14 New Ways to Revitalize Your Weeknight Chicken Routine
Discover a variety of exciting chicken recipes to spice up your weeknight meals, from sheet-pan roasted chicken to comforting soups and stews.
Whether you're a busy home cook or a seasoned chef, it's easy to get stuck in a rut when it comes to weeknight chicken dinners. But with a little creativity and inspiration, you can take your chicken game to the next level. In this article, we'll explore 14 delicious and innovative chicken recipes to help you rejuvenate your weeknight routine.
This dish uses the best of winter's produce, including sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts, to create a deep, caramelized flavor that's sure to please. The key to tender, juicy meat is to use chicken thighs, which are perfect for slow-cooking on a sheet pan.
This mini convection oven delivers results that are virtually indistinguishable from pan-fried katsu, minus the mess. Serve your air-fryer chicken katsu with classic accompaniments like shredded cabbage, rice, and tonkatsu sauce, and use the leftovers in sandwiches and salads throughout the week.
Buffalo Chicken Salad
If you're looking for a refreshing and spicy twist on traditional chicken salad, try this buffalo chicken salad recipe. The fiery heat and savory punch of Frank's hot sauce-laden chicken pairs perfectly with cool, crisp vegetables like carrots, romaine, cabbage, and celery. This recipe is a game-changer for anyone looking to spice up their weeknight meals.
This shortcut version of the iconic Silver Palate recipe is scaled down to serve four to six and comes together on a sheet pan instead of in a massive casserole dish. The result is a delicious and comforting meal that's perfect for a weeknight dinner.
Easy Weeknight Chicken Pot Pie
Another classic recipe with a weeknight-friendly twist is this easy weeknight chicken pot pie. This comforting dish features a variety of textures and nuanced vegetable flavors, thanks to an array of produce like carrots, peas, celery, leeks, and garlic. The real star of the show is the store-bought puff pastry, which makes chicken pot pie possible on a weeknight.
Buy the good all-butter kind from the freezer aisle, because flaky, crisp pastry is non-negotiable.
Japanese classic comes together in about 20 minutes and is ubiquitous in Japan. The warming broth gets its depth and complexity from dashi and soy sauce, while sake and sugar add brightness and a touch of sweetness. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are less prone to overcooking in the broth, making them the perfect choice for this recipe.
Vietnamese-Style Chicken Meatballs With Ginger and Mint These
Vietnamese-style chicken meatballs are inspired by the now-closed LA restaurant Red Medicine. Ground chicken takes on funky depth from fish sauce and fresh aromatics, while a clever coating of turbinado sugar gives the meatballs a craggy, caramelized crust. Shape the meatballs into elongated footballs, and they'll fit snugly in a lettuce wrap.
This dish involves just six ingredients, comes together in under 20 minutes, and uses only one skillet. For juicy, tender chicken breasts, start them in a cold skillet and gradually increase the heat so they won't overcook. From there, you'll make a pilaf with bulgur that's sweet and bright from blistered, bursting tomatoes, fragrant with scallions, and briny from olives and feta.
Chicken Paillard (Chicken With Lemon-Herb Butter Sauce)
This weeknight-friendly dinner feels so much more luxurious than the effort it involves. Pounding chicken cutlets into thin, even layers ensures they cook evenly. From there, all you need is an elegant pan sauce made with lemon, herbs, and butter.
Takeout-Style Kung Pao Chicken (Diced Chicken With Peppers and Peanuts)
Kung pao chicken is a takeout classic, but this recipe takes it to the next level. While bad versions often feature gloppy, under-spiced sauce, this one uses a balanced mix of soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil that emulsifies into a luxuriously smooth glaze. Chicken thighs are marinated in Shaoxing wine and cornstarch, ensuring deep flavor and tenderness.
Stir-frying the meat and vegetables in stages allows each to hit the hottest part of the wok, achieving deep browning and maximum flavor. Peanuts add the perfect pop of texture and salt to finish.
Chicken Chile Verde Pressure Cooker
Chile verde is traditionally made with pork, but this recipe uses chicken to great effect. The pressure cooker keeps flavorful juices locked in a vapor-tight environment and helps develop depth, allowing moisture-rich, bright tomatillos and vegetal peppers to break down into a vibrant green sauce. Bonus: This is one of those pressure cooker recipes where you can simply dump in the ingredients in and have a flavor-packed dish in under an hour.
Chicken Marsala This
Sicilian-by-way-of-Britain dish belongs to that lovely weeknight category of pounded chicken cutlets in a pan sauce. The cutlets are lightly floured here to help create a fond-those deep, browned bits that enrich the pan sauce with umami flavor. As with the paillard, you'll whisk in unsalted butter at the end for a luxurious finish.
Chicken in Tomato Sauce With Chickpeas and Kale
Another way to keep chicken breasts from drying out is to gently cook them in a silky canned tomato sauce. This dish gets a boost of heartiness from canned chickpeas and kale, which you'll toss in to wilt toward the end. A final sprinkle of seasoned breadcrumbs adds a welcome hit of crispiness.
30-Minute Pressure Cooker Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup)
The pressure cooker makes quick work of this classic Vietnamese noodle soup-you're just 20 minutes away from a concentrated, flavorful broth and tender, fall-off-the-bone chicken legs. While the soup cooks, you'll prep the tender herbs and aromatics, bringing this famously complex dish together in under 30 minutes.
Source: Serious Eats