Why It Works
- Blooming smoked paprika in rendered chicken fat builds a smoky, savory base that carries through both the vegetables and the pan sauce.
- Roasting the chicken on top of the vegetables ensures the chicken juices flavor the vegetables as they soften and caramelize.
- The duo of quick sauces—a smoky shishito salsa and buttery sherry reduction—adds brightness and complexity to the simple skillet dinner.
It’s easy to give all the summer dinner glory to the grill. But on a weeknight in the thick of August heat, the real MVP is a skillet dinner, like this satisfying summer chicken and vegetable dish. This one-pan meal is packed with the flavors of summer, without requiring you to stand over a flame in the sun.
This chicken and summer vegetable skillet, developed by Craig Ruff in our Birmingham, Alabama, test kitchen, quickly became a favorite of everyone who tried it during recipe testing. It hits all the right notes for a satisfying warm-weather supper: smoky and juicy chicken, caramelized sweet peppers, charred cherry tomatoes that pop in your mouth, and a duo of sauces that dial the flavor up without weighing the dish down. As a bonus, it comes together in under an hour, with a tidy enough prep-and-cook rhythm that it feels manageable for any night of the week.
The Flavor Profile That Makes This Skillet Chicken Dinner Stand Out
While the produce in this skillet might look familiar, its flavor profile is what sets it apart. Craig intentionally leans into what he calls “Spanish flavor notes”—layers of smoke, gentle sweetness, and herby brightness. Instead of the summer produce trifecta of zucchini, corn, and eggplant, this recipe centers on bell peppers and cherry tomatoes, coaxed into complexity by high heat, smoky paprika, and a splash of sherry.
Serious Eats / Jen Causey
How to Build Layers of Flavor in One Skillet
From a technique perspective, this dish is all about layering bold flavor in a single skillet, without a grill in sight. The chicken sears until the skin crisps and the paprika blooms in the fat, giving everything in the pan its smoky backbone. Then, the whole skillet goes into a hot oven for a quick roast. This lets the vegetables slump luxuriously and the chicken finish cooking gently, staying moist and tender. Meanwhile, you’ve got just enough time while the dinner roasts to throw together the sauce—or rather, sauces.
Add Big Flavor with Two Easy Sauces
One of the elements that makes this dinner feel so special is the combo of sauces you serve it with: a smoky-sharp charred shishito sauce and a silky, fortified pan sauce made from the fond and juices left in the pan after roasting the chicken and vegetables. This two-sauce move feels cheffy, but it’s incredibly easy to pull off, as our editorial director, Daniel, explains in his article about this chefs’ cheat code for elevating any dish.
The shishito sauce is Craig’s playful riff on a classic summer green sauce. He chars whole shishitos and scallion greens until blistered, then chops them finely and folds in cilantro, lime juice, and olive oil. The result is a bright, grassy, smoky condiment that cuts through the sweetness of the tomatoes and peppers.
The second sauce is a pan reduction made with a splash of dry sherry (or even a crisp white wine in a pinch) and a knob of butter. It’s quick, but concentrated, and gets drizzled over the chicken and vegetables just before serving, sealing the whole thing with a glossy, restaurant-level finish. A skillet dinner this layered and lively deserves a spot in the weeknight rotation, no grill required.
This recipe was developed by Craig Ruff; the headnote was written by Leah Colins.
This Easy 1-Pan Chicken Dinner Tastes Like Summer in Spain
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6 scallions (2 1/2 ounces; 70 g)
6 medium fresh shishito peppers (3/8 ounce; 92 g total), stemmed
1 tablespoon (15 ml), plus 1 teaspoon neutral oil such as vegetable oil, divided
1 1/2 tablespoons (12 g) smoked paprika
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt, divided; for table salt, use half as much by volume
4 boneless, skin-on chicken breasts (about 10 ounces; 283 g each), patted dry
1 large red bell pepper (6 ounces; 170 g), sliced into 1/4-inch-thick strips (about 2 cups)
1 large orange bell pepper (6 ounces; 170 g), sliced into 1/4-inch-thick strips (about 2 cups)
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
6 (4-inch) sprigs of woody herbs (such as thyme or oregano), divided
12 ounces (340 g) cherry tomatoes (about 2 cups)
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro (1/2 ounce; 14 g)
6 tablespoons (90 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons (45 ml) fresh lime juice from 2 medium limes
1/4 cup (60 ml) dry sherry
2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 450°F (230°C). Slice scallions into 2-inch-long pieces and place dark green parts in a large bowl; set white and light green parts aside. To the large bowl with scallion greens, add shishitos and 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and toss until evenly coated.
Serious Eats / Jen Causey
Heat an empty 12-inch oven-proof skillet over high heat until hot, about 5 minutes. Add scallion mixture to skillet in a single layer and cook, tossing occasionally, until lightly charred on all sides, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board, and let rest until cool enough to handle, about 5 minutes. (Do not wipe skillet out.)
Serious Eats / Jen Causey
In a small bowl, stir together paprika, pepper, and 1 tablespoon salt, and sprinkle evenly over chicken. Add remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil to now-empty skillet, and add chicken skin-side down in a single layer; cook over medium heat, undisturbed, until deeply browned on underside, 5 to 8 minutes. Flip chicken and cook, undisturbed, until browned on other side, about 4 minutes. Transfer chicken to a large plate, skin-side up, reserving drippings in skillet; set aside.
Add bell peppers, 1 teaspoon salt, and reserved white and light green scallion parts to skillet, and cook over medium-high, undisturbed, until lightly browned on underside, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and 3 herb sprigs, and cook, stirring and tossing constantly, until fragrant, about 2 minutes; stir in cherry tomatoes and remove from heat.
Serious Eats / Jen Causey
Place chicken skin-side up on top of vegetables in a single layer, and bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of chicken registers 155°F, 15 to 18 minutes.
Serious Eats / Jen Causey
While chicken bakes, stem shishitos; finely chop charred shishitos and scallion greens, and place in a medium bowl; stir in cilantro, olive oil, lime juice, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and set aside. Divide chicken and vegetable mixture evenly among 4 plates, reserving liquid in skillet; discard herb sprigs.
Serious Eats / Jen Causey
Add sherry and remaining 3 herb sprigs to reserved liquid in skillet, bring to a simmer over medium-high and cook, undisturbed, until reduced by about half, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter; drizzle sherry sauce and scallion topping evenly over chicken and vegetables; discard (or compost) herb sprigs.
Serious Eats / Jen Causey
Special Equipment
12-inch oven-proof skillet
Make-Ahead and Storage
Leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days; store the chicken, scallion topping, and sherry sauce in separate containers.
