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    Home » Main Dishes » Chicken Recipes » Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs

    LAST UPDATED: October 4, 2020 • FIRST PUBLISHED: October 21, 2016 By Toni Dash 32 Comments

    Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs

    Jump to Recipe

    This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    There is no more simple chicken recipe than Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs. Marinated overnight in prepared sweet tea, the chicken is tender and slightly sweet, cooking up with perfectly crackling skin with oven-roasting.

    Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs on platter

    This delicious recipe is sponsored by Lipton, a brand I’ve loved my whole life! All opinions are my own.

    My family is small and all dwell above the mid-line of the United States. Our lineage has roots in California, New York, Washington D.C., and my Grandmother attended Sweet Briar College which is as far south as our habitation has traveled.

    My husband’s paternal family hails from Alabama and I was never more clear about food being love than my first visit to meet them. We eloped, my husband and I, and had a native wedding ceremony in Fiji barefoot on the beach dressed in traditional native clothing. We sent everyone a word puzzle via express mail arriving the day prior to our departure so everyone knew we were flying off to get married.

    Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs with side dishes

    Shortly after returning my new Sister-in-Law made arrangements to fly us down to Alabama in secret to surprise my in-laws who were visiting family at the time. Meeting the extended family was like being folded into a cozy blanket that had been warmed by the sun. Their openness was the epitome of Southern hospitality. And there was the food.

    dinner plate with roasted chicken thighs and side dishes

    My husband’s Aunt Mayblane (pronounces ‘may-bleen’) insisted on cooking a traditional Southern meal including everyone’s favorite dishes. It was like Thanksgiving for the preparation and attention to detail. She pulled out a huge fryer for hush puppies and catfish. There was fried chicken, okra, cornbread and macaroni and cheese. The bounty of her enormous garden added fresh tomatoes, corn and pink-eye purple hull field peas to the mix. The sweet tea flowed and it really was a feast to behold.

    Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs with salad and glasses of iced tea in background

    Many of the dishes I had not tried before and was thrilled to have a chance to have them homemade. Mayblane was perhaps the warmest, most loving person I’d ever met and it is a memory I’ve carried with me ever since.

    We too in our married life have lived north. California, Northern Virginia (outside Washington DC) and Colorado. Our families are spread far and wide, and we don’t get together nearly as often as we’d like to. Due to constraints of time and obligations, I have personally not been able to go back to Alabama to visit since my children were small.

    overhead of Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs mashed potatoes and salad

    Just as Mayblane showed her love through her food, we feel love through little glimpses of her food from afar. She’s been on my mind lately and though I am now gluten-free, don’t have a hush puppy fryer and fried chicken probably is a bit more than my waistline could manage right now, I have reimagined her gracious hospitality in my own spin of Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs.

    close up of Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs

    It’s a simple recipe with only two ingredients (outside of the salt and pepper). Marinating the chicken thighs in prepared sweet tea tenderizes the chicken and oven-roasting produces the crackling skin of the chicken thighs we all love. I would serve it with traditional mashed potatoes and my latest favorite fall salad.

    plate of side dishes and Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs

    The power of food memories and associations are truly binding. We drink iced tea with dinner too which always makes me think of our family in the south, especially when having sweet tea.

    Regardless of whether you have southern connections or not, I think you’ll love this Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thigh recipe. The preparation could not easier; combine the chicken and sweet tea in a gallon zipper plastic bag and allow it to marinate for 24 hours. That’s it!

    Consider serving this with an Arnold Palmer drink!

    Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs on platter

    Roasted Sweet Tea Chicken Thighs

    Marinating chicken thighs in prepared sweet tea tenderizes the meat and gives a slight sweet flavor to these irresistible chicken thichs.
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Save Recipe Recipe Saved! Pin Rate
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 45 minutes
    Total Time: 1 day 55 minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 248kcal
    Author: Toni Dash
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Ingredients

    • 8 Chicken Thighs (bone in, skin on) (approximately 3-4 pounds if larger thighs)
    • 4 cups Lipton prepared Sweet Tea (approximately 4 cups; enough to cover the chicken thighs)
    • ¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
    • ¼ teaspoon Garlic Salt
    • Freshly ground Black Pepper

    Instructions

    • Put the chicken thighs in a gallon plastic zipper bag and cover with prepared sweet tea. Seal, squeezing out as much air as possible. Tip: I either leave the bag in a mixing bowl in the refrigerator or double bag it to avoid potential spills.
    • After 24 hours: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray the bottom of a baking dish with non-stick spray. Remove the chicken thighs from the sweet tea, allowing excess liquid to drain off. Place chicken thighs in the prepared baking pan.
    • Sprinkle the chicken thighs with the kosher salt, garlic salt and pepper and bake for 40-45 minutes. Internal temperature of the chicken thighs should be 165 degrees and the juices will run clear when fully cooked.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 248kcal | Carbohydrates: 0g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 110mg | Sodium: 235mg | Potassium: 275mg | Sugar: 0g | Vitamin A: 90IU | Calcium: 9mg | Iron: 0.8mg
    Did you make this recipe?Mention @boulderlocavore or tag #boulderlocavore!

    iced tea jug and glass

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    ABOUT THE AUTHOR

    TONI DASH
    Toni Dash head shot

    Toni Dash, is a Certified Nutrition Coach and the writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer and creator of Boulder Locavore®. She has been developing easy to make, well-tested recipes since 2010. Her seasonal recipes bring excitement to the dining table for both gluten-free and gluten diners. Toni has been featured in numerous publications and on culinary websites for her creative, delicious recipes and travel features. For more details, check out her About page.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kiwi says

      October 26, 2016 at 2:25 pm

      wow i have to commend you on your photography. Great food editorial its making me hungry right this second. I dont have to wait for thanksgiving for this meal!

      Reply
    2. Christina Aliperti says

      October 26, 2016 at 6:04 am

      This looks and sounds amazing! What a genius idea using sweet tea, yum!

      Reply
    3. Tania says

      October 25, 2016 at 3:21 pm

      5 stars
      Mmm, chicken thighs! Looks delicious! We live in Northern VA 🙂

      Reply
      • Toni Dash says

        October 25, 2016 at 4:39 pm

        We were in Arlington!

        Reply
    4. Melissa @ The Staten Island family says

      October 25, 2016 at 8:08 am

      what a winning combination of sweet and savory- definitely putting this recipe on my must-make for dinner list! Your pictures are mouth wateringly delish!

      Reply
      • Toni Dash says

        October 25, 2016 at 8:27 am

        Thank you Melissa! So glad you like the flavors. I love that it’s so quick and easy too.

        Reply
    5. Tess says

      October 24, 2016 at 9:16 pm

      5 stars
      That looks like a wonderful recipe to try! I’ll put it on my list

      Reply
    6. Sarah says

      October 24, 2016 at 9:21 pm

      Sweet tea chicken?! Never heard of it but totally want to!

      Reply
    7. Adelina Priddis says

      October 24, 2016 at 8:19 pm

      Food and family = many wonderful memories! What a beautiful story of meeting your in laws. And the chicken looks divine.

      Reply
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    About Toni Dash

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    Welcome! I’m Toni. I’m a Certified Nutrition Coach and my goal is to MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER with delicious, well-tested recipes and travel tips! More About Me …

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