Easy dry rub chicken thighs recipe that's easy, and quick. These oven baked spice rubbed chicken thighs are packed full of flavor, moist, and tender inside, with caramelized, crispy skin on the outside. Let me show you how to bake chicken thighs dry rubbed.
We like serving it with potatoes, vegetables, rice, or pasta, and also dips like bbq sauce.
Dry Rub Chicken Thighs Recipe
This is the best baked dry rub chicken thighs recipe because not only is it easy, simple, and quick, the chicken thighs come out flavorful, moist, and tender inside with crispy skin.
This spice rubbed chicken thighs recipe makes use of a few simple ingredients that you are likely to have in your kitchen cupboard. Also, the ingredients used are inexpensive and budget-friendly.
Oven baked dry rubbed chicken thighs are great served as a weeknight dinner and go well with a lot of food including potatoes, rice, vegetables, sauces, dips, etc.
It's high in protein and also suitable for a low-carb diet.
You can use this recipe for dry rub boneless chicken thighs or bone in chicken thighs, however, the cooking time will differ as boneless chicken thighs take a shorter time to cook than bone-in. Check the cooking time recommendation in this post to make sure not to overcook or undercook the thighs.
This dry rub chicken thighs can be oven baked or baked in the air fryer. Let me show you how to make it.
Related: spicy chicken thighs, dry rub chicken wings
Chicken Thighs Dry Rub
The dry rub for this chicken thighs recipe is simple. It is made up of a few ingredients and takes less than 5 minutes to make the spice rub. All you need to do is to measure out the ingredients in a dry bowl and mix together till they are well combined.
The ingredients used in the rub include paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, cumin, parsley, salt. It also contains brown sugar to give the chicken skin a crispy caramelized look however, you can exclude the sugar if you'd rather not use it.
The rub is packed full of flavor and can also be used on other chicken parts. Some other dry spice rubs that are suitable for chicken thighs which I like to use are:
Piri Piri seasoning
Cajun seasoning
Suya seasoning
Lemon pepper
Ingredients
Chicken thighs - Bone-in or Boneless. I used bone-in chicken thighs in this post.
Paprika
Parsley
Onion granules
Garlic powder
Cumin
Parsley
Black pepper or Cayenne pepper
Salt
Oil
Stock cube (optional)
How To Bake Dry Rub Chicken Thighs
Remove the chicken thighs from the packaging, clean them, and pat dry with a paper towel.
In a small bowl, add all the dry ingredients- paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, black pepper, brown sugar, cumin, and salt.
Add oil and the dry rub to the chicken thighs and mix till the thighs are evenly coated in the spice rub.
Place a baking rack on a parchment paper-lined baking tray and arrange the seasoned chicken thighs on the baking rack.
Put the baking tray in the middle part of the oven.
Bake chicken thighs at a temperature of 400F/200C for 45 minutes (Use a tong to flip the thighs after 25 minutes).
Bring out the chicken thighs, let them rest for 5 minutes before serving.
How Long To Bake Dry Rub Chicken Thighs
How long to bake dry rub chicken thighs bone in skin on is 45 minutes at a temperature of 200C/400F.
For how long to bake dry rub boneless chicken thighs is 25-30 minutes at a temperature of 400F/200C.
You might have to adjust the time above slightly based on the size of the chicken thighs. The bigger they are, the longer they take to cook.
Serving Suggestion
Some foods that can be served with it are:
Vegetables - Steamed carrots, sauteed broccoli, pan fried vegetables, Air fryer roasted vegetables.
Potatoes- Fried potatoes, baked potato wedges, chips, fries, sliced potatoes, air fryer potatoes.
Rice - Basmati rice, spicy rice, Jollof rice, Fried rice.
Dips&Sauces- Bbq sauce, buffalo sauce, bang bang sauce, mango habanero dip, scotch bonnet dip, ranch, etc.
How To Store
To store leftovers, you have to first let them cool completely.
After It's cooled, put them in a sealable freezer bag or an airtight container, label with name and dates then store in the refrigerator.
In the fridge, it will keep well for up to 3 days.
In the freezer, it will retain its freshness, taste and for up to 6 months.
When ready to eat, reheat in the microwave, oven, or air fryer.
Tips
- The longer you marinate the chicken thighs in seasoning, the more time it has to infuse the flavors from the dry rub.
- Pepper quantity can be adjusted to suit how hot you like your food.
- The brown sugar help caramelize the skin giving it however, you can leave it out if you are on a sugar-free diet or simply don't want to use sugar.
- Some other dry rubs suitable for chicken thighs are fajita seasoning, cajun, lemon pepper.
- Line the baking tray with foil paper or parchment paper to collect the drippings from the chicken and make cleaning the tray easier.
- It's best to put the chicken thighs on an oven rack so the fat drips from the chicken to the tray below and does not cook in the dripping.
- Use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. If the internal temperature of the chicken reads at least 165F/75C, then it's cooked.
- Rest the chicken for 5 minutes before serving so it has time to redistribute the internal juices.
FAQs
How do you dry pat chicken thighs?
Pat chicken thighs dry with a paper towel/kitchen towel to remove moisture.
How long should dry rub sit on chicken?
This can be anytime from 30 minutes to 8 hours. Put them in the fridge if you want to let the seasoning sit on the chicken thighs.
Can you marinate chicken with a dry rub overnight?
Yes, you can but make sure you put it in the fridge to marinate. Bring it out some minutes before cooking to allow the chicken to reach room temperature before you cook.
How do you keep chicken thighs from drying out?
By ensuring you don't overcook them. The temperature and time recommended in this recipe will give you moist, tender baked chicken thighs.
More Chicken Thighs Recipes
Air fryer boneless chicken thighs
Instant pot frozen chicken thighs
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Dry Rub Chicken Thighs
Equipment
- Baking tray
- Baking rack
Ingredients
- 7 pieces Chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon Paprika
- ½ teaspoon Black pepper
- ½ tablespoon Parsley
- ½ teaspoon Cumin
- 1 tablespoon Brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon Onion granules
- 1 teaspoon Garlic powder
- Salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable oil optional
- 1 5g Stock cube crushed optional
Instructions
- Remove the chicken thighs from the packaging, clean them, and pat dry with a paper towel.
- In a small bowl, add all the dry ingredients- paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, black pepper, brown sugar, cumin, and salt.
- Add oil and the dry rub to the chicken thighs and mix till the thighs are evenly coated in the spice rub.
- Place a baking rack on a parchment paper-lined baking tray and arrange the seasoned chicken thighs on the baking rack.Put the baking tray in the middle part of the oven.
- Bake chicken thighs at a temperature of 400F/200C for 45 minutes (Use a tong to flip the thighs after 25 minutes).
- Bring out the chicken thighs, let them rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- The longer you marinate the chicken thighs in seasoning, the more time it has to infuse the flavors from the dry rub.
- Pepper quantity can be adjusted to suit how hot you like your food.
- The brown sugar help caramelize the skin giving it however, you can leave it out if you are on a sugar-free diet or simply don't want to use sugar.
- Some other dry rubs suitable for chicken thighs are fajita seasoning,
- Line the baking tray with foil paper or parchment paper to collect the drippings from the chicken and make cleaning the tray easier.
- It's best to put the chicken thighs on an oven rack so the fat drips from the chicken to the tray below and does not cook in the dripping.
- Use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. If the internal temperature of the chicken reads at least 165F/75C, then it's cooked.
- Rest the chicken for 5 minutes before serving so it has time to redistribute the internal juices.
While it wasn't crispy like I expected it to be (maybe because I didn't have a rack & it baked on the parchment paper instead), this chicken was simply delicious! I think the smoked paprika gave it an outdoor, fresh off the grill flavor. Loved it (also, I put the rub in a Ziploc bag & all the seasoning clung to the thighs...I just had to rub them a li'l bit before putting them in the pan...must get a rack for next time) 😉
Thank you for the feedback 🙂
I’d like to try this but there are no quantities given for the ingredients. Any advice on measurements, please?
The full list of the ingredients and measurements are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.