Boneless Skinless Chicken Thigh Chinese Recipe: Juicy and Tender Chicken Thighs!

Jiahe Kuang

Chicken thighs are juicier than any other cuts of chicken. So, it is not easy to overcook chicken thighs. If you want a quick and easy recipe with chicken thighs, I recommend this boneless skinless chicken thigh Chinese recipe. It just needs a few aromatics and seasonings to make colorful chicken thighs.

The most difficult part of this recipe is deboning chicken thighs. If you have a boning knife, deboning chicken thighs will be easier. It will also require some skills to debone the chicken thighs without wasting meat. Let’s start making the recipe.

Boneless Skinless Chicken Thigh Recipe Overview

I made an overview chart so that you get all the necessary information about the recipe in one place. Check it out.

Course: MainCuisine: ChineseDifficulty: Easy
Total Time: 35 minutes
Serving Preparation TimeCooking TimeCalories
2 persons20 minutes15 minutes184 kcal
Recipe Overview

Ingredients Needed for the Recipe

The chicken thighs need a light seasoning in this recipe. You will find all the ingredients below.

  • Chicken Thigh: 2 pcs, deboned and deskinned
  • Ginger: 8 slices
  • Garlic: 8 slices
  • Onion: 30 slices
  • Light Soy Sauce: 3 tsp
  • Oyster Sauce: 1 tsp
  • Sugar: 1 tsp
  • Ground Pepper: ½ tsp

Tools and Utensils You Need

Having the essential tools and utensils ready reduces the overall time for making this recipe. Here is the list of them.

  1. A deboning knife
  2. A kitchen knife
  3. A medium bowl
  4. A frying pan
  5. A chopping board
  6. Measuring spoons

Boneless Skinless Chicken Thigh Chinese Recipe: Step-By-Step Instructions

I showed how you can debone chicken thighs in easy steps. Follow them properly to debone the thighs.

Step 1: Debone and Deskin Chicken Thighs

Debone and Deskin Chicken Thighs

Take a deboning knife and insert the tip into the knuckle. Twist the knife a bit to get into the softer part and make long cuts to separate the meat from the bone.

You Can Also Try: Chinese Take Out Wings Recipe

Then, rotate the thighs and do the same on the other side. It will expose the thigh bone and the ligaments. Cut the ligaments to remove the bone. Now, place the chicken thighs on a chopping board so that the skin side is facing up. 

Hold the skin in one corner with two fingers and pull the skin off. If it is hard to remove the skin, use the deboning knife to remove the skin. The chicken thighs are now ready for the next step.

Step 2: Marinate the Chicken Thighs

Marinate the Chicken Thighs

Cut a block of ginger into slices and add the slices to the chicken thighs. Also, add sliced garlic to the chicken. Then, Separate the layers of an onion and cut each petal into small pieces.

You Can Also Try: Chinese Pink Sauce Recipe

Then, pour 3 tsp of light soy sauce and 1 tsp of oyster sauce over the chicken thighs. Add 1 tsp of sugar and ½ tsp of freshly ground black pepper to the chicken as well. Mix everything and set the marinated chicken aside for 10 minutes. 

Step 3: Fry the Chicken

Fry the Chicken

Heat a frying pan and place the chicken thighs onto the pan. The side that had the skin should touch the pan. Fry the chicken thighs over low heat until they turn golden brown and crispy.

Step 4: Cook the Marinade

Cook the Marinade

Once the chicken is fried, add the marinade to the pan. Cook it for five minutes with the lid on. That’s it! You can now serve the tender and juicy chicken thighs.

Nutrition Facts of the Recipe

There is a lot of fat under the skin. As you remove the skin, these chicken thighs become healthier. Here is a list of nutrients present in this dish.

  • Total Carbohydrates: 0g
  • Protein: 27g
  • Total Fat: 8.7g
  • Saturated Fat: 2.7g
  • Polyunsaturated Fat: 2.1g
  • Monounsaturated Fat: 3.9g
  • Trans Fat: 0.1g
  • Total Dietary Fiber: 0g
  • Total Sugar: 0g
  • Cholesterol: 137mg
  • Sodium: 198mg
  • Potassium: 300.2mg
  • Calcium: 11mg
  • Iron: 1.1mg
  • Vitamin A: 65IU
  • Vitamin C: 2.3mg
  • Vitamin D: 0.3mcg

Each serving of this dish contains 184 calories, which is quite low compared to the serving size. So, you can eat this dish often without adding too many calories to your daily intake. It has a good amount of protein and fat.

These chicken thighs also have a lot of essential minerals and vitamins. However, the cholesterol content is a bit high, so you watch out for how much you eat these chicken thighs.

Do’s and Don’ts of the Recipe

I make this recipe over and over again. So, I developed some tips to make it better and want to share them with you.

Do’s

  • Make a few cuts on the chicken thighs. As the meat is thick, making cuts will reduce the cooking time.
  • Marinate the chicken for longer if possible. The more you marinate, the more flavorful the dish will be.

Don’ts

  • Don’t fry the chicken thighs over high heat. Otherwise, the outside will be cooked faster and the inside will remain undercooked.
  • Don’t add salt to the chicken. The salt in the soy sauce is enough.

Can I Make This Recipe With the Skin On?

Yes. You can keep the skin on if you want. In fact, I prefer the skin-on version over the skinless version. When you fry chicken thighs with the skin on, the skin gets crispy and gives a nice mouth feel.

However, the skin contains a lot of fat. If you want a low-fat chicken thigh recipe, you should remove the skin.

Should I Tenderize the Chicken Using a Meat Tenderizer?

Not necessarily. Chicken thigh is already a tender cut of meat. So, you don’t need to pound the meat with a meat tenderizer. However, you can give the thighs a light pounding if you want.

I want to warn you that overdoing this might break the chicken thighs. In that case, you will face more hassle to cook the chicken. So, cook chicken thighs without using a tenderizer.

Can I Use Any Other Spices for This Recipe?

You can use a variety of spices to make chicken thighs more flavorful. For example, you can use ground white pepper, red chili powder, chicken bouillon, etc. Red chili powder gives the chicken thighs a bright red color when they are fried.

However, I kept the recipe simple so that you can make it with the available ingredients in your kitchen.

What Can I Serve With This Chicken Thigh Recipe?

This chicken thigh recipe goes best with white rice. Take a bowl of rice and place the sliced chicken thighs on top. Then, top them with your favorite sauce and sprinkle some chopped scallions.

You can also serve fried rice or noodle dishes with this chicken recipe.

Final Thoughts

Cooking chicken with the bone-on may be easy and fast. But the tenderness of boneless chicken thighs is unmatched. You can achieve this by deboning the chicken thighs and cooking them with a few spices. Though the process takes some skills and patience, you will fall in love with the combination of crispiness and juiciness.

I showed every little detail of this boneless skinless chicken thigh Chinese recipe so that you can try it at home. If you do everything right, I guarantee everyone will love the dish.

2 Comments

  • Ulises McLaughlin

    August 10, 2024 at 2:59 pm

    5 stars
    I love boneless chicken. I tried this recipe but it could be more spicy. I know it is chinese, but spicy foods are my choice. Good recipe.

    1. Jiahe Kuang

      August 11, 2024 at 1:19 am

      5 stars
      Thanks for your comment McLaughlin

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Previous Post Next Post