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8 Of The Fastest Chicken Dinners You Can Make

All that stands between you and a delicious supper is 30 minutes (or even fewer!).
Lynn Andriani
The Crispiest Nonfried Chicken You Can Make
ALLEKOiStock
If you haven't tried broiling chicken thighs, meet your new favorite weeknight-cooking technique. In fewer than 15 minutes, you'll have juicy, tender meat that's perfectly crunchy on the outside. This recipe has you make an herb-lemon-garlic mixture and slide a little under the skin of each piece, to infuse the meat with flavor. The broiler's direct heat cooks food in a flash, so the chicken only needs about five minutes, per side, to be fully cooked, with a lovely golden edge.

Get the recipe: Crispy Herbed Chicken Thighs
Poached Chicken That Departs From The Usual
Luca Trovato
Poaching chicken is one of the most healthful and least messy ways to cook the bird. Traditional poaching uses water flavored with aromatics such as herbs, celery, carrots, salt and pepper, but this Asian-inspired version has you mix lime juice, fish sauce, soy sauce and slices of chili pepper into the water. In 15 minutes, you'll have tender meat that you can eat just as it is, or shred for use in a salad.

Get the recipe: Shredded Lime and Chili Chicken on Basil Leaves
The Throw-It-All-In-A-Pan-And-Done Dinner
Alexandra Grablewski
Each of the ingredients in this dish pulls its weight, and then some -- which means you get tons of flavor out of a minimal ingredient list. Lemon, olives and capers are pretty much all you need, along with a dash of olive oil. The citrus juice helps make the chicken tender and mingles with the meat's juices to create a delicious sauce.

Get the recipe: Chicken with Olives and Capers
An Asian Dish Where Every Bite Is A Winner
John Kernick
Stir-fries are terrific speedy meals. What makes this one special, though, is that it calls for chicken legs and thighs -- and the dark meat stands up beautifully to the richly flavored chili-soy-garlic sauce. This recipe also has a fantastic contrast of textures, from tender chicken to crunchy peanuts to celery, which seems to fall somewhere in the perfect middle.

Get the recipe: Chicken Stir-Fry with Celery and Peanuts
A Way To Get That Easy-Breezy Summer Feeling Anytime
Dara Michalski
Homemade salsa usually relies on superfresh tomatoes, yet here's a version that calls for other vegetables, which (yay!) you can find year-round: cucumber, red bell pepper and avocado. Mix them with lime juice, cilantro and honey, and you've got a quick and tasty topper for cumin-and-lime-coated chicken thighs that cook under the broiler in a matter of minutes.

Get the recipe: Spicy Chicken Thighs with Cucumber-Avocado Salsa
An Alternative To Taco Night
Brian Woodcock
Here's a fantastic way to jazz up grilled (or grill-panned) chicken, and it only requires four simple ingredients: olive oil, garlic, cumin and lime juice. The vibrant flavors give the dish a subtle Latin taste -- so cue up the black beans and rice, or the warmed tortillas (Coronas optional).

Get the recipe: Lime Grilled Chicken
A Surprise Use For Apples
Alison GooteeStudio D
Combine the classic fall fruit with a creamy, sour cream-based sauce, and you've got a superpowered matchup that keeps chicken moist. You cut the meat into bite-size pieces, so there's more surface area to soak up the flavorful juices created by cooking the apple slices in chicken stock. A bit of thyme and Dijon mustard give the dish even more depth and counterbalance the tart fruit nicely.

Get the recipe: Chicken with Apples and Carrots
A Meal You Won't Have To Make Another Shopping List For
Erin Kunkel
The beauty of chicken salad isn't just that it's a completely different iteration of leftover roast chicken after eating it hot the night before -- it's also that you can adapt it based on whatever you have on hand. If you don't have corn or black beans, swap in any other veggies, from pieces of lightly cooked asparagus to canned artichoke hearts. Or, skip the tostadas in this recipe and throw in tortilla chips. And any vinaigrette will work, too.

Get the recipe: Chicken Salad

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Before You Go

5 Chicken Casserole Recipes Everyone Loves
A Winning French Dish With A Twist(01 of05)
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The ingredients in a rustic, slow-cooked French cassoulet vary, but chicken isn't all that common. Yet it's surprisingly perfect: The mild flavor doesn't overpower the sausage, white beans and herbs, and it adds body and extra oomph without a ton of additional prep work (or cost).

Get the recipe: Chicken, Sausage and Bean Cassoulet (credit:ACP Magazines Limited)
The Classic Comfort Food(02 of05)
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Wild rice and Ritz crackers are two mainstays of traditional casseroles, and there's no denying just how satisfying the combination of toothsome rice and coarsely ground, buttery crackers can be. This meal also includes two cups of cooked chicken (any kind works, from store-bought rotisserie to poached breasts) and leeks, which are milder than the usual white onions.

Get the recipe: Classic Chicken and Wild Rice Hotdish (credit:Jennifer May)
A Sweet And Smoky Supper(03 of05)
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Instead of serving baked sweet potatoes topped with crumbled bacon alongside cooked chicken, try this easy, make-ahead dish, which combines all three components. It also features sage; the herb's fragrant aroma and warm flavor go well with sweet potato.

Get the recipe: Chicken, Sweet Potato and Bacon Casserole (credit:Susie Cushner)
The Dinner-Party-Ready Bake(04 of05)
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If casseroles are a throwback, then a crêpe-based casserole is the ultimate vintage dinner. It's elegant, too. You roll chicken, broccoli and Gruyère into either homemade or prepared crêpes and bake. A dash of curry powder is an unexpected add-in that lends depth.

Get the recipe: Chicken Divan Crêpes with Gruyère (credit:Olha Afanasieva/iStock/Thinkstock)
A Superspeedy (And Cheesy) Weeknight Casserole(05 of05)
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Most one-pot meals involve a significant amount of baking time, but not this one. As long as you have cooked, shredded chicken and steamed white rice ready, you're just a few minutes away from a delicious dinner.

Get the recipe: Cheesy Chicken and Rice Skillet Dinner with Bacon (credit:Jenny Flake)
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