Cheesy Skillet Ranch Chicken Thighs are the cheesiest one-pan chicken dinner and ready in about half an hour for a delicious weeknight meal!
I love chicken recipes because they’re cheap and so versatile. These Cheesy Skillet Ranch Chicken Thighs are covered in a creamy sauce with cheddar and cream cheeses and seasoned with a yummy ranch blend!
CHEESY SKILLET RANCH CHICKEN THIGHS
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Ranch seasoning and chicken go hand in hand. The sauce is totally made by the dill, onion, garlic, and buttermilk of the ranch packet.
I love a quick and easy dinner, and this ranch chicken recipe is just pantry staples and whole food.
Ranch Chicken Ingredients
CHICKEN: I love using boneless chicken thighs in my weeknight dinners! They’re a great serving size and usually on sale. You can also turn this into a ranch chicken breast recipe by swapping out for your favorite chicken cut! Just make sure the chicken is always cooked to at least 165 degrees F before serving.
RANCH SEASONING: Ranch packets are a staple in my pantry. It’s a great seasoning blend for so many recipes, not just dressings and dips. The dry ranch seasoning packet is the best store-bought seasoning mix I’ve found yet.
CHEESE: I use cream cheese and cheddar cheese in this recipe for a super-rich and creamy cheese sauce. I like to shred my own cheddar so it melts
How to Make Ranch Chicken Thighs
- First, melt some butter in an oven-safe skillet. (I like to use cast iron.) Then add the chicken thighs, and cook for five minutes on each side. Once cooked, move the chicken to a plate.
- After that, lower the heat to medium-low and add the broth, cream cheese, and ranch dressing mix toy our skillet. Once the cream cheese is mostly melted, add the cheddar cheese and stir it’s all melted.
- Now, put the chicken back in the sauce and add the parsley all over the top.
- Pop the skillet into your oven and bake for 20 minutes until the chicken has an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Once the chicken is cooked, you can broil the chicken and cheese sauce for a couple of minutes if you want, too!
- Once cooking time is up, carefully remove the skillet from your oven.
I like to serve this over noodles because the cheese sauce is AMAZING! I like to serve the baked ranch chicken up and then toss some cooked pasta in the rest of the cheese sauce. SO good!
You can also serve it over rice, cauliflower rice, steamed broccoli, or plain for a low-carb meal idea.
Can I Use Bottled Ranch Instead of Dry Mix?
I always keep a bunch of ranch packets in my pantry, but sometimes I use the last one and forget. Can you swap a ranch packet with bottled ranch dressing?
The answer is both yes and no. Yes, ranch dressing has the same flavors as the ranch seasoning packets, but it will have a much more muted flavor for your Hidden Valley ranch chicken.
If you want to use ranch dressing in this recipe, I recommend using it as a garnish! You can always make your own ranch seasoning, too.
What Is in the Hidden Valley Ranch Packet?
Hidden Valley keeps their ranch recipe a secret, but not the ingredients!
The simple ranch seasoning packets are a mixture of dry buttermilk powder, parsley, granulated garlic, dill weed, dried onion flakes, salt, and pepper.
Ranch packets are a popular seasoning blend option even if you’re not making ranch dressing or dip! I’ve used them in pot roasts, on potatoes, and in soups!
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Cheesy Instant Pot Chicken Pasta
- Creamy Chicken Florentine
- Sheet Pan Orange Chicken Teriyaki Chicken & Vegetables
- Green Chili Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Slow Cooker Cranberry Chicken
- More MAIN DISH recipes…
Tools used to make this Cheesy Skillet Ranch Chicken Thighs recipe
Oven-proof skillet: If you don’t have a heat-proof pan, you can transfer everything to a baking dish for the final step. I love this stainless steel skillet because it browns the chicken well and goes straight into the oven for easy cleanup.
Meat thermometer: There’s nothing more important when cooking ranch chicken than the temperature! You always want your chicken to reach an internal temp of 165 degrees F to be safe.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
- 2 tablespoons ranch dressing mix
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Fresh parsley chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Add butter to a medium-sized oven-safe skillet. Once butter is melted, add chicken thighs to the skillet and cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat. Flip and cook an additional 5 minutes.
- Flip chicken one more time and cook for 2 minutes. Remove the chicken thighs from the skillet and set aside.
- Lower the heat to medium-low and add chicken broth, cream cheese, and ranch seasoning. Stir until melted. Stir in the cheddar cheese until melted.
- Add chicken thighs back to the skillet and cheese sauce and garnish with parsley.
- Bake in the skillet for 20 minutes, or until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
- Carefully remove the skillet carefully from the oven. Serve warm over pasta or with mashed potatoes.
Lydia says
Feel free to delete my comment…I just read the post more closely and saw you stated that is what it is. 🙂
Lydia says
This looks so delicious! About the ranch seasoning…are you meaning the dry ranch seasoning powder that you use to mix up ranch dressing? Thanks!
Real Housemoms JK says
Hello Lydia! Yes, its the ranch seasoning that usually comes in a packet. Hope this helps!
Janet Bradley says
I don’t want to run out and get more thighs, but mine have bones in them. can I still make this recipe????? Sounds amazingly delicious.
Thanks, Jan
Real Housemoms JK says
Hey Jan. Yes, go ahead and use the thighs you have! Just make sure they reach 165 degrees.