This quick-cooking chicken thigh recipe is perfect for weeknights. A little bit of mustard mixed with a touch of cream creates a luscious sauce for the chicken thighs.
Updated on January 23, 2025
If you’re looking for a delicious yet quick weeknight dinner, these 20-Minute Creamy Mustard Chicken Thighs are it. Perfectly seasoned protein-rich chicken thighs are enrobed in a creamy tangy mustard dressing and garnished with sweet onion and briny capers. Keep reading for our expert tips, including what to serve with these chicken thighs.
Tips from the EatingWell Test Kitchen
These are the key tips we learned while developing and testing this recipe in our Test Kitchen to make sure it works, tastes great and is good for you too!
- The mustard sauce is not only terrific on chicken wings, but it’s great over mashed potatoes and green vegetables.
- You can choose to use either flat-leaf (Italian) parsley or curly. The flat leaf is more flavorful, and the leaves are nice and smooth, which makes it an ideal garnish.
- If you don’t have capers on hand to give the dish a hint of a briny, lemony flavor, the next best thing is finely chopped green olives. The taste won’t be the same, but it is close enough.
Nutrition Notes
- Chicken thighs are a great high-protein source. And while they have more fat than chicken breasts, they won’t dry out like the breasts do—and they still easily fit into a healthy, varied diet.
- Onions might make you cry while cutting them, but you won’t be crying over their health benefits—including their gut health benefits. This is thanks to the fiber in onions, which acts as a prebiotic, feeding your beneficial gut bacteria.
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Ingredients
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1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
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½ teaspoon salt
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½ teaspoon ground pepper
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2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
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1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
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¼ cup dry white wine
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1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
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¼ cup heavy cream
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1 tablespoon capers, rinsed
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Chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Directions
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Sprinkle 1 pound of chicken thighs with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, flipping once halfway, until browned, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a clean plate.
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Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and onion to the pan. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup wine and 1 tablespoon mustard, scraping up any browned bits. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer. Stir in 1/4 cup cream and 1 tablespoon capers. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the pan. Cover and simmer until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a thigh registers 165°F, about 4 minutes. Serve topped with parsley, if desired.
Frequently Asked Questions
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You can help prevent your eyes from painful stinging and tearing up while cutting onions by chilling the onion in the refrigerator for a few minutes before slicing it. When you’re ready to work with it, try to avoid cutting through the root, as that’s where the irritating chemicals are concentrated. Additionally, you can wear goggles or position a fan to blow the onion spray away from your face.
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Let the chicken cool to room temperature before adding them to an airtight container for the refrigerator. They can be stored this way for about 4 days.
EatingWell Magazine, December 2020
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
| 302 | Calories |
| 21g | Fat |
| 4g | Carbs |
| 22g | Protein |
| Nutrition Facts |
|---|
| Servings Per Recipe 4 |
|---|
| Serving Size 3 oz. chicken & 1/3 cup sauce |
|---|
| Calories 302 | |
|---|---|
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Carbohydrate 4g | 1% |
| Dietary Fiber 1g | 4% |
| Total Sugars 2g | |
| Protein 22g | 44% |
| Total Fat 21g | 27% |
| Saturated Fat 7g | 35% |
| Cholesterol 93mg | 31% |
| Vitamin A 278IU | 6% |
| Sodium 431mg | 1 |
9 % |
Nutrition information is calculated by a registered dietitian using an ingredient database but should be considered an estimate.
- Daily Values (DVs) are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume each day. Percent Daily Value (%DV) found on nutrition labels tells you how much a serving of a particular food or recipe contributes to each of those total recommended amounts. Per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the daily value is based on a standard 2,000 calorie diet. Depending on your calorie needs or if you have a health condition, you may need more or less of particular nutrients. (For example, it’s recommended that people following a heart-healthy diet eat less sodium on a daily basis compared to those following a standard diet.)
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a special diet for medical reasons, be sure to consult with your primary care provider or a registered dietitian to better understand your personal nutrition needs.
Reviews (5)
What do you think of this recipe? Share your experience to help others.
EatingWell Member
Great recipe! I doubled the sauce ingredients for more sauce.
Will G
was an excellent meal! I subbed anchovy stuffed olives for the capers because I was out.
Annie
Change: Because of my cholesterol, I used a ¼ cup fair life skim milk thickened with corn starch. I cooked the dish in my cast iron Dutch oven. It turned out beautifully and made my taste buds dance. This is definitely a keeper.
EatingWell Member
Changes: Chopped onion, no capersReasons: PreferenceResults: This was really good! I enjoyed it. Definitely try it if you’re interested.
EatingWell Member
I made this exactly as written. It was wonderful! Very quick and the sauce was wonderful.