Indian Spice Rubbed Chicken Thighs
Indian Spice Rubbed Chicken Thighs cook up really quickly for a fast weeknight meal. Indian spices are rubbed onto chicken thighs, cooked on the stovetop then roasted until brown and crispy.
Indian spice rub
I have a great collection of Indian spices because they can be used in so many combinations to create different flavors, so I use them a lot. One of my favorite ways to use the spices is in a rub like on these Indian spice rubbed chicken thighs.
When it comes to the simple spice rub, you can mix up any different combinations to create different flavors.
Can I use chicken breast?
Yes. I used to be a chicken breast only girl, it was white meat all the way for me. Since the thigh meat is richer tasting, I feel it can withstand the strong flavors of the spice blend.
In addition, not only are chicken thighs less expensive than chicken breasts, but they don’t dry out they way breasts do. You can use bone-in or boneless thighs or breasts. I prefer with skin for a crispy bite.
A combination cooking method is used by starting the chicken on the stove top by first crisping the thighs skin-side down. The pan in transferred to the oven to finish so the thighs are cooked all the way through. You can see how brown the skin gets from the spices and crispy too.
From star to finish, the thighs are finished in under 30 minutes so they make for a quick meal that I served along with curry vegetable basmati rice.
If you’ve tried these Indian Spice Rubbed Chicken Thighs or any other recipe on the blog then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how it turned out in the comments below.
Indian Spice Rubbed Chicken Thighs
Indian spices are rubbed onto chicken thighs and roasted until brown and crispy for a quick and easy meal.
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons mild yellow curry powder
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 4 chicken thighs, skin on, bone-in
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C.
- To a small bowl add all of the spices and salt, mix well.
- If the skin is wrapped to the under-side of the thigh, trim this off.
- Coat the thighs with the 2 teaspoons oil. Rub the spice rub onto the chicken thighs on all sides, lift the skin a little and put some under the skin, but be careful you don't peel too much back.
- Add the 1 tablespoon oil to an oven-proof sauté pan over medium heat. When the oil starts to ripple, add the thighs skin side down and cook for about 8-10 minutes.
- Turn the thighs over and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 10 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 180°F/82 °C, depending on the size of your chicken thighs.
- Serve warm with your favorite side dish.
Nutrition Information
Yield
4Serving Size
1 thighAmount Per Serving Calories 288Saturated Fat 7gCholesterol 110mgSodium 670mgCarbohydrates 2gProtein 18g
42 Comments on “Indian Spice Rubbed Chicken Thighs”
Delicious. I did all the cooking in the oven rather than on the hob, skin side down 20 mins, flip and roast for a further 10 mins. I’ve since mixed more spice and used it to coat a whole chicken for roasting.
Fantastic, thank you so much for sharing.
DELICIOUS! I’m making this for the second time. I’m making extra to keep in the freezer ready to go. Love love!
I’m so happy you like them and freezing them is a great idea. Thank you for the feedback.
Love the flavor of the spices. I’ve made this with both breast and thighs and I prefer the thighs.
I do prefer the thighs for this recipe too, thank you for the feedback.
This recipe is DE-LICIOUS!! I always make twice as much as 2 thighs each is not enough and we always go back for a cheeky third later😋We don’t like cardamom though but I do add turmeric instead. LUSH!! Thank you.
Hello and thank you so much for the feedback on the recipe. I like your cardamom substitute 🙂
One of the best seasonings I have had. Used boneless skinless thighs on $425 for 20 mins. The kids had seconds!! <-Never Happens!!!
Thank you so much for the great feedback. I love kid approval, but double approval is even better 🙂
My son is back home with all this virus crap.I was making chicken curry tonight and he wanted the skin left on the thighs, so i found your recipe and tried it .My wife said it was the best chicken i’ve ever made. Look out Chef John
Firstly, I’m glad your son is home safe with you and secondly, I’m happy that I was able to help out with your delicious meal.
I made these thighs and the Curry Basmati Rice last night. The thighs were amazing! I think I’ll make up a bottle of the spice blend to have on hand for other recipes. I didn’t have all the ingredients called for in the rice but I did have half an onion and a frozen bag of mixed vegetables: peas, corn, and green beans. The dish was a bland so I sprinkled some curry powder on the finished dish and it was delicious. Thanks a bunch!
I love this spice blend too. I’m glad you liked both recipes.
I can’t wait to try this! I love Indian food! So flavorful! I don’t have any cardonom could I cut out some of the other spices and just use gram marsalas? Thank you so much!
There is cardamom in the garam masala. If you use 1/4 teaspoon of that and the 2 teaspoons of mild curry powder. It will not be the same taste as my recipe since the spice blend is different, but I’m sure it will be delicious. Enjoy!
Great flavor combinations. Lovely recipe.
Garam masala is my favorite curry and I agree with you 100% about chicken thigh! The dish is so flavorful and I like every single spice in this recipe! Pinned and will make it soon 🙂
I love this mixture of spices, going to be trying soon!
I love the warm combination of spices! This sounds delicious!
I love everything about this dish Janette! I’m trying to learn more about how to properly use Indian spices and can’t wait to try it!
Indian is my favorite cuisine and it’s all about the spices. Love it!
These chicken thighs sound delightful, Janette. I LOVE the beautiful mix of spices. I’m pretty happy that I have everything I need to make this dish so it’s right onto this weeks menu!
I love the spices and flavors of Indian cuisine and this recipe sounds amazing! I need to try it this week!!
I am working on adding more Indian dishes to my collection and this one looks so easy to make and full of great flavors!
I love chicken thighs. They are easier to deal with in portion control. The Indian spices you put on these are wonderful. I would enjoy these immensely.
You know your way around Indian spices better than you. 🙂 This is a great recipe and I love the Indian flare
Thank you Rini, your compliments mean a lot.
I’ve also made the switch to thighs and I”m not sure I’ll ever go back! Lovely dish!
Just my kind of dish – Janette – love Indian flavours and chicken thighs.
I need to get myself more “in the know” about Indian cuisine because this sounds fantastic!
It’s a great cuisine, you wont be disappointed.
This sounds absolutely awesome… I love all the spices in this recipe. I have started using thighs now instead of chicken breasts… so much more flavour and cheaper too.
I totally agree, this is why I switched from chicken breasts.
Love chicken thighs meat and this dish looks fantastic! Pinned!
Thank you Mira
I love finding new spice blends. This one looks amazingly flavorful!
Thank you KC
I love Indian food. This looks easy to prepare yet flavorful. Peter @Feed Your Soul Too
Thank you Peter
An incredible Indian dinner in 30 minutes!? Sign me up! I love the spices in this dish… and I happen to have all of them in my pantry! This will make a fantastic meal this weekend!
Thank you Kathleen, it’s my new go-to dinner.