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Home » chicken » Bacon Wrapped Chicken Thighs

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Thighs

Published: Sep 10, 2022 by Louisa Clements · This post may contain affiliate links

This post may contain affiliate links

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30 minutes 12 Comments

Ready in under 30 minutes, you’ll want to add these bacon wrapped chicken thighs to your weeknight dinner rotation. Flavoured with a delicious sweet and savoury rub using brown sugar and paprika, this is a kid-friendly dinner.

Closeup of cooked chicken thighs in a white casserole dish.

What makes a recipe worthy of the stamp of approval for a weeknight dinner? For me, it’s easy, I look for recipes that are ready in under 45 minutes, don’t use five different pots or pans and are something that you can pull off after a busy day.

A few of my go-to weeknight chicken recipes are crispy roast chicken thighs, 20-minute chicken lettuce wraps, and sheet pan chicken thighs with vegetables.

Why this recipe works

The cheat code for a crowd-pleasing weeknight dinner is bacon. These boneless, skinless chicken thighs are wrapped in half a piece of bacon and topped with a rub made with brown sugar, leading to caramelized and delicious chicken.

If you love to dip bacon in maple syrup, you’ll love this recipe.

Ingredients for chicken thighs.

Ingredient notes

  • Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are best for this recipe as they stay nice and juicy. If you use chicken thighs with the skin on, you’ll end up with soggy skin.
  • Bacon slices are halved and diagonally draped across the chicken. You’ll get the perfect amount of bacon flavour that doesn’t overpower the chicken.
  • The rub is made with a combination of brown sugar, paprika, garlic powder, salt and oregano. Each ingredient in the rub has a different purpose; brown sugar creates a delicious play on sweet and savoury and caramelizes in the oven, the garlic powder and oregano help to provide flavour, and the paprika helps with colour.

Expert tips

  1. While the recipe says “wrapped” I recommend you “drape” the bacon across the chicken thighs and fold it over the edges, kind of like a little bacon sash. I’ve found if you actually wrap the chicken in a full piece of bacon, you end up with way too much bacon for one piece of chicken.
  2. Using a 9×13 casserole dish helps to keep the chicken juicy and stops the sugar from burning (hello, easy cleanup!). You’ll also end up with delicious juices that you can serve with the chicken.
Three step process for making the chicken.

Step by step instructions

  1. Start by stirring the brown sugar with paprika, salt, garlic powder and oregano.
  2. Drape the bacon diagonally over each chicken thigh and tuck the edges underneath the chicken.
  3. Sprinkle the brown sugar mixture all over the chicken and bake in the oven for 18-20 minutes.

What to serve this with

We know that the main course isn’t the only part of getting dinner on the table, you’ll also need to consider sides. Here are some of my favourites:

Side dishes that cook at 425F

Since you’re cooking the chicken at 425F, the best solution is to have a side that also cooks at the same temperature. My go-to sides for this recipe are pesto cauliflower or roasted broccoli rabe.

Cooked chicken thighs in a white casserole dish.

Closeup of cooked chicken thighs in a white casserole dish.

Bacon wrapped chicken thighs

Author: Louisa Clements
5 from 5 votes
Ready in under 30 minutes, you’ll want to add these bacon wrapped chicken thighs to your weeknight dinner rotation. Flavoured with a delicious sweet and savoury rub using brown sugar and paprika, this is a kid-friendly dinner.
Pin Print
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 30 minutes
servings icon
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 4 pieces bacon, halved, crosswise
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • ¼ tsp salt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425F. In a 9×13 casserole dish, place chicken thighs and drape each piece of chicken with a piece of bacon, diagonally like a sash. Tuck the edges underneath the chicken.
  • In a small bowl, stir brown sugar with paprika, oregano, garlic powder and salt. Sprinkle mixture overtop of chicken.
  • Bake in the oven for 18-20 minutes until bacon is cooked and chicken reaches 165F with an instant-read thermometer.

Notes

  1. A 9×13 casserole dish helps to keep the chicken juicy and stops the sugar from burning (hello, easy cleanup!). The final dish will also have delicious juices that you can serve overtop. 
  2. If you like spice, you can add ¼ tsp to ½ tsp of cayenne to the rub. 
Did you try this recipe?Leave a comment + rating and let me know what you think!
Filed Under: chicken, Dinner Recipes, easy, Fall, gluten free, meat, quick recipes, Spring, Winter
Nutrition Facts
Bacon wrapped chicken thighs
Amount Per Serving
Calories 387 Calories from Fat 162
% Daily Value*
Fat 18g28%
Saturated Fat 5g31%
Trans Fat 1g
Polyunsaturated Fat 4g
Monounsaturated Fat 7g
Cholesterol 229mg76%
Sodium 494mg21%
Potassium 624mg18%
Carbohydrates 7g2%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 6g7%
Protein 46g92%
Vitamin A 313IU6%
Vitamin C 1mg1%
Calcium 32mg3%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Nutrition information is an estimate and is provided for informational purposes only. If you have any specific dietary concerns, please consult with your healthcare practitioner.

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Comments

  1. Maggie

    October 08, 2022 at 10:42 am

    Looks amazing! Can you use chicken breast? My daughter doesn’t like thigh meat
    Reply
    • Louisa Clements

      October 08, 2022 at 11:03 pm

      Hi Maggie! You could definitely use chicken breasts, depending on their thickness, they may take a little bit longer to cook than 20 minutes, so I'd be sure to check if they've reached 165F. Let me know how it goes!
      Reply
  2. Rob

    March 09, 2018 at 6:27 pm

    Still recommend putting pinch of kosher salt even though bacon on chicken. Aroma permeated the whole main floor. Nice texture with button mushrooms. We enjoyed it. 3.5 out of 5
    Reply
    • Lou

      March 13, 2018 at 10:17 pm

      Thanks Rob, appreciate the feedback! I'm glad that you enjoyed it.
      Reply
  3. Donna

    February 07, 2017 at 6:24 am

    I just started following you on Twitter a few days ago and have pinned many of your recipes! Can't wait to try them all!
    Reply
    • Lou

      February 14, 2017 at 5:24 pm

      Thanks Donna, so glad to connect!
      Reply
  4. [email protected] in the Kitchen

    November 14, 2013 at 8:34 pm

    You make beautiful dishes! I just started following you on Pinterest by the way. I look forward to seeing more of your yummy meals!
    Reply
    • Lou

      November 15, 2013 at 9:21 am

      Thank you Renee, I really appreciate that! :)
      Reply
  5. Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl

    November 14, 2013 at 1:07 pm

    This is such a great idea that we will be trying out later this week. Love those mushrooms, can never get enough!
    Reply
    • Lou

      November 15, 2013 at 9:21 am

      Thanks Pamela, Let me know how it goes! I love mushrooms too - plus with their vitamin D it's even more important to eat them in the winter!
      Reply
  6. Consuelo @ Honey & Figs

    November 12, 2013 at 5:34 pm

    This looks so scrumptious! Perfect Sunday dinner, indeed. I bet they'd be lovely wrapped in Serrano Ham as well, oh yum! Thanks for the inspiration :)
    Reply
    • Lou

      November 14, 2013 at 8:41 am

      Thanks, Consuelo! Wonderful idea with the Serrano ham! Let me know if you give it a try.
      Reply

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Hi, I'm Louisa Clements & welcome to Living Lou. I've been creating simple, fresh & flavorful recipes for the modern kitchen for 12 years.
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