Keto Baked Italian Chicken Thighs Recipe

When you think of chicken, think of grabbing some chicken thighs and making this dreamy dinner the entire family will be asking for each week!

This recipe gives you the most juicy chicken thighs you can imagine and nothing will be left on the bone!

Turn it into a one skillet meal with these simple ingredients when you use a cast iron skillet.

Bone-in chicken thighs are recommended for this Italian Baked Chicken Thighs recipe as it helps the meat to stay tender as it bakes in the oven.

Boneless chicken thighs may be able to work in this recipe but you will have to reduce the cooking time by at least 1/3 to not overcook them.

You will want to pair it with a vegetable that goes great with cream sauce like broccoli or cauliflower!

What you will need to make this Keto Chicken Thigh Recipe.

• Bone-In, Skin-on Chicken Thighs
• Italian Seasoning or favorite Italian Blend of herbs
• Butter
• Garlic cloves; minced (or garlic powder)
• Onion; chopped (or onion powder)
• Parsley (dried or fresh parsley)
• Heavy Cream
• Oregano
• Basil (dried or fresh basil)
• Cream Cheese
• Parmesan
• Kosher Salt
• Black Pepper
• Fresh lemon (optional)

Now you have all your ingredients, let’s make this Italian chicken!

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F then start on the prepping.

I love starting out turning the chicken thighs to CRISPY chicken thighs!

Getting a good crispy skin on the thighs with this chicken recipe is a great way to lock in a ton of flavor!

Get your large skillet preheated by putting over medium-high heat.

I prefer a cast iron skillet so I can go right from the searing step, to sauce to oven.

If you do not have a cast iron skillet, a regular skillet will work for the searing and sauce then transfer to a baking dish for the last step.

Lay your chicken thighs on a baking sheet in a single layer so you can seasoning them properly.

Cover them with salt and pepper and finish off with the Italian Seasoning mix or your own blend of Italian herbs.

If you want to use fresh herbs, keep them till the end when we make the sauce.

You do not want them to cook in the skillet on the high heat, they will not give the best flavor.

Dried herbs are what I recommend that work out the best for the searing step.

Swirl some oil in the pan, or what I used was a tablespoon of bacon grease!

Now lay the seasoned chicken into the preheated skillet skin side down.

You want the skin to crisp up good without burning so make sure you have it on medium heat.

Let the chicken cook 4 minutes on each side until they are golden brown.

Now transfer to the baking sheet, or baking pan if you are not baking in the skillet.

Squeeze fresh lemon juice over the chicken thighs to let it soak in as you make the cream sauce.

Now let’s make the cream sauce with the brown bits from the browning chicken!

Turn the heat of the skillet down to medium low and with a whisk, whisk in the 2 tablespoons of butter.

Swirl it around and then add in the chopped onion, parsley, oregano and basil.

Cook it for a few minutes until it starts to soften and become aromatic.

Now add the garlic and saute for a minute.

Now add in the heavy cream and water, or chicken broth if you want to add a ton of flavor to this easy recipe.

Bring it to a simmer then add in the cream cheese and parmesan cheese.

Use the lemon from earlier, if you used the lemon juice, to add some lemon zest to the sauce.

It adds a nice bright addition to the heaviness of the cream sauce.

Whisk over medium heat until it starts to thicken.

Once it will coat the back of a spoon, remove it from the heat and nestle the zesty italian chicken thighs into the sauce.

If you are not using an oven safe skillet, then simply pour the sauce over the chicken pieces in the baking dish.

Place your cast iron skillet or baking dish into your preheated oven for 30 minutes.

You know the chicken is done when an instant-read thermometer reads the internal temperature of the thickest part at least 165 degrees F.

I let the chicken sit in the skillet for 5 minutes minimum before removing from the skillet and serving it up!

Check out my recipe video below to see how I take you from the start to finish of my Keto Baked Italian Chicken Thighs Recipe.

Here is what you can have with your chicken dish to make a complete meal!

• A great glass of white wine always pairs well with a chicken dish! Save your red wine for a red sauce meal.
• A variety of side dishes would go wonderful with this including steamed asparagus, and a side salad of greens!
• Serve a steamed vegetable with it that would taste great with the cream sauce like broccoli, cabbage or cauliflower!
• Consider an olive garnish like some kalamata olives, or green olives to add an extra Italian flare!
• I have also enjoyed this over some cauliflower rice topped with some minced fresh rosemary!

Are there other ways to make this family favorite chicken dish?

If you want to put this in the slow cooker, make the recipe up to the point of putting it in the oven and place the chicken in the crock instead of a baking dish.

Cook it on LOW for 6 hours.

If you want to simmer in the sauce on the stove top, you would need to cook on medium low, covered for 30 minutes.

Then flip the chicken and spoon the sauce over the top.

Cover and cook another 30 minutes more.

Always check the internal temperature of the chicken to make sure it is cooked through.

Extra tips and ideas….

• You can use boneless, skinless chicken breasts if you would like. You need to adjust the time in the oven to 20-25 minutes and also slice them lengthwise so the largest part cooks through.
• You can also make this dish with a whole chicken if you cut it up into pieces, brown as the recipe calls for then proceed as directed. No need to change the cooking time.
• Make this an easy meal that is also quick meal by getting everything prepped the day before, all the way up until the recipe calls for putting it in the oven. Make sure it is in an airtight container and go straight from fridge to oven. Add an extra 10 minutes to the cook time to ensure the chicken gets cooked right.
• Put a completely new spin on this delicious meal entirely, making it dairy free with ease, when you sub in a jar of marinara sauce for the cream sauce. Bake exactly as the recipe states. This will create a chicken cacciatore recipe instead of a cream sauce one.
• Add in a little kick to your cream sauce by adding in a pinch of red pepper flakes.
• If you use skinless thighs, make sure you still get the browning step in although there is no skin to crisp up.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. Leftover chicken can be re-heated in a 350F oven for 10 minutes in a covered dish.
• Boneless skinless chicken thighs could work in place of the bone-in skin-on thighs. Make sure you brown them quickly as to not overcook and reduce the cooking time to 20 minutes.

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