Coconut Milk and Thyme Braised Chicken
May 08, 2016, Updated Aug 04, 2020
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Coconut Milk and Thyme Braised Chicken is an easy one pot chicken dinner! Cooked in thyme-infused coconut milk and garlic, this is one delicious chicken thighs or legs recipe.
SO yummy-good, I may never go back to grilling chicken, again.
Hello, dear friends! Hello, dear Mothers! Happy Mother’s Day to you all, especially to my own! ❤❤❤ Thank you for EVERYTHING you do!
Also? CONGRATULATIONS, I turned out perfectly!
Can I ramble on just a little more about how motherhood is still totally the hardest job in the world? YET so freakin’ awesomely rewarding!?!
I heard that all my life and it sounded like this, “When you become a mother, blah blah blaaaah blah blah!”. *eyeroll*
But then I became a Mommy and things completely fell into place and everything started to make sense and I pulled my hair out and I kissed the bejesus out of my kids – all of that at the same time.
Okay. About that food…
COCONUT MILK CHICKEN
Here she be! Aint’ she delicious!?
This chicken dinner is the flavor bomb of my life. I am trying to put into words how much I love this combination of coconut milk with thyme + all the garlic. A whole BULB of garlic. Yeah, baby!
Being the person that is in full blown relationship with one pot chicken dinners, it should come as no surprise that this Coconut Milk and Thyme Braised Chicken is the simplest, but most delicious thing ever.
How to Make Coconut Milk Braised Chicken
As things almost always happen, this lovely din din is the result of coconut milk, chicken drumsticks that I forgot to throw in the freezer, and chicken thighs that my other half was crying for. Thyme and garlic? Always necessary.
The deal is, though, that I’m pretty sure you will also fall in love with the rich flavors of this dish! It is OUT of this world!!! Exclamation points are also always necessary.
With only about 15 minutes of prep time, you will have an entire hour after that to let this baby cook in the oven while you shop online for that spankin’ new Yves Saint Laurent handbag. It’s Mother’s Day – I deserve it. I mean you! YOU deserve it!
ENJOY!
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Coconut Milk and Thyme Braised Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 pounds of chicken pieces, (I used boneless chicken thighs and drumsticks)
- salt and fresh ground pepper, , to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 6 thyme sprigs
- 1 whole garlic bulb, , separated into individual cloves and peeled
- 1 can coconut milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F degrees.
- Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper.
- Heat olive oil and butter in a dutch oven or any other heavy pot that is stovetop and oven safe.
- Add chicken pieces to the pot and cook for 4 minutes; flip and continue to cook for 4 minutes or until chicken is browned on all sides.
- Add thyme sprigs and garlic; cook and stir for 30 seconds.
- Add coconut milk, cover and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until chicken is cooked.
- Remove from oven and let stand several minutes.
- Serve.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
This was delicious, I added mushrooms and carrots and used boneless chicken thighs. I will definitely make this again.
That’s great! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
This recipe is amazing and very versatile! I added more thyme and folded in spinach at the very and served over rice. I think you could easily change it up and add curry powder or paprika/cayenne powder to change up the flavor and it would be just as delicious! Definitely going to be a regular in our household. Thanks for sharing!
Folded fresh spinach at the end* (just after pulling out of the oven)
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for chiming in! 🙂
I followed the recipe as directed and it turned out great! Very flavorful. I used bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs because that’s what I had on hand. The chicken was very tender and I was able to just remove the skin/bones prior to serving. I used 1 can of Goya coconut milk and went heavier on the thyme. Someone asked about making this on the stove. Although I put mine in the oven in my Le Creuset, I see no reason why I couldn’t have kept it on the stove with monitored heat. In the oven I am less likely to remove the lid and “peek” at what’s cooking so that’s why I used the oven.
I am going to make it again tomorrow b/c it was such a great hit with my family.
I am very happy you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
I really made it a one pot meal by adding mushrooms and carrots when the garlic and thyme was added! I also have cubed zucchini to add last 10 minutes. I am a huge fan of braising chicken loved the idea of coconut milk! I am thinking next time to add a dash of cayenne to add some heat! Great recipe to make your own! This was a very delightful served on top of rice with a squirt of lime so fresh.Thank you! It was very tasty family enjoyed!
I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
nobody responded to the question why not just let it cook in the coconut milk on the stove rather then in the oven? I am also using canned milk
You’re telling people in the comments to not use canned coconut milk because that is thicker than that in refrigerated cartons, but the ingredients list actually lists “1 can coconut milk.” That’s all I have, so I can tell you tomorrow how it turns out, but then that really shouldn’t be necessary since at least one reviewer (moodybaker) has already commented that she always uses “a whole can of coconut milk no matter how much chicken” she uses.
This dish really is as simple as it looks with stunning results from a handful of ingredients ….. brilliant ….!!!! Thank you !!!!
This sounds amazing and I think I’m going to make it tomorrow. I have a bunch of lemons I need to use and am wondering if that would be a good flavor to add or would it mess with what’s already going on?
I LOVE this chicken dish. I’ve made this a few times now and I always use a whole can of coconut milk no matter how much chicken I’m using. Sometimes I have extra sauce and I use it to cook rice in or add to mashed potatoes. I even have a jar of the sauce in my freezer! I couldn’t throw it out, it’s just SO good! I usually serve with rice or mashed potatoes, and veg.
This looks like exactly the recipe I’ve been looking for! Do you think it would work in a crockpot/ slow cooker? Not sure how coconut milk would react being heated for that long… can’t wait to try it anyway! 🙂
I thought you were exaggerating! You were not! This chicken was delicious!!!!! My husband, one year old daughter & I all LOVED it. Planning on making it again soon because there were no leftovers. I served it with carrots & rice. Thinking about throwing in red potatoes next time. Thank you for the amazing recipe!!!!!