Smothered Chicken

This delicious Southern-style Smothered Chicken is comfort food at its finest. Pan seared chicken thighs smothered in a gravy made from scratch, slowly cooked until the chicken falls off the bone. The ideal dinner, best served over a bed of mashed potatoes or cooked rice!

The Best Smothered Chicken Recipe

This chicken dish screams comfort and sometimes that’s what we need in life. It’s a Southern-style recipe made with chicken thighs dredged through seasoned flour, pan seared, then slowly cooked in a gravy made from scratch, until the chicken is fall-off-the-bone tender.

This chicken thigh recipe is great served over mashed potatoes or cooked rice because of all that delicious gravy, but you might also want to serve it up with some fresh crusty bread to dip into that gravy and soak up all that goodness. It’s smack-your-lips yummy and your whole family will love it.

• Chicken Thighs – I used chicken this with skin on and bone-in, but you can also you boneless skinless chicken thighs. You can also use chicken drumsticks or breasts in this recipe.
• Spices and Herbs – I like to use a combination of some of my usual spices when I make a dry rub, like garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, some chili powder, red pepper flakes for a bit of heat and my herbs of choice here is Italian seasoning. You can, of course, change up the spices and herbs and use your favorite chicken seasoning.
• Onion and Garlic – Onion and garlic are essential as the start to a good gravy. White or yellow onion are ok to use.
• Flour – We need some all-purpose flour to dredge the chicken in and also to thicken up our gravy.
• Oil and Butter – We need some vegetable oil like canola to pan sear the chicken thighs and then some butter for our gravy to give it some great flavor and make it nice and velvety.
• Chicken Broth – I like to use low sodium chicken broth, vegetable broth will also work.
• Heavy Cream – We need heavy cream to make our gravy nice and creamy, but you could use half and half for a little less fat.

How To Make Smothered Chicken

1. Prep the oven and baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 350°F degrees. Place a rack over a baking sheet and set aside.
2. Make the spice rub. In a small bowl, whisk together the paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning and chili powder.
3. Prep the chicken. Pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towels. Generously season the chicken thighs with about ¾ of the seasoning rub. Place the seasoned chicken on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Prep the dredge. Season the flour with remaining seasoning rub, salt and pepper. Transfer 2 tablespoons of the seasoned flour to a smaller bowl.
5. Dredge the chicken thighs. Dredge the chicken thighs through the flour mixture making sure they are fully coated. Shake off any excess flour. Place the thighs back on the rack and repeat with remaining chicken thighs.
6. Pan sear the chicken. Heat the olive oil in a large oven safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs to the skillet and cook for about 5 minutes per side until browned. The chicken won’t be fully cooked at this point. Transfer the chicken back to the rack.
7. Cook the onion and garlic. In the same skillet add the butter, onion and cook for 3 to 5 minutes until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds until aromatic. Stir in the red pepper flakes.
8. Sprinkle flour. Sprinkle the reserved seasoned flour over the onions and continue cooking while stirring for another 2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste.
9. Make the gravy. Start pouring chicken broth while continuously whisking and cook for a couple more minutes until the gravy comes to a simmer. Whisk in the heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper as needed.
10. Add chicken and braise in the oven. Add the chicken back to the skillet and spoon some of the gravy over the chicken. Cover the skillet and transfer it to the oven. Cook in the oven for one hour.
11. Garnish and serve. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve over mashed potatoes or rice.

What Is Smothered Chicken?

Smothered Chicken is a Southern chicken and gravy dish, consisting of pan seared chicken pieces, then slowly cooked in a gravy.

Do I Have To Use Chicken Thighs?

No, you do not. You can use chicken breasts, or chicken drumsticks. This type of dish is also popular with pork chops or sometimes even fish.

Leftovers

Fridge

Store the leftover chicken and gravy in an airtight container. It will store nicely in your fridge for up to 3 days!

Freezer

Cool the smothered chicken completely before transferring to an airtight container and storing it in the freezer. It will last anywhere from 4 – 6 months.

More Delicious Chicken Thigh Recipes To Try

• Spinach and Swiss Cheese Stuffed Chicken Thighs
• Chicken Stroganoff
• Air Fryer Chicken Thighs
• One Pot Chicken and Orzo
• Oven Baked Chicken Thighs
• Chicken and Mushrooms in Creamy Dill Sauce
• Chicken in a Hurry
• One Pot Spanish Chicken and Rice
• Chicken Adobo