Easy Chicken and Gravy Recipe

Do you have a recipe in your kitchen that is so easy that it doesn't really need a recipe? Me too and this Easy Chicken and Gravy Recipe is it. Your family and friends will love it and you will too because it's so very easy!

Prep Time5

Cook Time1

gravy mixing time5

Total Time1 10

Course: main

Cuisine: American

Keyword: easy chicken and gravy recipe

Servings: servings

Calories: 255kcal

Author: Wendi Spraker

Cost: $7

Equipment

1 oven safe baking dish 2 quart for 4 thighs, 9x13 for more
1 oven
measuring cups and spoons
1 plate
1 Whisk or fork

Ingredients

4 chicken thighs bone in and skin on
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp paprika smoked paprika works too
1 cup water or broth
1 packet McCormicks Chicken Gravy

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350.
In a baking dish (2 quart if doing 4 thighs, 9x13 if doing more, see notes), lay the chicken skin side up. Do not lay chicken on top of one another, set beside each other so each can cook evenly.
Sprinkle the seasonings over the top of the chicken in the pan. Add the water slowly and between the pieces so that it doesn't wash the seasoning off the chicken.
Place on the middle rack in the oven in the center of the oven. Bake for an hour. The chicken is done when it reaches an internal temp of 165 or when juices run clear and the meat is white throughout.
Remove the baking dish from the oven. Remove the pieces of chicken from the pan to a plate.
Using a fork or a whisk, whisk the contents of the gravy packet into the pan juices. If there isn't at least a cup of juices in the pan (just estimate, no need to measure), then add water or broth to the pan so that you have that amount and then whisk in the gravy packet. If you are cooking more than 4 pieces of chicken, then you'll want two packets of gravy.
Once the gravy packet is mixed in, place the chicken pieces and the juices that have dripped onto the plate back into the original pan and spoon some of the gravy up over the top of the chicken. Serve hot.

Video

Notes

- You'll get the most flavor with bone in and skin on chicken, but any cut will work.

- You can mix cuts of chicken as long as you don't mix bone in and bone out. For example: It's fine to cook a bone in breast and bone in thigh together but don't put chicken strips and bone in thigh together in the same pan because the cooking times are so different that one will be done or over done and the other wont be done at all.

- If you are doing more than 4 pieces of chicken in one pan, you will want to double the water and use two gravy packets.

- If your grocery store is short on gravy packets and you need two, I've substituted an Au jus packet before and it turned out fine and tasted great.

- To add more flavor, use broth instead of water in the recipe.

- You do not need to cover the pan with aluminum foil.

- The chicken skin will crisp as it bakes in the oven but if it isn't as crispy as you like at the end, simply put under the broiler for a few minutes in a separate pan before putting it into the gravy.

- The spices are highly variable. If you prefer more or less of one or the other, add or substract from what is given here (or leave off entirely).

- Some great alternatives to the spices listed are: Ranch Dressing mix, cayenne, chili powder, Italian seasoning, oregano, Thyme, heavy blacked cracked pepper, taco seasoning. Go wild! See what happens! Channel your inner Julia Childs!

Substitutions

Bone In/ Skin On Chicken - substitute any cut you prefer just don't mix bone in and bone out cuts together (because they won't cook in the same amount of time).

Water - For more flavor use chicken or vegetable broth instead!

Spices - Use any combination of spices you like in this recipe! Get wild with it (just use spices you enjoy - for example, if you like lavender on your chicken, then by all means, use lavender but most people won't enjoy lavender with a brown chicken gravy, if you do, cheers to you).

Chicken Gravy Packet - That's what makes this recipe so easy to make, however, if you just can't do a packet gravy, then I'm going to suggest you follow the instructions for making gravy using corn starch in this other article here at Loaves and Dishes. It will be more difficult and won't have quite the same flavor, but it is a possible substitute. Also, as long as you are using one chicken gravy packet, I have used an Au Jus packet by McCormick and had delicious results.

Nutrition