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These creamy Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thighs are absolutely delicious. Crispy skin and tender inside, chicken thighs are coated in a creamy sauce with salty, crispy bacon, earthy mushrooms, and fresh thyme. These creamy Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thighs might become your favorite quick Whole30 dinner recipe! But for a quick Whole30 dinner recipe, these creamy Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thighs are totally dinner party worthy.
What Makes This Recipe So Good
- As soon as I tasted the very first bite of these creamy Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thighs, I knew it was love. The salty, crispy bacon; the earthy mushrooms with their perfect sear; the garlicky, creamy sauce; the heady herbs; and the tender chicken thighs with their crispy skin? True love, plain and simple.
- This recipe is easy enough for a quick Whole30 dinner on a weeknight when you don’t really have a ton of time for something extravagant, but it’s also elegant enough for those nights when you have company to impress. And don’t worry about whether or not your non-Whole-30 friends will enjoy it – they absolutely will.
- Clean-up is a BREEZE because this bacon mushroom chicken dish is a ONE-PAN MEAL. Yup! All the cooking happens in just one large oven-safe skillet. No sink full of dirty dishes looming over you while you eat.
Key Ingredients
Chicken Thighs – Opt for bone-in, skin-on thighs here. The skin crisps up beautifully, and the bone keeps the chicken thighs tender and juicy. You could use bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts if you’d prefer, but the cooking time will change slightly since they contain less fat than the chicken thighs.
Coconut Milk – Keeping this recipe totally Whole30-compliant, coconut milk forms the base of this cream sauce. It’s totally dairy free, but it still gives you a rich, creamy sauce, and it won’t overwhelm your dish with coconut flavor.
Chef’s Tips
- To get a really nice, browned skin on the chicken thighs, it’s important that you put them in the skillet and leave them alone. Don’t move them around or pick them up to check them or flip them over constantly. Put them in the skillet and leave them alone for 7 minutes or so. After that, gently pick them up – if the skin sticks at all, set them back down and let them cook a little longer.
- If you’re NOT on a Whole30 round and/or you’re NOT paleo, you can make the cream sauce with heavy cream instead of coconut cream. Add in a little freshly grated parmesan cheese for extra richness and depth. But ONLY IF you’re not following Whole30/paleo ways of eating. No dairy allowed on those!
- All of the cooking in this Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thigh recipe takes place in just one skillet. Just one! Make sure you’ve got a good oven mitt handy, though. The skillet will be super hot and you’ll need to handle it quite a bit.
Try These Whole30 Recipes Next
- Whole30 Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla-Less Soup (Paleo)
- Whole30 Chicken Burrito Bowls (Keto, Paleo)
- Egg Roll in a Bowl Meal Prep (Whole30, Paleo, Keto)
- Whole30 Fried Chicken and Mashed Potato Bowl with Gravy
- Whole30 Chicken Cacciatore
Creamy Whole30 Bacon Mushroom Chicken Thighs (Paleo)
These creamy Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thighs are absolutely delicious. Crispy skin and tender inside, chicken thighs are coated in a creamy sauce with salty, crispy bacon, earthy mushrooms, and fresh thyme. These creamy Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thighs might become your favorite quick Whole30 dinner recipe! But for a quick Whole30 dinner recipe, these creamy Whole30 bacon mushroom chicken thighs are totally dinner party worthy.
servings
Equipment
- Large oven-safe skillet
- Plates (2)
Ingredients
- 5 slices Whole30-compliant bacon diced
- 4 medium bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs approximately 1 ½ pounds
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms about 3 cups, sliced
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup coconut milk
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5 sprigs fresh thyme
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° Fahrenheit. In large oven-safe skillet, cook diced bacon over medium heat until bacon is crisp and fat is rendered. Transfer cooked bacon to plate. Pour out bacon grease, leaving 1-2 tablespoons grease in skillet. Raise heat to medium-high.
- Liberally season both sides of each chicken thigh with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Place seasoned chicken thighs in skillet, skin-side down. Place them carefully in such a way that they will cook evenly without needing to be moved. Let chicken thighs cook approximately 7 minutes or until skin is evenly browned and releases easily from skillet. Note: if skin sticks to skillet, continue cooking until skin releases easily.
- Flip chicken thighs over so skin-side faces up. Transfer skillet to preheated oven and cook 13 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 160º Fahrenheit.
- Remove skillet from oven and carefully transfer chicken thighs to another plate. Place skillet on the stovetop and turn heat to medium-high. Take special care to always, always use a pot holder from this step forward; the handle will stay very hot.
