Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs with Olives and Pine Nuts

Looking for an easy, one-pot family meal full of Italian flavors? Then I have a meal for you! Pan roasted chicken thighs start on the stove top to get all browned and delicious, then move to the oven to finish along with olives, pine nuts, and broccolini.

Just a few minutes on the stove top and and few more in the oven and dinner is ready! With only one pot to clean. Excellent.

Hello, all!

Pan roasting chicken thighs is one of my go-to methods for chicken. It’s so easy and gives such great results!

I make it all sorts of ways with different additions and different sauces for family pleasing weeknight dinners. However, you do have to use thighs and ones with the skin on to get the best results. I find that skinless chicken thighs or chicken breasts in this recipe tend to get dried out and overcooked. But skin on thighs are so juicy and flavorful and forgiving even if you cook them a bit long that it’s really hard to go wrong.

For even better results, I love to brine them as well when I have the time (not that it’s much time – 30 minutes is all it takes to brine them perfectly), but I enjoy them either way.

The inspiration for this particular flavor combination to go with my chicken thighs comes from Lidia Bastianich’s Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy.

It’s a great cookbook which I enjoy paging through for inspiration and ideas. I’ve loved her recipes ever since I used to watch her show years ago on PBS. I haven’t watched it in a long time, but I know I still use some of the tips and ideas I picked up from the show in my recipes. Her recipe is, of course, rather different since I changed it for our tastes and cooking style, but you would certainly recognize the connection.

One thing I added when I decided to do this recipe for the blog is some broccolini. I wanted a complete meal in the pot and why not add the broccolini to the pot instead of steaming it separately?

Broccolini is so thin that it cooks quickly and roasts in the time it takes to finish the chicken and the florets soak up the sauce as they cook, which makes them even better. Yum! I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of it before, but I certainly will be cooking it together as a meal in future. And of course you can switch out the broccolini for broccoli. I know that broccoli can be easier to find in the market. Just make sure to slice it up so the stalks are nice and thin so they cook quickly.

If you want, you can add some crusty bread or Extra Crispy Roast Potatoes or Cream Cheese Mashed Potatoes to round out the meal.

More Pan Roasted Chicken

For a different take on this method, try my Chicken ThighsDijon or my Chicken Thighs and Artichokes! Both simple, flavorful, and quick.

If you try my recipe for Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs with Olives and Pine Nuts, I would love to hear from you in the comments with your experience and rating! And I’m happy to answer any questions you might have.

– Happy Eating, Annemarie

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs with Olives and Pine Nuts

The crispy, crackling skin and juicy, flavorful meat on these chicken thighs is paired with salty olives and creamy pine nuts in this easy main dish.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time26 minutes mins

Total Time31 minutes mins

Course: Main

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: pan roasted chicken, roasted chicken thighs

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 400kcal

Author: justalittlebitofbacon

Ingredients

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 lbs bone in, skin on skin on chicken thighs (4 medium thighs)chicken thighs (4 medium thighs)
• kosher salt
• 1 bunch broccolini
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 cup mixed pitted olives
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 1 tsp dried chopped rosemary, or 1 tbsp fresh
• 1/4 cup white wine or vermouth

Instructions

• Preheat oven 450F.
• Heat olive oil in a an oven safe skillet over medium high heat.
• If you did not brine the chicken, sprinkle the thighs liberally with salt before putting them in the pan. When the pan is very hot and the oil is shimmery, place the chicken thighs skin side down in the skillet. Sear for 5 minutes, then turn and sear for 3 minutes.
• At this point, drain out most of the fat, leaving a tablespoon or two in the skillet.
• Turn the chicken again to skin side down and add the broccolini to the skillet, scattering it around the chicken.
• Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for 10 minutes. Pull the skillet out of the oven, turn the chicken again to skin side up; add the garlic, olives, pine nuts, rosemary, and white wine. Roast for 5 minutes more.
• If needed, bring the white wine in the chicken to a boil on the stove top for 3-4 minutes to thicken the sauce. Also, this will cook out much of the remaining alcohol.

Notes

• Adding Oil to the Pan: You just need a teeny bit of oil to coat the pan so the chicken thighs release properly. I find 2 tsp works well for me. There will be a fair amount of oil in the pan once you've browned the thighs, but you will drain most of that out.
• Brining: To brine the chicken thighs, mix together 4 cups of water and 1/4 cup kosher salt and let the chicken brine in the water for 30-45 minutes. When done, drain, rinse, and pat the chicken dry before proceeding with the recipe.
• Olives: I use pitted kalamata olives and pitted unstuffed green manzanilla olives in the recipe.
• Serving Suggestion: The chicken is wonderful served with Extra Crispy Roasted Potatoes or Cream Cheese Mashed Potatoes.
• Inspiration: Lidia Bastianich's Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy.