A chef has shared a simple frying pan technique that delivers juicy, tender chicken thighs with crisp skin every time, and the dish is ready in under 20 minutes.
Chicken is one of the most versatile and popular meats, but cooking it perfectly can be tricky. Chicken thighs are forgiving, yet mistakes such as using too much heat or cooking too long can leave them dry, tough, or lacking flavour.
The chef's simple hack
Chef Kelly Scott, who has 1.2 million TikTok followers, regularly shares recipes online. She says her most popular recipe is crispy chicken thighs, which she describes as “the easiest chicken recipe maybe ever and never fails.”
Start with skin-on chicken thighs, remove the bone, and season generously with salt. Place them skin-side down on a paper towel for at least 15 minutes to absorb excess moisture.
Cold pan method
After 15 minutes, put the thighs skin-side down in a cold cast-iron pan, then turn the heat to medium. Kelly explained: “Doing it in a cold pan will allow the fat to slowly render out of the chicken skin and really get crispy.”
“Once the skin is super golden after around 10 to 15 minutes, I flip them onto the other side and pop in garlic and rosemary to infuse the fat. Within another five minutes, you will have perfect chicken. You must make it.”
Why it works
Starting in a hot pan with oil can brown the skin too quickly, trapping fat and leaving the thighs soggy. For skinless thighs, a preheated pan generally yields better browning but no crunch.
Commenters praised the recipe. One said: “This recipe is my most requested dinner from my family. It is so insane.” Another added: “This chicken is so moist and just falls apart. We make it at least once a week.” Asked if a stainless steel pan works, the chef confirmed it would.
