Roasted Chicken Thighs With Peanut Butter BBQ Sauce

By Kay Chun

Updated June 22, 2023

  • Mark Weinberg for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
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Total Time
40 minutes
Rating
4(1,145)
Comments
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Peanut butter is the surprise guest in this spicy-sweet barbecue sauce, which cooks up in just 10 minutes. This versatile sauce, which adds nutty richness and depth, keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge and also freezes well. You'll have quite a bit: This recipe yields 2 cups of sauce. It's great to have on hand, doing double-duty as a sauce or a fantastic marinade for chicken or baby back ribs. (If allergies are a concern, substitute in almond butter for the peanut butter.) Serve with sautéed green beans, roasted broccoli or coleslaw. 

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

FOR THE BARBECUE SAUCE

  • 2 tablespoons canola oil

  • ¼ cup minced onion (about ¼ medium onion)

  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste

  • ½ cup natural smooth peanut butter

  • ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce

  • ¼ cup distilled white vinegar

  • 2 tablespoons turbinado or light brown sugar

  • 2 tablespoons unsulphured molasses

  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

  • 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt

  • 1 teaspoon black pepper

  • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika

  • ½ teaspoon cayenne

FOR THE CHICKEN

  • 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

  • 2 tablespoons canola oil

  • ¾ cup barbecue sauce

  • Kosher salt

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

45 grams carbs; 213 milligrams cholesterol; 756 calories; 21 grams monosaturated fat; 10 grams polyunsaturated fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 40 grams fat; 3 grams fiber; 1440 milligrams sodium; 54 grams protein; 35 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Make the barbecue sauce: In a medium saucepan, heat oil. Add onion and cook over moderate medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until lightly caramelized and deepened in color, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the remaining ingredients and 6 tablespoons water. Simmer until flavors are combined, and the sauce is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Make the chicken: Heat oven to 425 degrees. Set a rack over a rimmed baking sheet.

  3. Step 3

    In a large bowl, combine chicken, oil and ¼ cup of the barbecue sauce and season with salt. Toss to evenly coat and arrange on the rack. Roast, using a brush to baste with the remaining ½ cup sauce every 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and deep golden in color, about 30 minutes. Serve with the leftover sauce on the side, or store sauce in the refrigerator for later use.

Tip

  • Don’t worry if the sauce separates a little during cooking. (It’s just the natural oils in the peanut butter.) Once cooled, whisk the mixture to emulsify back together.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
1,145 user ratings
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Comments

Cindy

I freeze tomato paste in 1TB dollops then put the frozen globs in a freezer bag. Need tomato paste? Gotcha covered - and without opening up one of those little cans!

Wes

You could slather this sauce on a 2x4 and I would enthusiastically eat it.

MMS

With so many peanut butters now labeled "natural" can NYTimes clarify if the product intended should be peanuts only, versus the various peanut butters that include sugar and salt (also labeled "natural")? Thanks!

Michele CIPRESSI

This was delicious. I used tomato chutney and Sambal Olek instead of the tomato paste since I had some needing to get used up. Sauce was potent so added water and a bit more peanut butter and it was memorable. I’ll make this again.

Poor cooking method for chicken

I can’t speak to the sauce itself but I used this cooking method for chicken with store bought barbecue sauce and it was not good. No sear on the chicken, sort of a wet and greasy taste in the chicken, and not flavorful. I would not recommend this cooking method for the chicken thighs themselves.

Miriam

Delicious! Maybe I am just a “slow cooker,” haha, but this recipe took me an hour and a half, not 40 minutes.

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