Roast chicken thighs with red wine, tomato, and herbs. (2024)

Mediterranean roast chicken thighs in red wine

With plenty of fresh herbs, tomato, and a generous splash of red wine, this recipe summons some of the most popular flavors of the Mediterranean. It’s super easy to make too, with some simple ingredients you’ll easily find in any grocery store.

Chicken thighs for cooking

Use skinless bone-in chicken thighs for a low-fat version of this recipe.

Skinless chicken thighs taste incredible and once simmered in the sauce and juices, absorb plenty of flavor. Skinless chicken thighs with the bone-in are great for roasting in the oven, they are always juicy and are loaded with protein.

Chicken thighs have 26 grams per 100 grams of protein (according to data from the USDA) which works out to around 13 grams per chicken thigh.

Skin-on chicken thighs take around the same amount of time to cook through (25 minutes) but you’ll want to get a perfect crispy skin. To do this, start cooking them on the middle oven shelf, then transfer them to the top oven shelf for the last 5 minutes. The skin should crisp up nicely and this adds a delicious flavor and texture to an already tasty dish! Love crispy chicken? Check out this Mediterranean crispy baked chicken recipe too.

Boneless chicken thighs are also great. Note that they cook faster (around 15 to 20 minutes is all they need to cook) so you will need to prep and cook the sauce and other ingredients for at least 10 minutes before adding the boneless chicken thighs to the oven.

Check out these chicken thigh recipes too: Mediterranean chicken thighs in sofrito and spicy paprika, Lemon and herb chicken thighs (2-min prep), Easy chicken thighs in chorizo and wine, Garlic-infused chicken thighs, Spicy Mediterranean chicken thighs, Mediterranean garlic rosemary chicken thighs, and Baked chicken thighs with potatoes.

Mediterranean flavors

Staple ingredients such as tomato, garlic, oregano, and rosemary really help boost the flavors, and using smoked La Vera paprika helps give this recipe a distinctive Spanish flair. Season with some salt and white pepper before roasting.

Ground white pepper has a softer flavor compared to cracked black pepper and is better suited to the flavors in this recipe. If you prefer to use black pepper, add it at the end once you’ve taken the dish out of the oven. It will prevent the pepper from burning and overpowering the other flavors in the recipe.

Mediterranean herbs and spices used in this recipe:

• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika (we used Spanish La Vera smoked paprika)
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• ½ teaspoon of garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon of white pepper

Cooking with wine

Cooking with wine is a great way to add layers of flavor to any recipe, and don’t worry, the alcohol content dissolves in the cooking process.

What wine to use for cooking?

No need to use a good bottle, red cooking wine is ideal. We used a Tinto (Spanish table wine) when making this recipe.

Thickening the sauce

Use the measurements of ingredients noted in this recipe and the sauce will thicken during cooking. If it is too thin (or if you accidentally add too much wine 🍷🥴), use cornstarch to thicken the sauce to suit your taste.

Simply combine 1:1 ratio of water and cornstarch and mix well until you have a slurry, then slowly add it to the ingredients until you have the desired texture. Be careful not to thicken the sauce too much as it will also thicken during cooking.

Super easy one-pot recipe

To make this roast Chicken thigh recipe, all you need is an oven, a large baking dish, and your hands. No other fancy cooking equipment is required!

We love this recipe as it really embraces the no-fuss cooking techniques often used in Mediterranean cuisine. This recipe is perfect for a weeknight dinner option as it is made in one pot and doesn’t require any marinating or extensive prep work, and is ready in under 30 minutes!

Side dish suggestions

This recipe is a great protein source and has plenty of sauce so it’s lovely served with some fresh bread or rice. You can also steam some greens as a side or try these recipes:

• Healthy Pipirrana salad
• Mediterranean tomato salad with pesto
• Seasonal roast veggies
• Mediterranean yellow rice

Cooking with Olive oil – The healthy choice

When it comes to olive oil production, there’s no better place than Spain. It’s a staple in the healthy Mediterranean diet, and Spain produces the most olive oil in the world. For many years now, Spain has been the leading exporter of excellent quality olive oil, including the star of the show, extra virgin olive oil.

Like many Spanish kitchens, we at Spanish Radish HQ use good quality extra virgin olive oil extensively in our day-to-day cooking. We use it for frying, drizzle it on salads or bread, or use it in baking as a substitute for butter. The reason? Not only does EVOO taste amazing, it’s really (really) good for you!

Olive oil is high in antioxidants, especially EVOO. Antioxidants are known to help prevent or treat many chronic diseases. Olive oil also contains minerals like potassium, calcium, and iron, and vitamins E and K.

Here’s a comparison table of olive oil versus some other common fats:

Nutrition Facts

FAQs and cooking tips

How long do roast chicken thighs with tomato, red wine, and herbs take to make?

• Prep time: 2 minutes
• Cook time: 25 minutes
• Total time: 27 minutes

How to crisp chicken skin in the oven?

When using skin-on chicken thighs, cook on the middle shelf of the oven for 20 minutes, then transfer them to the top shelf of the oven for the last five minutes for crispy chicken skin.

How long do chicken thighs take to cook?

Bone-in chicken thighs take 25 minutes at 400°F (200°C) on the middle shelf of the oven. Boneless chicken thighs cook faster and take around 15-20 minutes depending on thigh size. The internal temperature of cooked chicken thighs should read 165°F (73°C).

Do I need to marinate the chicken before cooking?

Nope, your chicken thighs will absorb plenty of the sauce’s flavors as they’re roasted.