our top choice for sautéing chicken thighs at high heat, and we’ve
• Cornstarch: Cornstarch gives a shiny, thick body to the sauce. As a substitute, try arrowroot powder.
• Soy sauce (or tamari): We typically use regular soy sauce or tamari for the most full flavor, not low sodium. Tamari works for gluten-free diets.
• Honey: Honey brings a nuanced sweetness. We recommend using it if at all possible (though maple syrup works in a pinch).
• Rice vinegar: Rice vinegar is a vinegar made with fermented rice that’s often used in Asian cuisine; it has a lightly sweet, tangy flavor. 
• Garlic and garlic powder: For a flavor packed sauce, use both fresh garlic (not jarred) and garlic powder.
• Ginger root: Ginger root adds a zippy flavor to the sauce. It adds a depth that makes it worth the purchase, and we don’t recommend any substitutes!

More favorite chicken dinners

There are so many fun ways to enjoy chicken for dinner! Try some of our fan favorite chicken dinner ideas like:

• Make quick sophisticated chicken paillard or chicken piccata.
• Go for chicken thighs, baked chicken thighs, or honey garlic chicken thighs.
• Make Instant Pot shredded chicken, or for festive occasions bake French onion chicken.
• Mix up basics like baked chicken breast or pan seared chicken breast.
• Make creamy skillets like tarragon chicken, lemon garlic chicken or Tuscan chicken.

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Chicken Paillard

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Easy Chicken Thighs

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Tarragon Chicken

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30 Easy Chicken Dinner Ideas

Key ingredients for chicken tacos

Tacos are where it’s at for weeknight dinners over here (especially with kids!), and we love that this version can be either pan fried or grilled, depending on the season. Here are the key ingredients you’ll need:

• Boneless skinless chicken breasts: Try to find organic chicken if possible for the best flavor and most sustainable option. You can buy either cutlets or chicken breasts and butterfly them.
• Seasonings: Our seasoning blend includes smoked paprika (pimentón), oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, black pepper, celery seed and cayenne. You can substitute sweet paprika for the smoked, but it’s well worth buying.
• Lime crema: Mix up your own lime crema using sour cream, lime juice and zest, garlic and salt.
• Taco toppings: We like using guacamole as a base for the chicken strips, then topping with cilantro, queso fresco, and onion. If you have time, a batch of pickled red onions takes the flavor over the top.
• Tortillas: We like flour tortillas, but corn or grain free tortillas work well too.

How to make chicken tacos: step by step

These chicken tacos come together simply: you’ll season the chicken, pan sear it on the stovetop, then slice it into strips for the tacos. Here’s the basic outline of steps:

Step 1: Butterfly the chicken (if not in cutlets) by slicing in half horizontally, then opening it up and cutting along the fold to separate the two halves. Pat dry and season with salt. Mix the seasonings and sprinkle on both sides.

Step 2: Add olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned on both sides, 4 to 5 minutes per side. When the internal temperature is 165°F, remove to a plate and rest for 3 minutes. Then slice into strips.

Step 3: Make the lime crema by stirring together the sour cream, lime juice and zest, garlic and salt in a small bowl.

Chicken tacos toppings

The best part of any tacos recipe is the toppings, of course! For these chicken tacos, we like to make sure there is a good mix of soft and creamy textures to offset the texture of the chicken. We like the chicken strips on a bed of guacamole, but you can mix and match toppings here. Here are a few more chicken tacos toppings we love:

• Sauces: Instead of lime crema, serve with chipotle crema, avocado crema, chipotle ranch, or cilantro lime sauce. For dairy free, try this creamy cilantro sauce.
• Pickled vegetables: This recipe is fantastic with pickled onions or pickled jalapenos.
• Shredded lettuce or slaw makes a nice topping; try cilantro lime slaw.
• Crumbled cheese like Cotija, queso fresco or feta always adds a nice pop of savory flavor; omit for dairy-free.
• Pico de gallo adds a punch of red; try purchased or homemade pico de gallo.
• Corn or corn salad adds sweetness and texture.
• Chopped cilantro brings a delicious freshness.
• Salsa like mango salsa, peach salsa, or pineapple salsa make a savory sweet combination.

Sides to serve alongside

Chicken tacos are a fun easy dinner idea to serve any time of year! We like them especially in the summer as a patio party meal, but they work in any season. (Of course, they’re always great with a margarita, too!) Here are a few sides we like to serve alongside:

• Make homemade refried beans or 5 minute bean dip.
• Go for salads like black bean and corn salad, grilled corn salad, Mexican chopped salad, or avocado corn salad.
• Mix up homemade guacamole, watermelon salsa, or corn salsa with tortilla chips.
• Try grilled corn, elote, or elote salad.
• Add a side of cilantro lime rice.

