The question is never really what chicken recipe to make. It is what you have and how you want to cook it: boneless breasts in the oven, thighs in the slow cooker, wings for a game, a whole bird broken down and fried. The cut and the appliance decide the recipe, so that is how this list is organized.

Twenty-five recipes across nine methods, from a six-ingredient baked chicken breast to a buttermilk-brined fried chicken that takes nearly three hours. Every entry lists the real total time, the servings, the ingredient count, and which cut it uses, because a recipe written for thighs does not work the same on breasts.

Baked Chicken

Three oven recipes, from the plainest possible version to one stuffed with ham and Swiss.

Baked Chicken Breasts

Six ingredients: four boneless skinless breasts with salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika and a tablespoon of olive oil. The recipe to learn before any other, and the base you season differently every time after. View the full recipe — 50 minutes · 4 servings · 6 ingredients

Creamy Oven Baked Chicken Thighs

Four bone-in skin-on thighs baked in a cup of heavy cream with garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, paprika and half a cup of parmesan. Skin-on is what keeps the meat from drying out in a cream sauce. View the full recipe — 1 hour · 4 servings · 11 ingredients

Baked Chicken Cordon Bleu Rolls

Four breasts pounded and rolled around ham and Swiss, then breaded through flour, egg and a cup of plain breadcrumbs and baked rather than fried. Ten ingredients. View the full recipe — 1 hour · 4 servings · 10 ingredients

Fried and Crispy

Three routes to a crust: five ingredients in a skillet, panko in the oven, and the full brined and deep-fried version.

Oven Fried Parmesan Baked Chicken Tenders

A pound of chicken tenderloins in panko and half a cup of parmesan, bound with an egg, mayonnaise and Dijon. Thirty-five minutes and no frying oil. View the full recipe — 35 minutes · 4 servings · 11 ingredients

Crispy Italian Breaded Chicken Cutlets

Five ingredients: four breasts, a cup of seasoned breadcrumbs, two eggs, salt and half a cup of vegetable oil. Thirty-six minutes, and the shortest ingredient list in this collection. View the full recipe — 36 minutes · 4 servings · 5 ingredients

Brined Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Eight bone-in pieces brined in a gallon of salted water, then dredged in two cups of flour cut with half a cup of cornstarch and fried in eight cups of oil. The cornstarch is what makes the crust shatter rather than soften. Nearly three hours. View the full recipe — 2 hours 55 minutes · 4 servings · 12 ingredients

Grilled

Three marinades. The yogurt one is a full tikka masala rather than just grilled chicken.

Ginger Sesame Soy Grilled Chicken

Eight ingredients, twenty-five minutes: half a cup of soy sauce with rice vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, brown sugar, ginger and red pepper flakes on a pound of breasts. View the full recipe — 25 minutes · 4 servings · 8 ingredients

Grilled Adobo Lime Chicken

Two pounds of thighs marinated with three chipotle peppers in adobo, four cloves of garlic, lime juice, white vinegar, oregano and cumin. Smoky and sharp at once. View the full recipe — 52 minutes · 4 servings · 10 ingredients

Grilled Yogurt Chicken Tikka Masala

A pound of breast marinated in a cup of Greek yogurt with cumin and coriander, grilled, then finished in a sauce of tomato puree, garam masala and a cup of heavy cream. The yogurt tenderizes and the grill gives the char the dish needs. View the full recipe — 1 hour 50 minutes · 4 servings · 13 ingredients

Air Fryer and Instant Pot

Three for the countertop appliances. One of them starts from frozen chicken, which is the single most useful thing an Instant Pot does.

Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breasts

Six ingredients and thirty-five minutes, starting from four frozen breasts in a cup of broth. No thawing, and the result shreds for anything else you want to make. View the full recipe — 35 minutes · 4 servings · 6 ingredients

Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

A pound of chicken breast with black beans, corn, diced tomatoes with green chilies and four cups of broth, pressure cooked and shredded in the pot. Twelve ingredients, serves six. View the full recipe — 45 minutes · 6 servings · 12 ingredients

Air Fryer Honey Garlic Chicken Tenders

Twenty-four ounces of tenders soaked in buttermilk, breaded in panko and air fried, then tossed in a glaze of half a cup of honey with garlic, butter and soy sauce. View the full recipe — 52 minutes · 4 servings · 13 ingredients

Slow Cooker

Three for the morning. Two of them are six ingredients, which is the main argument for a slow cooker.

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Garlic Chicken

Six ingredients: two pounds of thighs with half a cup of brown sugar, four cloves of garlic, a quarter cup of soy sauce, black pepper and whatever vegetable you have. Four hours fifteen. View the full recipe — 4 hours 15 minutes · 6 servings · 6 ingredients

Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Pie

Two and a half pounds of chicken breast with two condensed soups, heavy cream and three cups of frozen mixed vegetables, with refrigerated jumbo biscuits baked on top at the end. Serves eight. View the full recipe — 5 hours 15 minutes · 8 servings · 12 ingredients

Honey Garlic Slow Cooker Chicken Thighs

Six ingredients again: two pounds of thighs in half a cup of honey and a quarter cup of soy sauce with garlic, thickened at the end with a cornstarch slurry. Six hours ten. View the full recipe — 6 hours 10 minutes · 4 servings · 6 ingredients

Wings

Two approaches. The first is the baking powder trick; the second brines them first.

