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This isn’t a recipe that you’re throwing together in 5 minutes. This recipe for Crispy Lemon Scallion Chicken Thighs takes a bit of time – you are cooking everything from scratch with whole foods – but the results are worth every second! Nothing beats a homemade chicken broth and you are making yours from the thigh bones instead of wasting them! I’m here with all the tips on how to get that perfect crispy skin and when you taste the sauce – you are going to be hooked!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love Crispy Lemon Scallion Chicken
Did you know that the chicken thighs actually taste better at about 175°F-180°F? It’s because the connective tissue breaks down at higher temps, making it more tender. This Crispy Lemon Scallion Chicken Thigh recipe slowly sears the skin, not only giving you the most amazing crispy crust, but also giving it enough time to cook long enough without burning so you have the most tender and juicy chicken you have ever tasted. Then you set that crispy chicken on top of an amazing sauce that I have perfected over the years. And I promise, no one will judge you if you just want to drink it 😉
Prep Like a Pro
Give Yourself Time to Brine – Brining may not seem like a big deal, but it makes all the difference. Not only does it enhance the flavor, but it also makes it so you have a moist chicken on the inside while giving you the best crispy outside for these chicken thighs. If you have a hard time with your chicken drying out, this will be a game changer. For this recipe you can do it for a minimum of 1 hour and up to 4 for even better results, just don’t skip this step.
Prepare for Success
Gather:
- 6 chicken thighs, skin-on & bone-in
- kosher salt
- Olive Oil: to cover skin
- Sugar: 1 pinch
- Kosher Salt: divided
- Miso: 1 tbsp
- Allspice: ¼ tsp
- White Pepper: ¼ tsp
- Crushed Red Peppers: 1 tsp
- Honey: 1 tsp
- Unsalted Butter: 5 tbsp, cold
- Black Peppercorns: 1 tbsp
- Kombu Strip: 1
- Soy Sauce: 2 tsp
- Rice Vinegar: 1 tsp
- Water: enough to cover
Chop:
- Lemon: 1, half whole and the other half sliced into half moons
- Scallions: 9 total, sliced, 5 separated greens from the whites and 4 just sliced
- Celery: 2, sliced
- Onion: ¼, chopped
- Garlic Cloves: 2, peeled
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🔥Chef Nadia’s Tip🔥
- Deboning the chicken thighs
- Place it skin side down and find the bone, slice along the sides of the bone carefully.
- Scrape the bone, then carefully cut around both ends where the bone attaches to the meat.
- Pop or cut off the bone.
- Cut off any bone fragments.
- When pounding the chicken, make sure you use the flat side of the mallet. If you use the spiked side, it will break down the meat fibers too much and can make it mushy. The flat side evens it out for even cooking, while not breaking it down too much.
- Chicken thighs with a crispy outside and moist and tender inside → Most recipes say to cook chicken to 165°F to consider it done. Did you know that the thighs actually taste better at about 175°F-180°F? It’s because they have connective tissue that breaks down at higher temps to be tender.
Substitutions and Variations
- Substitutions
- Skin-on, Bone-in Chicken Thighs → If you’d prefer to use chicken breast or skinless and boneless thighs, you can switch it up. You won’t have the same crispy skin and you will have to buy store-bought chicken broth, but the sauce with the chicken will still be delicious. Make sure you adjust cooking times and if you are using chicken breast, you will want the internal temperature to be 165°F.
- Homemade Chicken Broth → If you really don’t have time, you can skip this part and just buy store-bought. It won’t be as good, but it works.
- Variations
- Umami Variation → Add some sautéed mushrooms to the sauce if you want to add that umami flavor!
- Make-it-a-Bowl Variation → Serve this Crispy Lemon Scallion Chicken over a bed of rice and coat the whole thing in the sauce to make this a delicious bowl.
