Chef's simple frying pan method for juicy chicken thighs with crispy skin

Chicken thighs are particularly forgiving by nature, but it remains surprisingly easy to go wrong, leaving them dry, tough or underwhelming in flavour. From cranking up the heat too high to leaving them on for too long, minor missteps can have a considerable impact on the finished dish. Fortunately, one chef has revealed a straightforward technique that can make a world of difference, helping you achieve succulent, tender chicken time after time.

It is a modest adjustment that is sure to impress both family and friends — and requires only a handful of ingredients. Chef Kelly Scott, who boasts 1.2 million followers on TikTok, regularly uploads her mouth-watering recipes to the platform. Among them, she cites her crispy chicken thighs as her most popular dish — one that requires very little time to prepare.

In a video posted to the app showcasing the recipe, the chef said: "I've had a lot of viral recipes, but the one that people love the most is these crispy chicken thighs, which is funny because it's also the easiest chicken recipe maybe ever and never fails." Begin by taking some skin-on chicken thighs, removing the bone and seasoning generously with salt to taste.

Leave the chicken thighs to rest, skin-side down, on a sheet of kitchen paper for at least 15 minutes to draw out any excess moisture. Once the 15 minutes have elapsed, place the chicken thighs, skin-side down, in a cold cast-iron pan and gradually bring the heat to medium. Kelly said: "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." Starting with a hot, oiled pan risks browning the chicken skin too rapidly, trapping excess fat beneath the surface and leaving the thighs disappointingly soggy. Flocking to the comments section, one viewer wrote: "This recipe is my most requested dinner from my family.

It is so insane." A second added: "This chicken is so moist and just falls apart.

We make it at least once a week." Another follower enquired whether a stainless steel pan would be equally effective, to which the chef confirmed it would.

For skinless thighs, however, a preheated pan tends to produce superior browning, though without the satisfying crispy crunch.