Lemon Garlic Butter Chicken with Green Beans (One Pan)
Fancy-dinner looks, one-pan cleanup — seared chicken thighs finish cooking right on top of the green beans in a lemon-garlic butter. One of the newest recipes here and still pulling above the catalog's median views. The browned bits in the pan are the flavor; scrape them up.
In the video I lay out every single ingredient before the pan ever gets hot, because once it does, this one moves quick — it's the kind of recipe where you want everything within arm's reach. Then it's just one pan doing all the work: the chicken gets seasoned in a bowl while the oil heats, and from there the whole dinner comes together in stages you can actually keep up with.
Two moments to watch for: when you flip the chicken and see dark spots, don't get discouraged — that's just seasoning that overcooked a little, and it still comes out amazing. And when the lemon goes in, squeeze it straight into the pan and just fish out any seeds that drop. Once the lid is on, check on it now and then; my green beans took the full 15 minutes to get tender, and dinner was done. This is one you can make tonight.
Watch me make it — video from my YouTube channel
The recipe
Lemon Garlic Butter Chicken with Green Beans (One Pan)
Ingredients
- about 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 12 oz green beans (trimmed and rinsed)
- 1 lemon (for juice; watch for seeds)
- fresh parsley, optional garnish
- salt, to taste
- onion powder, to taste
- garlic powder, to taste
- Creole seasoning (I use Tony's), to taste
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic (jarred or fresh)
- 1/2 stick butter (for the pan sauce), plus about 1 whole stick more (first half added to the pan, second half placed on top of the chicken)
How to Make It
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a pan over medium heat.
- While the pan heats, place the chicken thighs in a bowl and coat them completely with the remaining olive oil.
- Season the chicken with salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and Creole seasoning, and mix until evenly coated.
- Place the chicken in the hot pan and sear for 5 to 7 minutes.
- Flip the chicken and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes on the other side.
- Remove the chicken from the pan (it will finish cooking later with the green beans).
- Add 1/2 stick of butter to the same pan and scrape up the browned seasoning bits.
- Stir in the minced garlic.
- Add a little lemon juice, fishing out any seeds that drop in.
- Stir the butter, garlic, and lemon juice together well.
- Add the green beans and mix to coat.
- Return the chicken to the pan.
- Add about 1 whole stick of butter — first half into the pan, second half on top of the chicken.
- Cover with the lid and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until the green beans are tender, checking periodically.
Curtis's Tips
- I skin the thighs, but keeping the skin on is completely up to you.
- You can buy green beans already trimmed and rinsed at the store to save prep.
- Parsley is optional.
- Fully lathering the chicken in olive oil helps the seasoning stick instead of rolling off.
- Jarred minced garlic is "just way easier," but fresh garlic works too.
- Any Creole seasoning works if you don't have Tony's.
- Don't get discouraged by dark bits when you flip the chicken — that's just seasoning that overcooked a little; it still comes out amazing.
- Be careful to remove any lemon seeds that fall into the pan.
- The chicken isn't fully cooked after searing — it finishes cooking covered with the green beans.
- Doneness cue: green beans tender, about 10-15 minutes covered; my batch took 15 minutes.
Why this works
The whole dish is built on what happens in that one pan. First, the olive oil coat: get the chicken fully lathered before the seasoning goes on, and the salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and Creole seasoning stick to the thighs instead of rolling off. Second, the sear isn't meant to cook the chicken through — it comes out of the pan on purpose, and the half stick of butter goes in to scrape up all the seasoning left behind, which becomes the base of the lemon-garlic butter. Then everything finishes together under the lid: the green beans go tender right in that butter while the chicken cooks the rest of the way. Tender beans are your signal it's done.
FAQ
Do I have to take the skin off the chicken thighs?
No — that part is completely up to you. I take the skin off for this recipe, and that's how I cook it in the video, but if you like skin, keep it on.
Can I use jarred minced garlic instead of fresh?
Jarred is what I use in the video — it's just way easier. Fresh garlic works too; either way, it goes into the butter right after you scrape up the pan.
What if I don't have Tony's Creole seasoning?
Any type of Creole seasoning you have on hand works — Tony's is just the one I keep in my kitchen. It goes on the chicken along with the salt, onion powder, and garlic powder.
How much butter does this really take?
About a stick and a half across the whole cook. A half stick goes into the pan first to start the sauce, then right before the lid goes on I add about a whole stick more — the first half into the pan, the second half laid right on top of the chicken.
Do I have to trim the green beans myself?
They do need to be trimmed and cleaned before they hit the pan, but nobody says you have to do it yourself — you can buy them already rinsed and trimmed at the store, and that shortcut is completely fine by me.
Estimated nutrition, per serving (recipe makes about 4 servings): ~625 calories · 34 g protein · 51 g fat · 8 g carbs. Computed from the ingredient list using standard reference values — an estimate, not a lab analysis; your exact brands and portions will vary.