- Pour out all but 2 tablespoons of fat from skillet. Add sliced mushrooms and cook approximately 4 minutes, stirring only once, or until mushrooms are golden brown and slightly softened.
- Add garlic cloves and sauté, stirring constantly, until garlic is fragrant, approximately 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Pour coconut milk into skillet and add salt and fresh thyme. Increase heat to high and bring mixture to gentle boil, then immediately reduce heat to low. Simmer mixture approximately 2 to 4 minutes, until flavors have blended and sauce has reduced slightly.
- Add bacon to sauce and stir well. Taste and add more salt and pepper as desired. Return chicken thighs to skillet and coat with sauce. Serve warm with mashed potatoes or cauliflower rice and some leafy greens.
- To get a really nice, browned skin on the chicken thighs, it’s important that you put them in the skillet and leave them alone. Don’t move them around or pick them up to check them or flip them over constantly. Put them in the skillet and leave them alone for 7 minutes or so. After that, gently pick them up – if the skin sticks at all, set them back down and let them cook a little longer.
- If you’re NOT on a Whole30 round and/or you’re NOT paleo, you can make the cream sauce with heavy cream instead of coconut cream. Add in a little freshly grated parmesan cheese for extra richness and depth. But ONLY IF you’re not following Whole30/paleo ways of eating. No dairy allowed on those!
Approximate Information for One Serving
Serving Size: 1servingCalories: 561calProtein: 30gFat: 47gSaturated Fat: 21gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 160mgSodium: 460mgPotassium: 756mgTotal Carbs: 6gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gNet Carbs: 5gVitamin A: 200IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 57mgIron: 4mg
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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I made these exactly per recipe tonight, and it was absolutely delicious. I served them with roasted Brussels sprouts, and the meal was a big hit with everyone (husband,5 year old, 3 yr old and 1 yr old). Thanks for such a great Whole30 recipe!
I’m SO glad you all liked it so much!
Do you cover the pan before putting it in the oven?
Nope!
Have you every tried this with boneless thighs? That’s what I have but not sure how the time would differ.
I haven’t, but I’m confident it’d be delicious! I’d shave maybe 5 minutes off the baking time with boneless thighs. An oven-safe thermometer is absolutely ideal, so you can take the thighs out when they reach about 162º F! Let me know how it works for you 🙂
I did it last night with boneless skinless thighs. After cooking the bacon, I turned off the pan and added the chicken and let that sear in the residual heat while I seasoned the other side of the chicken. Then I put it in the oven for 18 minutes.
That’s awesome! Thanks so much for sharing how it worked with boneless thighs 🙂
I make it with skinless boneless thighs I get from Costco and it’s amazing!!!!
I’m so glad you liked it!!!
Could you use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs – if so, any modifications for cooking?
Absolutely! My recommendation is to use an oven-safe meat thermometer that will let you know when the temperature reaches about 162º F – that’s when you’ll remove the chicken. Otherwise I’d keep the cooking time about the same. The size of chicken breasts vary so wildly it’s hard to say exactly how long it will take in the oven, but 13 minutes is a good start 🙂
This was so amazing! I put some of the sauce over some green beans and that was super good too! Thank you for a delicious recipe.
Sounds delicious! I’m SO glad you liked it Cori!
Does it need to be coconut milk? I have almond milk but I know the consistency is not the same.
I would definitely recommend full-fat coconut milk for this, otherwise it won’t be nearly as rich or creamy.
Do you shake the can of coconut milk then pour 1 cup or do you use the cream only?
Thank you for the delicious recipe (and for teaching me how to make perfect chicken thighs!) My family loved it! PS – I just voted for your chili!
Yay! Thank you so much 🙂 And I’m so glad you liked the recipe! Seriously, this method of cooking chicken thighs is so versatile. This recipe is one of my all-time favorites: https://40aprons.com/perfect-seared-chicken-thighs-pan-sauce/
Tried this tonight and I will definitely make it again. Only change I made was adding about 1/2 cup of diced onions with the mushrooms. Do good!!
Great idea! I’m so glad you liked it 🙂
This looks like a beautiful dish! Chicken breasts get all the love, but I loooove me a good thigh.
Right?! I’m a thigh lady myself ? So tender, and that skin!
Girl, this recipe looks so freaking good! Love the deep sear on the chicken. Yum!
Thanks Kristen! It really is SO good. Crispy chicken skin = my life