Let’s talk chicken thighs… they’re juicy, tender, and much more flavorful (in my own opinion) than chicken breasts. Although they’re higher in fat, I find that gives them the flavor packed taste that we all love! When I first started cooking, I would always go straight to the chicken breast. When I thought “eat healthy”, my mind went straight to a chicken breast. While those are delicious as well, I found that I wore myself out on chicken totally. It dried out easily and bored me to death. But then, I got introduced to the star of this plate, the CHICKEN THIGH and it changed my opinion on chicken from dry and boring, to juicy and freeking delicious!
This recipe is inspired by a typical breadcrumb crusted chicken dish, but instead of the high carb and processed bread crumbs, I healthified it with natural, organic ingredients that are better for us. I made due with what I had in my pantry that had the same-ish texture of breadcrumbs and what I came up with was ground flax! It’s almost flavorless but still has a similar “crunchy” texture to the breadcrumbs. The way I come up with recipes is basically to look around the kitchen, grab the most random things and make decisions from there. I had my ground flax and decided I need one more thing to make this more than amazing… and I landed on slivered almonds! There ya go. Two ingredients that are clean, healthy, and when cooked, tasted EXACTLY like a breaded, pan fried chicken thigh from a restaurant. I was pleasantly surprised!
Moving on to another lovely topic: this green sauce. The chicken thighs by themselves were B O M B, but here’s a question for you… What’s better than a plain chicken thigh? Answer: A chicken thigh drowned in a healthy killer sauce. Yep. This sauce was totally random and was actually pretty gross at first until I doctored it up. Once I got the flavor down pat, we licked the bowl and actually made more for the rest of the week! It’s made of simple ingredients that I just so happened to have lying around my kitchen. It’s so much fun to throw random things together and cross your fingers hoping it will taste good. This one took two tries for me, but after some work, it ended up great! Experiment in your kitchen, it helps you learn and step outside of your comfort zone.
Okay, I’ve made you wait long enough. Here’s the recipe for this beauty!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Feeds 2 people
Chicken Thigh Ingredients:
4 Medium Sized Chicken Thighs
1/2 Cup Organic Ground Flax Seed
1/2 Cup Unsalted Slivered Almonds, chopped
1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast (*optional)
1 Tbsp Dried Parsley
1 Tsp Sea Salt
1 Tsp Black Pepper
1 Tsp Garlic Powder
2 Tbsp Grass-Fed Ghee
1 Cast Iron Skillet
Chicken Thigh Recipe:
- Heat cast iron skillet on Medium heat and add ghee. Let it get nice and hot!
- Prepare the chicken crust by mixing together all ingredients above except ghee and chicken.
- One at a time, coat each chicken thigh well in the crust mixture and set on a separate plate.
- Once skillet is hot, add thighs top side down about 1-2 inches apart. Depending on then size of your skillet, you may have to do a few at a time. Try not to overcrowd the chicken.
- Cook each thigh about 5-6 minutes per side, flipping between.
- Once cooked through, remove from skillet, top with sauce, and enjoy!
Click here for my –> Tahini Cashew Lime Sauce that goes GREAT with this chicken!
If you’re ever stuck on what to make for dinner, chicken thighs are always great to have on hand. I usually keep one or two in the fridge weekly for a quick serving of protein. They cook up super quickly and even taste great seasoned with just a bit of salt and pepper. You don’t have to get super fancy with these for a flavorful meal. I’ve baked, pan sautéed, and also grilled mine. They’re also a good meal prep meat to cook a few of for meal ideas during the week!
If you enjoyed this recipe, post a photo and tag @PumpAndCrunch on FaceBook or Instagram!
Yours In Health,
Cail