Baking Powder Chicken Wings

Six ingredients: two pounds of wings tossed with a tablespoon of baking powder, salt, garlic powder, paprika and cayenne, then baked. The baking powder raises the skin pH so it dries and crisps in the oven instead of steaming. View the full recipe — 1 hour 5 minutes · 4 servings · 6 ingredients

Baked Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings

Two pounds of wings brined in eight cups of water with balsamic vinegar, bay leaf and herbes de Provence, then roasted and tossed with four cloves of garlic, breadcrumbs and half a cup of parmesan. Fifteen ingredients. View the full recipe — 1 hour 25 minutes · 4 servings · 15 ingredients

Chicken Soups

Three soups, all serving six. One is the classic, one is a chowder, one is coconut and chili.

One Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

Two pounds of chicken breast poached directly in eight cups of broth with carrots, celery, oregano, thyme and bay leaves, then six ounces of egg noodles in the same pot. Thirteen ingredients, forty-five minutes. View the full recipe — 45 minutes · 6 servings · 13 ingredients

Creamy Chicken Chowder with Cream Cheese

Six medium carrots and four russet potatoes with three cups of cooked chicken, thickened with half a cup of flour, two cups of whole milk and a full sixteen ounces of cream cheese. Thick enough to stand a spoon in. View the full recipe — 50 minutes · 6 servings · 15 ingredients

Spicy Coconut Chicken Soup

Two cups of cooked chicken thighs with a can of full fat coconut milk, crushed tomatoes, jalapeno, ginger, cayenne and rice noodles, finished with lime and cilantro. Eighteen ingredients and the most interesting soup here. View the full recipe — 45 minutes · 6 servings · 18 ingredients

Casseroles

Two bakes built on already-cooked chicken, which makes both of them good uses for a rotisserie bird.

Chicken and Spinach Tortellini Bake

Twelve ounces of cheese tortellini with two cups of cooked chicken, fresh spinach and sun dried tomatoes under a real roux sauce of butter, flour and milk with parmesan and mozzarella. View the full recipe — 50 minutes · 6 servings · 11 ingredients

Old School Chicken Rice Casserole

Four cups of cooked chicken with three condensed soups, cream of chicken, celery and mushroom, plus two cups of long grain rice cooked right in the dish. Twelve ingredients and entirely unapologetic about it. View the full recipe — 1 hour 15 minutes · 6 servings · 12 ingredients

Chicken From Around the World

Three dishes where the technique is the point, not the chicken.

Black Pepper Chicken Stir Fry

A pound of breast with two full tablespoons of coarsely ground black pepper, soy sauce, rice vinegar and a cornstarch slurry in a cup of broth. The pepper is the whole dish, so grind it coarse. View the full recipe — 55 minutes · 4 servings · 11 ingredients

Filipino Chicken Thigh Adobo

A pound and a half of thighs braised in a third of a cup each of soy sauce and white vinegar with four bay leaves, garlic, brown sugar and two teaspoons of black pepper. Eleven ingredients, and the vinegar-to-soy ratio is the recipe. View the full recipe — 1 hour 5 minutes · 6 servings · 11 ingredients

Greek Chicken Thigh Gyros

Two pounds of thighs marinated overnight in a cup of Greek yogurt with lemon, garlic, oregano and thyme, then served in pita with onion, tomato, lettuce and tzatziki. Nine and a half hours, almost all of it marinating. View the full recipe — 9 hours 30 minutes · 4 servings · 15 ingredients

Chicken Questions, Answered

Can I swap chicken breasts for thighs?

Not without adjusting. Thighs have more fat and connective tissue, so they tolerate longer cooking and come out better in slow cookers and braises, which is why the adobo, the gyros and both slow cooker recipes here call for them. Breasts dry out past about 165 degrees F internal, which is why they suit fast, hot methods.

What is the fastest chicken dinner here?

Ginger Sesame Soy Grilled Chicken at twenty-five minutes. Three more finish in thirty-five or thirty-six: the Instant Pot frozen breasts, the oven-fried parmesan tenders and the Italian breaded cutlets.

Why does the wing recipe use baking powder?

It raises the pH of the skin, which speeds up browning and helps moisture escape, so the skin dries and crisps in the oven instead of steaming. Use baking powder, not baking soda; soda in that quantity tastes metallic.

Which of these work with rotisserie or leftover chicken?

Both casseroles, the creamy chicken chowder and the spicy coconut soup all call for already-cooked chicken. The Instant Pot frozen breasts recipe is the reverse: it is a way to produce three or four cups of shredded chicken for exactly those dishes.

What internal temperature should chicken reach?

165 degrees F at the thickest part, measured with a thermometer rather than by eye or by time. Thighs are more forgiving and are often better at 175 to 185, where the connective tissue has broken down.

Which recipes feed the most people?

Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Pie at eight servings. Seven more serve six, including both casseroles and all three soups.

Do I need to brine chicken?

Only where the recipe says so, and both places it appears here are worth it. The buttermilk fried chicken brines in salted water so the meat stays juicy through deep frying, and the garlic parmesan wings brine for flavor rather than moisture. For a baked breast, salting it thirty minutes ahead does most of the same job.