Black Bean and Corn SaladCilantro Lime RiceGrilled CornCilantro Lime SlawElote Salad

Ways to serve chicken paillard

Chicken paillard is often served with an arugula salad, since it adds a nice fresh counterpoint to the savory chicken. Here are some of our favorite simple ways to serve it:

• Try salads like arugula salad, apple salad, classy frisee salad or refreshing endive salad with orange
• Go for green vegetables like roasted asparagus, sauteed broccolini, or sauteed broccoli
• Add potatoes like mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes or French potato salad

Ingredient notes for this chicken thighs recipe

Here’s what to know about what you’ll need:

• Boneless chicken thighs: The best type for this chicken thighs recipe is skin-on or skinless boneless chicken thighs. You can also make this recipe using bone in chicken thighs, just cook a few more minutes when baking until the temperature is reached.
• Olive oil: This is our healthy cooking oil of choice! It’s perfect for sautéing chicken thighs at high heat.
• Lemon: There’s no zesting or juicing involved: just bake the chicken on top of lemon wedges to infuse the flavor.
• Garlic: There’s no mincing either; simply peel and smash garlic cloves and throw them in to infuse flavor while baking.
• Seasonings: You’ll need garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, Italian seasoning, and salt. This is a play on our standard chicken and fish seasoning blends, and it’s a simple way to make the protein taste incredible!

Ways to make it into a meal

Since this chicken thighs recipe is cooked in a skillet but finished in the oven, we find the best ways to accessorize it are with a stovetop grain or vegetable and a salad. You can certainly roast a vegetable as well, but having the chicken in the oven at the same time will affect the cook time. Here are a few ideas:

Chopped SaladMediterranean saladSauteed BroccoliBoiled PotatoesCouscousLemon RiceOrzo

More chicken thighs recipes

If you love chicken thighs as much as we do, there are so many different and fun ways to cook them! Here are a few of our top easy chicken dinner recipes starring thighs:

• Make our fan favorite crispy baked chicken thighs or honey garlic chicken thighs.
• Try super simple chicken cutlets, pan fried chicken thighs, chicken paillard, or pan seared chicken breast.
• Opt for one-pot chicken and rice, or fire up the grill for grilled chicken thighs.
• Mix up seasonal chicken thighs with peaches, or go for chicken tacos.

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Baked Chicken Thighs

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Grilled Chicken Thighs

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30 Easy Chicken Dinner Ideas

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Pan Fried Chicken Thighs

Frequently asked questions

Ingredient notes for a chicken Caesar wrap

This chicken Caesar wrap comes together simply. It’s quicker with purchased chicken and dressing, but it tastes miles better with homemade. You can swap in components based on how much time you have to prep!

• Chicken breast (or cutlets): Buy boneless skinless chicken breast, organic if at all possible. If the chicken is not sold in cutlets, butterfly the chicken before cooking. You can also use purchased cooked chicken.
• Seasonings: Use garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, and grated Parmesan cheese to season the chicken. Substitute regular paprika or omit the Parmesan cheese if desired, but they both add quite a bit of savory nuance to the flavor.
• Croutons: We like using purchased croutons for a Caesar wrap to make prep faster!
• Romaine hearts: Romaine lettuce is the classic leafy green for Caesar salad: its crunch and sweet flavor make the wrap.
• Tomatoes: We like adding cherry tomatoes for another flavor pop and a bit of color inside the wrap.
• Caesar dressing: Our homemade Caesar dressing recipe is next-level. You’ll need mayonnaise, Greek yogurt (optional), garlic, Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce or anchovy paste, salt, and pepper. Or, you can buy dressing in a pinch!
• Burrito size tortillas: Make sure the tortillas are at least 10-inch; smaller tortillas do not work.

Ingredient notes for tarragon chicken salad

Tarragon chicken salad hinges on one thing: fresh tarragon! Of course, you can substitute dried if desired, but it’s best with the real thing. Here are a few notes about the ingredients:

• Shredded chicken: Cook and shred your own chicken using boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or you can substitute 3 cups purchased shredded chicken. If using purchased chicken, it may have salt added, so adjust the salt quantity in the salad by starting with less.
• Fresh tarragon: The fresh tarragon steals the show! If you’d like, substitute 1 teaspoon dried tarragon.
• Celery and red onion: These crunchy vegetables are essential in any egg salad, tuna salad, chickpea salad, or chicken salad.
• Dill pickles: Dill pickle adds the sweet tangy crunch that’s irresistible. If desired, substitute capers and add a pinch of sugar.
• Greek yogurt and mayonnaise: This is our innovation for a flavorful yet creamy salad is adding in Greek yogurt, which adds a freshness and a tang to the flavor. For dairy-free, use more mayonnaise.
• Dijon mustard and white wine vinegar: These final flavors add just the right zip to the flavors.