The Perfect Pairings
A bright and fruity Grapefruit Elderberry Sour and Crispy Phyllo Brie Bites are what this Crispy Lemon Scallion Chicken needs! As your sides, a delicious Potato Puree and a Arugula Fennel Salad. To finish off your night, Cherries Jubilee!
Crispy Lemon Scallion Chicken: Questions Answered
The cold pan allows the fat under the skin to render slowly. It makes it so you get that ultra-crispy skin without burning it. This does take more time, but the results are worth every second.
You can, but don’t. This step in the recipe really is essential for not just flavoring your lemon chicken, but it also gives you ultimate crispiness and makes the chicken underneath tender and moist.
Stainless steel will give you the best crisp, but cast iron will work great too. You can even use nonstick, but you will miss out on some of the crispy magic.
Lemon Scallion Chicken
Equipment
- meat mallet
- parchment paper, or plastic wrap
- cooling rack
- baking sheet
- pot
- pan
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs, skin-on & bone-in
- kosher salt, for dry brine
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lemon, 1 side whole and 1 side in thinly sliced half moons
- 1 pinch cane sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 5 scallions, separate the greens from the whites
- 1 tbsp miso
- ¼ tsp allspice
- ¼ tsp white pepper
- 1 tsp crushed red peppers
- 1 tsp honey
- 5 tbsp unsalted butter, cold
Chicken Stock
- chicken bones
- 4 green onions, sliced
- 2 celery ribs, sliced
- ¼ onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
- 1 kombu strip
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp rice vinegar
- water, to cover
Instructions
Dry-Brine (1 to 8 hours ahead)
- Place your chicken thighs, skin side down, on a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, cut down both sides of the bone and then very carefully slide the knife underneath the bone, detaching it from the chicken. Continue to cut and scrape around the bone, cutting anymore connections to the meat. Put the bones in a plastic bag and store in the fridge to use later in the recipe.
- When you have deboned the chicken, lay each of them out on the cutting board and place parchment paper or plastic wrap over top. With the flat side of a meat mallet, pound your thighs until fairly thin.
- Place the chicken thighs on a cooling rack inside of a baking sheet. Dry well and sprinkle both sides with kosher salt. Place, uncovered, in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour and up to 8.
Homemade Chicken Stock
- Add the chicken bones from earlier to a pot with green onions, celery ribs, onion, garlic cloves and black peppercorns. Drizzle olive oil on top and sauté until browned. Top with enough water to cover and stir in a kombu strip, a pinch of salt, soy sauce and vinegar. Let it simmer for 45-60 minutes, adding water as needed. Strain.
Lemon Scallion Chicken
- When the chicken is done dry-brining, remove it from the fridge and pat it dry. Rub a bit of olive oil on the skin. In a cold pan, place the chicken skin-side down and turn the heat to medium-high for 2 minutes. Lower it to medium-low and let them cook until the skin browns and it renders as much fat as it can, about 20-25 minutes.
- Use a spatula to release the skin gently. Flip, and then turn heat to medium-high, cooking another 5-7 minutes or until internal temp is 175℉-180℉.
- Meanwhile, cut the lemon in half, leave one half whole and slice the other half into thin slices and then into half moons.
- Remove chicken from the pan and lower the heat to medium. Add the lemon slices to the pan, sprinkling each one with a pinch of sugar and salt. Caramelize them for about 3-4 minutes, flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes. When the lemons are soft remove from them from pan, place them on a cutting board and mince them with a knife.
- To the same pan on medium heat, add scallion whites and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add in miso, allspice, crushed red peppers and white pepper. Mix well and turn heat to medium-high. Add in 1½- 2 cups of the homemade chicken broth and honey. Reduce by ⅓. Turn off the heat, add butter and mix until emulsified. Finish off with a squeeze of lemon and add the chicken to the pan for a few minutes to absorb the sauce. Don't scoop the sauce onto the top of the chicken or you will ruin the crisp on the skin.
- To serve, scoop some of the sauce onto a plate and set the chicken on top. Sprinkle with the scallion greens and enjoy!
Kitchen Cam
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
