Chicken and Sweet Potato Skillet – 🍗🍁🍠 An EASY one-skillet chicken dinner recipe complete with sweet potatoes, bell peppers, and onions for impressive texture and flavor! It’s all seasoned with smoked paprika, oregano, rosemary, thyme, and there’s a simple sauce with maple syrup and Dijon mustard that lends all the cozy fall vibes! This is COMFORT FOOD that’s great for busy weeknights and chillier weather.
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Easy Chicken and Sweet Potato Skillet Recipe
When you’re in need of a easy chicken dinner recipe that combines the savory flavors of seasoned chicken with the natural sweetness of sweet potatoes, look no further than this easy chicken skillet and sweet potatoes recipe. It’s ready in 45 minutes from start to finish.
Not only are there sweet potatoes and scrumptious chicken thighs, but green peppers, onions, and garlic add extra texture and flavor.
Everything is seasoned to perfection using a mixture of smoked paprika, oregano, rosemary, and thyme.
A simple sauce made with chicken broth, maple syrup, and Dijon mustard adds rich depth of flavor along with helping to ensure the chicken stays moist and juicy.
Perfect for a fall evening, this one-pan comfort food chicken recipe will give you all the cozy vibes. Gotta love one pan meals! As a bonus, this is a naturally gluten-free recipe as written.
Ingredients in Skillet Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
- bone-in chicken thighs – see the FAQs below for other chicken options
- salt
- black pepper
- smoked paprika
- olive oil
- medium sweet potatoes – or other potatoes such as baby Yukon gold or red potatoes
- white onion – or yellow onion
- garlic, minced
- green bell pepper – yellow, orange or red pepper may be used
- chicken broth
- maple syrup
- Dijon mustard
- dried oregano
- dried rosemary
- fresh thyme sprigs – dried thyme may be substituted
- fresh parsley, optional for garnishing
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How To Make Chicken in a Skillet with Sweet Potatoes
- Season the chicken with salt, pepper, paprika and then add it to a large cast iron skillet coated with olive oil. Cook the chicken on each side over medium-high heat, remove it when done, and set it aside.
- Add a bit more oil, the sweet potatoes, onions, and cook for about 5 minutes before adding the garlic. Add the green bell peppers and saute them until tender.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the chicken broth, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, and pour it into the skillet.
- Return the chicken thighs to the skillet, nestling them among the vegetables. Sprinkle the oregano, rosemary, and thyme over the top.
- Reduce the heat, cover the skillet, and let simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened slightly. Garnish with parsley and serve the dish.
Storage
In the Refrigerator: This recipe will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days.
In the Freezer: This recipe will keep airtight in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To Reheat: I use my microwave for quickness and ease and reheat my leftovers for about 30 seconds on high, or as needed. But you can use your stove – whatever is best suited for you.
Recipe FAQs
You can also use boneless chicken thighs rather than bone-in. Or you can use chicken breasts (skinless or skin-on) rather than thighs based on your preference. Adjust the cooking time to ensure whatever type of chicken you’re working with is fully cooked to a safe temperature. Boneless tends to take a bit longer than cook than bone-in, for proteins in general.
Feel free to add other vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, asparagus, green beans, zucchini, or mushrooms for extra variety. One-pan meals tend to be pretty flexible when it comes to veggie choices.
Yes it is. If you prefer a thicker sauce, mix 1 teaspoon of cornstarch + 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl (called a slurry). Stir the slurry into the skillet during the last 5 minutes of cooking.
Alternatively, if the sauce is too thick, add in a little more chicken broth or water to thin it out, as necessary.
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Chicken and Sweet Potato Skillet
Equipment
- 1 large heavy skillet cast iron is great here for searing the chicken
Ingredients
- 6 bone-in chicken thighs, for questions about types of chicken, see the FAQs in blog post
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika, or more to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more if necessary
- 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch cubes (no bigger or they take too long to cook)
- 1 large yellow onion, diced into bite-sized pieces (white onion may be substituted)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced into bite-sized pieces (another color pepper may be substituted)
- ½ cup chicken broth, I used reduced sodium
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 3 fresh thyme sprigs, or use 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- Fresh parsley, optional for garnishing, finely minced
Instructions
- Generously season the chicken on both sides with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika, or to taste.
- To the skillet, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, turn the heat to medium-high, add the chicken, sear it, and then cook for about 5-7 minutes per side, or until it's golden browned and cooked through to 165F as measured on a digital thermometer. Set chicken aside on a plate. Cooking and Searing Tips – Once you place the chicken in the skillet to sear it, just let it be. Don't move it around or fuss with it; if it resists flipping, it likely means it's not ready to be flipped. Allow it to cook a bit longer until it can be flipped with more ease.
- Add 1 tablespoon olive oil (or more if necessary), the sweet potatoes, onion, and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring and flipping frequently to ensure even cooking. Veggie Size Tips – Sweet potatoes are the ingredient in this entire recipe that will take the longest to cook through if they are cut too large. Do yourself a favor and keep them to 1/2-inch cubes so that they don't hold up the entire meal. Conversely, I like to keep the onions and green bell pepper a little chunkier so as they cook through they don't get too small, but it's personal preference.
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute; stir continuously.
- Add the bell peppers and cook for 3-4 minutes; stir very frequently.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the broth, maple syrup, Dijon mustard, and pour it over the vegetables in the skillet.
- Return the chicken to the skillet, evenly sprinkle the oregano, rosemary, and lay the thyme sprigs (or sprinkle dried thyme) over the chicken and veggies, and reduce the heat to medium-low.
- Cover the skillet with a lid, and allow it to simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are tender, and the sauce has thickened slightly. Sauce too thin or too thick? Read the FAQs in blog post for how to adjust and make a thicker or thinner sauce.
- Optionally, garnish with parsley. Spoon the sauce over the sweet potatoes and spoon it all over the chicken, or as you desire, and serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Delicious! I would double the sauce next time.
Thanks for the 5 star review, Marylou, and glad it was delish and it sounds like you will make it again!
I’d give this recipe 6 stars. My picky eater children loved it. It’s becoming a staple this fall!
Thanks for the 6 star review, Christy :) I am glad even the picky kiddos enjoyed it and that it’s becoming a fall staple!