Tips for baked chicken breast

There are a few tips for making the best juicy, well-seasoned oven baked chicken. In fact, in testing this recipe we had some unfortunate un-delicious chicken fails. We make the mistakes so you don’t have to! Here’s what to know about baked chicken:

• Purchase quality chicken. In some commercially raised chickens, the breast muscle becomes harder and denser than normal, resulting in a mushy texture when cooked. Purchase the highest quality chicken breast you can find, organic if possible.
• Pound the chicken to an even thickness. Pounding the chicken is essential for helping it to cook through evenly.
• Cook the chicken to an internal temperature of 165°F when measured with a food thermometer. Avoid overcooking the chicken, which can dry it out.
• Add enough salt. This is an issue we see a lot with many cooks. While you don’t want to oversalt, you’ll need enough for the flavor to shine! This recipe calls for 2 teaspoons salt for 2 pounds chicken breasts.
• Allow the chicken to rest for 5 minutes before serving. This ensures maximum juiciness.

How to serve it

This baked chicken breast is one of our top easy dinner ideas because it’s just that simple! (Us, in real life: “What’s for dinner? Let’s make that baked chicken again.”) Here are a few simple sides dishes for chicken that don’t require an oven and bowl meal ideas:

• Add a grain like white rice, lemon rice, seasoned quinoa or farro.
• Add a pasta like orzo, couscous, linguine, or garlic butter noodles.
• Add a green salad like arugula salad, kale salad, chopped salad, or Mediterranean salad.
• Make it into a main dish salad by serving it sliced over Caesar salad, apple salad, taco salad, or chicken pasta salad.
• Add it to bowl meals like a fajita salad, burrito bowl, rice bowl, or farro bowl.

Lemon RiceArugula SaladOrzoMediterranean SaladLinguineCouscousCaesar Salad

Ingredient notes for chicken thighs with peaches

This recipe comes together simply in about 30 minutes! Here are a few notes for the ingredients:

• Boneless, skinless chicken thighs: Chicken thighs are famously more flavorful than chicken breasts because of their higher fat content. We suggest boneless thighs here because they cook faster. You can substitute bone-in thighs, just cook them longer in the final step (see the notes below).
• Peaches: Use only ripe, sweet peaches for this recipe! The flavor won’t come out if the peaches are sub-par.
• Balsamic vinegar, butter, and brown sugar: These are the keys to bringing out that sweet and savory combination of flavors. If your peaches are very sweet, you can omit the brown sugar.
• Herbs: We like using a combination of basil and thyme. Any savory herb works well here, like tarragon, oregano, parsley, or rosemary. 

What to serve with chicken thighs with peaches

This one pan dinner makes a simple meal, served with rice or a salad! Here are a few ideas for what to serve with chicken thighs with peaches:

• White rice, basil rice, or lemon rice
• Seasoned quinoa
• Pasta like orzo, couscous, or butter noodles
• Green salad like strawberry salad, romaine salad, arugula salad, or butter lettuce salad
• Green beans like green beans almondine or sauteed green beans
• Broccoli like sauteed broccolini, roasted broccolini, or roasted broccoli

When it’s the season, it’s an excuse to make all the peach recipes! Try our peach crumble, peach crisp, peach galette, peach blueberry cobbler, or my mom’s famous fresh peach pie. Or try a peach cobbler muffins, peach salad, peach ice cream, or peach cocktails.

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Peach Crumble

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Fresh Peach Salad

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25 Fresh Peach Recipes

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Peach Blueberry Cobbler

Components in a fajita salad

This fajita salad is so customizable: it works as an easy weeknight meal, or a summer grilled meal on the patio! The grill method takes about 1 hour to complete, so it’s great for weekends or when you have time to fire it up. Here are the basic components in a good fajita salad recipe:

• Fajita veggies: We like a mix of multi-colored bell peppers, onions, and garlic. Then you’ll need a few spices: cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, and onion powder. We prefer using our own mixture to a pre-made fajita mix.
• Chicken or pinto beans: It’s absolutely delicious with grilled chicken, but for vegetarian or vegan diets, pinto beans are just as satisfying.
• Fresh veggies: You’ll use a base of romaine lettuce, plus fresh cherry tomatoes. We like grilling avocado slices along with the fajita veggies (optional).
• Salsa ranch dressing: A few ingredients like sour cream, mayo, and salsa combine into an absolutely delicious creamy drizzle! If you prefer, you can simply use sour cream mixed with salsa, or this easier salsa dressing.