Sometimes life gets crazy and busy. There is no time for elaborate recipes with chicken marinating for hours and special sauces simmering on the stove. On those evenings, we still want to eat good food, and maybe even have enough to share with friends. Here is a gold star recipe that scrimps on nothing except time and cost.
Chicken breasts are overrated, especially bone-in pieces: they are thick and tend to dry out in the amount of time it takes to assure that they are cooked adequately. Chicken thighs are where it's at. First, they are just the right size; they cook much quicker than breasts. The darker meat assures that the cooked thighs are juicy and flavorful. And they are half the price of the larger chunks of white meat! If you are on a limited budget, chicken thighs are your new BFF's. Spending less than $20 on meat for a dinner party of eight will be music to your frugal ears.
For this recipe, I use prepared, bottled barbecued sauce. Of course you can make your own from scratch, and sometimes I do. But the point of this dish is to be able to get something delicious on the table in just over an hour and with minimal prep; to me, that means bottled sauce. I personally prefer a mustardy, vinegar based, Carolina type sauce for this dish, but you can use whatever you like or happen to have in your pantry.
Oven Barbecued Chicken Thighs
8 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin intact
2 Tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper
bottled barbecue sauce
Rinse the thighs; pat dry with paper towels. Trim away any excess fat or skin. Sprinkle skin side generously with freshly ground pepper and coarse sea salt. Heat a heavy, cast iron skillet over med-high heat. Add several tablespoonfuls of olive oil and allow to heat. Carefully arrange the chicken thighs in the skillet, skin side down. If you only have a small skillet, do this in two batches. Sprinkle bottom side of thighs with salt and pepper. Allow to brown to golden, 3-4 minutes. Turn over and repeat on the bottom side. Preheat oven to convection bake 325. Remove skillet from the stove and place uncovered into the hot oven. If you don't have the right skillet, you could use a nonstick pan for browning and then transfer the thighs to a 9 x 13 inch cake pan to bake. I find the best results come from the cast iron, because it conducts the heat so well.
Bake the thighs uncovered at 325 for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and drain a little of the accumulated grease, if you want. Pour enough bottled sauce over each chicken piece to cover the top. Return to the oven and bake uncovered for 30 additional minutes. If it looks a bit dry during the baking, by all means, add more barbecue sauce. The skin should be crispy and sweet from the sauce and the inside, tender and juicy. Serve with those lovely pan drippings to dip bites into. I figure 2-3 chicken thighs per person, depending on the size of the chicken and the size of the appetite.
