When I need a dinner I know the whole family will love, I turn to favorites such as easy baked chicken breast, one pan maple dijon chicken and this comforting cider glazed chicken.
Cider Glazed Chicken Ingredients
When you make apple cider glazed chicken, you will need butter, chicken thighs, apple cider, Dijon mustard, fresh sage, apples, salt and black pepper. Try this chicken with some of my favorite side dishes like hasselback potatoes, roasted sweet potatoes or roasted red potatoes. You can also enjoy these side dishes with more poultry dishes like roasted cornish hen, chicken vesuvio, turkey tetrazzini and elegant chicken francese.
How Do You Make Cider Glazed Chicken?
To make this cider glazed chicken start by preheating your oven and preparing your chicken thighs by seasoning them with salt and pepper. Next, melt butter in a large pan and cook the chicken thighs skin-side down until the skins turns golden brown. Turn the chicken over and add apple cider. Place the pan in the oven and let the chicken roast. While your chicken cooks place sliced apples in another pan and simmer them in butter and apple cider until tender. Season the apples with salt and pepper. After the chicken pan comes out of the oven, place the chicken on a plate. Whisk Dijon mustard and chopped sage into the cider and drippings in the pan. Pour the sauce from the pan over the chicken and enjoy it with the tender cooked apples!
Tips For The Perfect Cider Glazed Chicken
Remove the pan from the oven using oven mitts or similar heat protection. If the handle of a pan goes in the oven, it will be hot! This recipe calls for apple cider, like the drink, not apple cider vinegar. Make sure you have the right ingredient! I don’t cook the apples with the chicken because if you cook the sliced apples in with the chicken they’ll just boil in the cider and get mushy. Try to get fresh sage to bring out the flavor of the dish. Keep some whole sage leaves for a fun garnish!
Flavor Variations
While this apple cider glazed chicken is delicious as-is, you can change up the flavors to suit your taste.
Herbs: Sage is a classic fall herb; however, you can use other herbs like fresh thyme, fresh rosemary or a poultry seasoning blend. Skinless Chicken: You can use boneless skinless chicken thighs or chicken breasts if you want. However, I prefer the crisp texture of the the seared skin on the chicken thighs. Garlic: You can stir in 2 teaspoons of minced garlic into your sauce with the Dijon mustard. If you do, make sure the garlic cooks on the stove for 30 seconds. Maple: For a sweeter sauce, try adding a tablespoon of maple syrup to your sauce.
My kids are already asking when we’re going to be having “apple chicken” again, and it will definitely be soon. Maybe even tomorrow – because when something is this good and this easy to make, why not eat it all the time?
