Lemon Garlic Butter Chicken recipe with Green Beans – So addicting! This paleo, low carb, keto-friendly chicken thighs recipe is a snap to fix and cook. Chicken and green beans are cooked in one skillet for easy prep and the flavor combination is spot on. With only 25 minutes of total work, this nourishing chicken meal makes weeknight dinners a breeze.
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Ingredients list for the Lemon Garlic Butter Chicken Thighs and Green Beans Skillet
- 3 – 6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- 1 pound (450g) green beans, trimmed
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided or (ghee for paleo diet)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt and fresh cracked black pepper
- Juice of 1/2 lemon + lemon slices, for garnish
- 1/2 cup (125ml) chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce (we used Sriracha)
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red chili pepper flakes, optional
- 1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Directions
1. To make the lemon garlic butter chicken recipe with green beans: In a small bowl, combine onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Season chicken thighs generously with the spice mixture. Set aside while you prepare green beans.
2. Arrange green beans in a microwave-safe dish with 1/2 cup (125ml) water. Cook in the microwave for 8-10 minutes, until almost done but still crisp.
3. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Lay the seasoned chicken thighs in one layer in the skillet. Cook for 5-6 minutes then flip and cook another 5-6 minutes, until cooked through and a cooking thermometer displays 165°F (75°C). If chicken browns too quickly, lower the heat. Adjust timing depending on the thickness. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.
4. In the same skillet, lower the heat and melt the remaining tablespoon butter. Add chopped parsley, garlic, hot sauce, red crushed chili pepper flakes, and pre-cooked green beans and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring regularly, until cooked to your liking. Add lemon juice and chicken stock and reduce the sauce for a couple of minutes, until slightly thickened.
5. Add cooked chicken thighs back to the pan and reheat quickly. Adjust seasoning with pepper and serve the lemon garlic butter chicken thighs immediately, garnished with more crushed chili pepper, fresh parsley, and a slice of lemon if you like. Enjoy!
Tips for the chicken recipe
- Remove chicken thighs from the refrigerator about 15 minutes before cooking to bring them close to room temperature.
- We use boneless and skinless chicken thighs because they render less fat and cook quicker than bone-in. Plus, it is easier to rub the spice mixture deep into the chicken meat.
- Season chicken just before cooking to prevent drawing out moisture and drying out the meat. If you want to let it sit longer, omit the salt fro the spice mixture, and add it 10 minutes before cooking.
- You can add crispy bacon to the green beans for a nice flavor.
- For a variant of this chicken recipe, you can use chicken tenders instead of chicken thighs. They’re delicious and cook faster! Just keep an eye on it so they don’t overcook and dry up.
What other readers say about this chicken recipe
“Turned out pretty well! So quick & easy! We enjoyed all the flavors.” – Rebekah
“The chicken turned out great! My picky husband even liked it!” – Alexandra
“On our third week of keto and I wish I would have found this chicken recipe sooner! It’s delicious!!! Will absolutely be making again even when we aren’t doing keto.” – Brittany
“Delicious!!! Next time would omit the red pepper flakes they made it extra spicy (which I usually love) but wanted to appreciate the other flavors and possibly reduce the sriracha but fantastic recipe may want to try it with shrimp!!! I also doubled the garlic and seasoning for chicken thighs.” – Melanie
“Lemon Garlic Butter Chicken with Green Beans! My husband loved and my 5yo asked for seconds!” – Amy
“I used chicken breasts instead of thighs. The flavor of this entire dish was incredible!! Absolutely loved by my entire family!” – Stefanie
“This was extremely delicious! The chicken kept in the juice and didn’t dry out. I cooked it a little longer after with the chicken stock.” – Catherine
Photo credit: © Eatwell101.com
Leave a Reply
Carolyn
2021-02-20 18:53:03
This was fantastic! The lemon on the green beans was a new flavor for my family and we couldn't get enough of the "sauce." I loved that it came together quickly in 1 pan. This is going in our regular dinner rotation.
Christine
2021-02-07 16:43:57
It was very easy and very pretty. We loved it !!!! My question is how can I make the green beans by themselves? Any suggestions?
Mary
2021-02-04 21:21:30
My family & I really like this!!! Only had frozen green beans and boneless, skinless breasts, still was soooo good!! Thanks so much!
Eliza
2021-01-31 18:37:44
My husband and all 4 kids (10 and under) LOVED this. I left out the siracha and crushed red pepper so that it wouldn’t be too spicy for my 18m old. The rest of us added crushed red pepper to our individual servings. We also used frozen green beans because this was a last minute recipe find and I didn’t have fresh ones on hand. The recipe was quick and easy but was so visually appealing and delicious that it felt gourmet! We will add this to our regular rotation. Thanks for the great recipe!
Austin
2021-01-24 03:52:16
Not really lemony, garlicky, or buttery, it’s got a nice Spicy flavor though. Good recipe
Sarah
2021-01-14 11:34:44
Great recipe with lots of flavor. Used chicken tenders instead of thighs, will make again!
Sabrina
2021-01-13 13:35:17
My family really liked this. I doubled the recipe as we have a lot of mouths to feed and only used half the Sriracha with no red pepper flakes as I and my youngest are total wimps but even we enjoyed it! I also did not precook the beans. I just sauteed them for a few minutes with the garlic then added 1/4 the chicken broth and covered them just until they started to soften. Then cooked them in the sauce like normal. My teenage boys even said they were the best green beans they had ever had!
Maria Nila
2021-01-12 20:03:14
It is delicious and easy. Thank you !!!! 😊
Linda
2021-01-11 21:44:46
Good but...First of all, the prep time is WAY off. 10 minutes to prep a pound of green beans, clean and chop 4 cloves of garlic, prepare spice mix, prepare chicken thighs, juice and slice a lemon... It took me at least 30 minutes and I am not a beginner cook. I will probably make this again but I am very happy I started the prep early so we could eat dinner on time. I used half of the sriracha and no chili flakes and the beans were pretty spicey
Linda
2021-01-11 21:27:32
Good but...
maryjacox1948@gmail.com
2020-11-29 17:39:01
this was yummy....cooked the green beans in at last minute of chicken and let it simmer..so good, My husband loved it.
Joel
2020-11-19 20:53:47
Made this this evening and after 6 min on med/low with lid on in a cast iron dutch oven, the chicken was not done at all. Took about 15 min per side. I liked the concept when reading through recipe but will probably not try again (my opionion) sorry.
Kiana
2020-11-15 08:49:35
Easy recipe. I found that I had to cook the chicken a bit longer in the skillet but it was tasty and everyone loved it!
Kristy
2020-11-10 09:15:22
How spicy is this? Want to be sure kids will eat it.
aroose@sbcglobal.net
2020-11-06 14:10:37
This is not an easy 1 skillet prep as written. It certainly could be, however. No need to micowave the beans, just put them in the skillet when the chicken is almost finished.
Diana
2020-11-03 14:49:39
I’ve tried many new recipes this year and this was by far my favorite!!! I only had the meat leftover from last night and I just finished up sautéing some zucchini’s with it and the sauce and it is delicious! My tips, be generous with the peppers, lemon and salt! I used dried parsley and it was divine.

