10 Delicious Chicken Dinner Recipes That Take 30 Minutes or Less to Prep

Our favorite inexpensive, easy to cook, and exceptionally versatile chicken recipes.

By
Rabi Abonour
Rabi Abonour is a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
Rabi Abonour
Rabi Abonour is a planner specializing in transportation, but has also been a photojournalist, writer, and editor for several online and print publications.
Learn about Serious Eats' Editorial Process
and
The Serious Eats Team
The Serious Eats Team
At Serious Eats, we’re a team of self-proclaimed food nerds who are ever-curious about the “why” behind cooking. The staff has worked in restaurants, test kitchens, bakeries, and other notable publications, bringing extensive culinary and editorial expertise to the table.
Learn about Serious Eats' Editorial Process
Published January 05, 2025
Oyakodon, in a white ceramic bowl alongside wooden chopsticks, a small ceramic bowl holding togarashi seasoning, and an additional bowl of oyakodon off to the left side.

Serious Eats / Qi Ai

For a fast weeknight meal, chicken is my most reliable standby. It's inexpensive, easy to cook, and relatively healthy (subject to the preparation, of course), all of which makes it a great base for a filling home-cooked dinner after a day of work. On top of that, it's also exceptionally versatile, so there's no reason you should ever get bored with it. This set of recipes, from comfort food to your very own mock-takeout, will encourage you to take advantage of that trait. And, lest you wonder if they're worth the effort, all of these can be made and on the table in less time than it takes your favorite pizza place to deliver.

August 2018

  • Easy Pressure Cooker Green Chile With Chicken

    20150903-quick-chicken-dinners-roundup-06.jpg
    J. Kenji López-Alt

    Awesome chili made from scratch in less than half an hour? It sounds impossible, but a pressure cooker makes it a piece of cake. To make this chile verde, just throw chunks of chicken in a pressure cooker with tomatillos, peppers, onion, garlic, cumin, and salt for 15 minutes—no extra liquid required. Once the cooking is done, remove the chicken, shred it, blend up the sauce, and mix everything back together.

  • Air-Fryer Southern Fried Chicken

    A blue platter with air-fryer fried chicken

    Serious Eats / Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Ana Kelly , Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle

    Lucky for me—and all fried chicken lovers—you can make a great version of fried chicken in your air fryer, no vat of oil required, thanks to this air-fryer fried chicken recipe. While the recipe is written for a combination of bone-in and skin-on breasts and thighs, you can make this recipe with whatever chicken pieces you prefer

  • 30-Minute Pressure Cooker Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup)

    20150903-quick-chicken-dinners-roundup-08.jpg
    J. Kenji López-Alt

    Traditional pho requires hours of simmering to develop the flavors of the broth. With a pressure cooker's help, you can cut that down to a mere 20 minutes. In that time, the heady mix of cilantro, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, and coriander seed will fully saturate the broth, and the chicken drumsticks will break down, releasing gelatin and adding body to the soup.

  • Takeout-Style Kung Pao Chicken (Diced Chicken With Peppers and Peanuts)

    Marinated chicken thighs, properly stir-fried peppers and celery, roasted peanuts, and a sweet, sour, and savory sauce on a takeout-style kung pao chicken.
    J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

    It may not have much in common with traditional Chinese food—including real Sichuan kung pao chicken—but this stir-fry of chicken, peppers, and peanuts in a slightly gloopy sweet-and-sour sauce is one of the most beloved American-Chinese dishes for a reason. Stick with dark meat, which fares much better than white meat in a hot wok.

    Continue to 5 of 10 below

  • Oyakodon (Japanese Chicken and Egg Rice Bowl)

    Oyakodon, in a white ceramic bowl alongside wooden chopsticks, a small ceramic bowl holding togarashi seasoning, and an additional bowl of oyakodon off to the left side.

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

    Super popular both at restaurants and at home, oyakodon (Japanese chicken and egg rice bowl) is sort of like the pizza of Japan—if pizza were the kind of soul-satisfying comfort food that's easy to make at home, with minimal ingredients, in about 20 minutes. This kind of quick and easy one-pot rice bowl is a huge time-saver in the kitchen.

  • Air-Fryer BBQ Chicken

    Overhead view of air fryer bbq chicken

    Serious Eats / Jen Causey

    With the help of the air fryer's powerful convection fan—because an air fryer, as you might already know, is just a supercharged mini convection oven—we're able to get juicy, lightly charred chicken pieces covered in a sticky sweet and tangy barbecue sauce, no grill required. It takes just five minutes of prep and cooks up in about 20 minutes so it’s great for busy weeknights.

  • Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

    20121016-macaroni-and-cheese-variations-buffalo-chicken.jpg
    J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

    Admittedly, I'm cheating a little here—this starts with cooked chicken meat—but I'm betting that leftover roast chicken finds its way into your refrigerator every now and then. (If not, a rotisserie bird bought at the supermarket on your way home from work is an easy fix.) This recipe is a joyful marriage of two great American classics: Buffalo wings and macaroni and cheese. Plenty of grated American and cheddar cheese and Frank's Red Hot make for a gooey, spicy sauce.

  • Easy Pan-Roasted Chicken Breasts With Lemon and Rosemary Pan Sauce

    20150903-quick-chicken-dinners-roundup-01.jpg
    J. Kenji López-Alt

    Here, our sauce is flavored with lemon, shallots, rosemary, and—the secret ingredient—a little soy sauce, which is a quick way to add a powerful dose of umami. Normally we'd add fresh herbs as we finish cooking, but rosemary's flavor comes out too strong if it's left until the end. Add it with the shallots early on to give it a chance to mellow out.

    Continue to 9 of 10 below

  • The Best Grilled Chicken Sandwich

    Chicken sandwich served on a plate

    Serious Eats / Qi Ai

    Is this the only great grilled chicken sandwich recipe in the world? No, but consider this your blueprint to not only this pitch-perfect grilled chicken sandwich, but any other you can dream up.

  • Mayo-Free Chicken Salad With Kimchi, Ginger, and Scallions

    20150903-quick-chicken-dinners-roundup-18.jpg
    Daniel Gritzer

    Most chicken salad recipes use mayonnaise to add moisture and flavor. For a lighter version, try using a vinaigrette instead. This one incorporates a little more vinegar than usual to perk up the chicken, plus a hint of sourness from kimchi and spice from fresh ginger. Serve it however you'd like—I think it's especially good on a sandwich, with bitter frisée.

More Serious Eats Recipes