Chicken — whether baked, broiled, barbecued, roasted, broasted, fried, or prepared in some other manner — is a hit the world over. Need some animal protein? Want it to be lean? Looking for something affordable? Chicken is your choice. But how should you prepare it? Whether you want your chicken crisp and spicy or tart and tender, you should find at least one recipe that won't make you cry fowl.
This skillet-roasted chili crisp chicken with vegetables was inspired by James Park's admiration for Ina Garten. Photo by Heami Lee.
Skillet-Roasted Chili Crisp Chicken and Vegetables
James Park has a thing for chili crisp. He's a self-appointed "chili crisp ambassador" who focuses on his favorite fiery condiment in his book, Chili Crisp: 50+ Recipes to Satisfy Your Spicy, Crunchy, Garlicky Cravings. Naturally, his roast chicken recipe incorporates the stuff. "There are countless roast chicken recipes out there, but what makes this recipe particularly exciting is the use of a spicy olive oil mixture that checks all the boxes. It has a perfect blend of salt, fat, acid, and heat," he says. Scroll down to the bottom. Get the recipe
Honeyed Fried Chicken with Hot Honey Sauce and Biscuits
Food writer, cooking instructor, and ninth-generation Southerner Rebecca Lang shares Southern Fried classics like Buttermilk-Soaked, Bacon-Fried Chicken in Gravy as well as riffs on Japanese Kara-Age and Jerk Drumsticks in her book Fried Chicken: Recipes for the Crispy, Crunchy Comfort Food Classic. This one is a favorite with her family. Get the recipe
"You can take that same technique and do it with carrots or coconut and cabbage or green curry paste and bok choy," Sohla El-Waylly says of her recipe for braised chicken thighs. Photo by Laura Murray.
Seared and Braised Chicken Thighs With Zucchini & Salsa Verde
Sometimes you just need to know where to start. You want a chicken with crispy skin but don't want to overcook the meat. Sohla El-Waylly has a plan for you. In her debut cookbook, Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook: A Cookbook, she writes, "Seared and braised is the best way to make chicken thighs. The initial direct heat from the sear develops browning and renders the fat from the skin, so there's no flabby chicken here. Then the thighs are gently braised in a bright tomatillo salsa while floating on a zucchini raft." Scroll down to the bottom. Get the recipe
Roast Chicken with Lemon and Garlic
Documentary producer Laurie David also wrote The Family Cooks, a cookbook that focuses on healthy, approachable recipes and tips. Her roasted chicken is a great weeknight staple for busy families. Get the recipe
Grilled Chicken with Walnut and Pomegranate Sauce
Cheryl Forberg, author of Stop the Clock! Cooking: Defy Aging–Eat the Foods You Love, shared this recipe with us back in 2002. More than two decades later, it still holds up. Get the recipe
Instant noodles are ground to the size of rice grains, incorporated with the seasoning packet and used as a coating in this easy fried chicken recipe. Photo by Yuki Sugiura.
Chicken poppers with instant noodle coating
Writing the book Kung Pao and Beyond, Vogue Hong Kong food columnist Susan Jung made fried chicken at least once a day for three months. She recommends using corn oil or canola oil and avoiding pricier options like sesame and olive oil, which have lower smoke points. Many of her recipes call for double frying, and she suggests a lower temperature on the first fry. Using less oil and fewer pieces of chicken in a large wok will minimize the splatter and mess. Scroll down to the bottom. Get the recipe
Peanut-Parmesan Spiced Chicken
Chef Suvir Saran is an Indian American Chef who works in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and New York. He first shared this recipe with us in 2005. Garam masala, Japanese panko breadcrumbs, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese make this a true multicultural creation. Dredge the chicken in 12% light roast peanut flour and fry it in a skillet with olive oil and, boom. You've got a tasty and creative new way to make chicken. Get the recipe
Nigella Lawson's Chicken and Pea Traybake
When Nigella Lawson was writing her 2018 cookbook At My Table: A Celebration of Home Cooking, she wanted to capture the joy and sense of self she found at home while whipping up meals for loved ones. This recipe is very approachable. It features eight ingredients but can feed a family. Requiring minimal effort, iy yields maximum flavor. Get the recipe
Portuguese chicken is the Hong Kong version of mac and cheese, says Kevin Pang, who recalls eating it every Wednesday as a child. Photo courtesy of America's Test Kitchen.
Hong Kong-Style Portuguese Chicken
"For Cantonese kids, this is their mac and cheese, foundational to their Hong Kong childhood," Kevin Pang explains in A Very Chinese Cookbook. "What we call Portuguese chicken (with apologies to the nation of Portugal) is actually a dish of Macau. The Portuguese role in this dish was having once colonized Macau, a valuable sliver of land a 45-minute boat ride to the west of Hong Kong. The Hong Kong version of Macau's Portuguese chicken is a true Fusion dish. Marinated dark meat chicken is cooked in a creamy coconut-curry gravy, topped with Parmesan, and broiled until the top gets charred and crusty." Scroll down to the bottom. Get the recipe
Panino Rustico
Who likes dry, stringy, overcooked chicken breast? No one. That's why Evan Kleiman poaches the chicken in this recipe, which was adapted from her book, Angeli Caffe: Pizza, Pasta, Panini. You want the breasts to cook in the gentle liquid heat so the proteins don't seize up and tighten too much. Use a sturdy bread for this sandwich. There are lots of juices, and they end up becoming their own condiment as they soak into the bread, but you want the sandwich to hold together. Get the recipe
Roast Chicken with Tangerines, Green Olives & Silan
Amelia Saltsman says that one of her favorite ways to celebrate Southern California's citrus is to serve it alongside a beautifully roasted chicken. In this recipe, from The Seasonal Jewish Kitchen, she selects clementines and lightly brined olives like Sicilian Castelveltranos. She then adds extra dimension and kick to the dish by creating a sweet, spicy rub of silan, harissa, and smoked paprika, evoking the sephardic flavors of North Africa. Get the recipe
This is just one of many versions of the dish known as General Tso's Chicken. Photo via Shutterstock.
General Tso's Chicken
General Tso's chicken is a staple of American Chinese menus nationwide. There are probably as many recipes as there are Chinese restaurants in the US (more than 40,000). This particular recipe comes from Ian Cheney and Jennifer Lee, the filmmakers behind the documentary The Search for General Tso. Get the recipe
Roast Chicken with Artichokes and Gremolata Butter
Bon Appétit magazine editor-in-chief Barbara Fairchild serves up simple and flavorful chicken breast dishes. She is the editor of The Bon Appétit Fast Easy Fresh Cookbook. Get the recipe
Chicken wings, which can be prepared many ways, are a hit at parties. Photo by Atharva Tulsi/Unsplash.
Tamarind Chicken Wings
Before the pandemic, Nguyen and Thi Tran of Starry Kitchen were serving three kinds of fried chicken at Button Mash in Echo Park. We adore these ones, which are fried twice then tossed in a sticky tamarind glaze that gets its kick from ginger, chili garlic paste and black pepper. Sprinkle on a few pomegranate seeds so it looks pretty for the 'gram. Get the recipe
Roast Chicken with Garlic, Lemon, and Herbs
When roasting a chicken, Joyce Goldstein, author of Solo Suppers: Simple Delicious Meals to Cook for Yourself, opts for kosher chickens because they've been brined and are especially tasty. "If my market is out of them, I buy a local free-range bird and rub it with salt and lemon. If I have time, I might put it in a brine solution, but more often than not, I pick one up and get cooking with little preparation." Get the recipe