Recipes

The 10 Most Popular Chicken Recipes of 2021

The real winners were the chicken dinners themselves.
Picnic Fried Chicken Recipe
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by D'Mytrek Brown

Our readers love chicken recipes, and we don’t blame them. Versatile, flavorful, and widely accessible, chicken does it all: It can be soft and tender, like this roasted adobo from chef Melissa Miranda, or crispy-crunchy like Andy Baraghani’s superstar za’atar-breaded cutlets, and everything in between. And while we’d be satisfied slurping up recipe developer Leela Punyaratabandhu’s Pad See Ew every night, that would mean missing out on these skinless, boneless thighs in creamy spiced sauce or a tomatoey roast that screams summer. Whatever your favorite recipe on this list ends up being, we’re confident that it tastes like chicken. Our list starts at No. 10 and goes all the way down to No. 1:

  • Zaatar Chicken breast recipe Cutlets With Cabbage Salad recipe with
    Photograph by Laura Murray, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Sophie Strangio
    1/10

    10. Za’atar Chicken Cutlets With Cabbage Salad

    Making your own spice mix is the key to chicken cutlets with tons of nutty, floral, and tangy flavor and crunchy, seedy texture.

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  • A platter of pad see ew Thai stirfried noodles with chicken and Chinese broccoli.
    Photo by Heami Lee, food styling by Judy Haubert, prop styling by Rebecca Bartoshesky
    2/10

    9. Chicken Pad See Ew

    Developer Leela Punyaratabandhu breaks down the techniques to achieving the perfect plate of this iconic Thai stir-fried noodle dish.

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  • Image may contain Plant Food Dish and Meal
    Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by D'mytrek Brown
    3/10

    8. Kuku Paka

    This version of the classic East African-Indian chicken curry will help you see your broiler in a whole new light.

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  • Roasted chicken adobo on yellow plate with greens and rice
    Photograph by Chona Kasinger, Prop styling by Callie Meyer
    4/10

    7. Oven-Roasted Chicken Adobo

    Chef Melissa Miranda’s adobo is oven-roasted, leading to tender meat on the bottom of the pot as well as crispy skin on the top.

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  • A cutup chicken grilled pollo asadostyle with burnished red char and limes alongside for squeezing.
    Photo by Emma Fishman, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich 
    5/10

    6. Pollo Asado

    Naranja agria (sour orange) gives this Nicaraguan grilled chicken its signature tang, but you can fake it using an orange and lime juice combo.

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  • Chicken and Mushroom Sauced Noodles With Thai Basil recipe
    Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Pearl Jones
    6/10

    5. Chicken and Mushroom Sauced Noodles With Thai Basil

    Chewy noodles, umami-packed mushrooms, and garlicky chicken, all coated in a spicy, sweet, and savory sauce.

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  • Roast Chicken With Tomatoes recipe
    Photo by Emma Fishman, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime
    7/10

    4. Roast Chicken With Tomatoes

    The only thing better than a tomato salad? Tomato salad with a lemony, oniony roast chicken on top.

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  • Image may contain Food Dish Meal Platter Plant and Pizza
    Photograph by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by D'Myrtrek Brown
    8/10

    3. Spiced Coconut Chicken Rice

    This one-pot meal is cozier than your favorite bathrobe, with fragrant basmati rice, tender chicken, warm spices, and coconut milk.

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  • Fried chicken pieces in a brown bag
    Photo by Emma Fishman, food styling by D'Mytrek Brown
    9/10

    2. Barbara’s Picnic Fried Chicken

    It took poet Kwame Alexander twelve tries to recreate his late mother’s perfectly crispy-juicy fried chicken. Luckily, he wrote down the recipe for you.

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  • Thai Roast Chicken Thighs With Coconut Rice recipe
    Photo by Isa Zapata, food styling by Micah Morton, prop styling by Nicole Louie
    10/10

    1. Thai Roast Chicken Thighs With Coconut Rice

    This single skillet, weeknight riff on Diana Yen's favorite Thai rotisserie chicken packs coconut milk, lime juice, and fish sauce for plenty of umami.

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Alma Avalle is Bon Appétit’s editorial operations associate and web producer. She is also a reporter and journalist covering drinks, food science, and all things new and nerdy for our website and magazine. Raised in New England, Bolivia, and Guatemala, she's currently based in Brooklyn, where she's also a writer, ... Read More
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