Quick chicken skillets includes our favorite recipes that are stove top only and ready in under 30 minutes for easy, family friendly weeknight dinner solutions.
Throwing some chicken in a pan and calling it dinner is one of my favorite end-of-the-day hacks.
It feels simple when my brain is tired and my energy is low. It feels like cooking, but only barely. So we get the benefit of a home cooked meal without much fuss. Plus, we get easy clean up after everyone scarfs it down!
So I wanted to gather together some of our favorite, most popular, make again and again recipes.
These are ones you'll be adding to your regular rotation!
What Counts as a Quick Chicken Skillet?
Here's the criteria I used to evaluate which recipes to include. And even then, only the best ones made the cut!
Quick: All of these recipes are ready in under 30 minutes - and many take just 15 or 20 minutes. Anything that requires more than 30 minutes was eliminated.
Chicken: Duh, these recipes all use chicken. That is either boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs or lean ground chicken or rotisserie chicken.
Skillet: We are cooking only in a skillet on the stove. Any recipes that also require time in the oven were disqualified.
Quick Dinner Tips
Here are some of my time-saving tips from years and years and years in the kitchen. So many dinners. So many dishes.
Read the full recipe first so you're prepared and don't have any surprises. This will also help you be more efficient when cooking.
Prep as you go to save time. While the skillet is heating, for example, chop the first ingredient to go in. While that sautés, chop the next ingredient to layer in or get the spices ready, etc.
Smaller pieces cook faster. Cutting chicken breasts into 1-inch cubes is one of my favorite ways to ensure fast and more even cooking. Plus, it's bite-size and ready to eat.
Just Chicken Skillet Recipes
These recipes are intended just to make the protein portion of the meal. You'll need to add sides - such as rice or potatoes and a vegetable - to round out dinner. These are great go-to ideas when you need to figure out what to do with the chicken in your fridge that needs to be used.
- Easy Cream Cheese Chicken
- Honey Mustard Chicken (15 minutes)
- 15-Minute Paprika Chicken
- 15-Minute Honey Garlic Chicken
- Healthy Creamy Italian Chicken Skillet
- Cashew Chicken {20 minutes}
- 15-Minute Skillet Lemon Chicken
- Quick Chicken Curry {15 minutes}
- Quick Chicken and Gravy
- Easy, Healthy Butter Chicken
- Easy Turmeric Chicken {15 minutes}
- Creamy Chipotle Chicken
Chicken Skillet Meals
These all in one meals are your full and complete dinner, vegetables and all. We love throw-everything-in recipes at my house! The bonus is that they are really easy clean up, too.
Some of these recipes are low carb as is, so feel free to serve with rice, pasta, bread, etc., if you'd like.
- Quick and Easy Mediterranean Chicken
- Italian Chicken Skillet with Pesto
- 15-Minute Southwest Chicken Skillet
- Cheesy Ground Chicken Skillet
- 20-Minute Coconut Chicken Curry
- Easy Moo Shu Chicken
- Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Ground Chicken and Mushroom Skillet
- Quick & Easy Chicken Fried Rice
- Chicken, Black Bean and Spinach Skillet
Looking for more? You might also want to check out this collection of our most popular 15 minute dinners for more easy weeknight dinners. Or browse all of our 30-minute chicken dinners. I'm serious about quick and easy dinners!
FAQs on Quick Chicken Skillets
Some of them, yes. Check individual recipes and use your best judgement on which ones might store and reheat best.
I use and recommend a large (12-inch) non-stick skillet for these recipes so you can fit everything in and cook it evenly. I love and have Calphalon pans and also GreenPan skillets.
Often times, yes. I use a lot of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and you can almost always substitute boneless, skinless chicken thighs. You could also swap in ground turkey for the ground chicken in those recipes if you prefer.
Yup! All kids are different, of course, but the majority of these recipes use easy, accessible flavors and are intended to be very family friendly.
A lot of these recipes are naturally gluten free. You will want to review the ingredients and double check any condiments and sauces to ensure you're choosing a gluten-free option if that's needed.
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