Apricot Chicken

This recipe for Apricot Chicken came from my dad. It was one of his favorite dishes. Being me, I added my own spin to it. What spin is that? Ummm, spice… lol. We love anything spicy in this house and when we get the chance to make something spicy, we do. You do not have to add spice and just have it as is. It is delicious either way.

Now, when it comes to this recipe my dad used canned apricot that he canned himself. I make it this way as well when I have canned apricots on hand. When I do not then I just use store bought and it works great!. Depending on the brand and how sweet that brand is depends on how much honey I add to the recipe. You can keep this in mind when you make this and add as little or as much honey you like to make it as sweet as you like.

I have not made this with any liquid sugar substitute so I can not say for sure if you can replace it, however, I am sure that you can. I would go the sugar free route with the apricot preserves and opt for a liquid sugar replacement.

For the chicken you can use any style of chicken cut that you prefer. I often use boneless chicken thighs, legs, wings and sometimes chicken breasts that I cut in half. Use what ever floats your boat.

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 cup apricot preserves ( I use Smucker’s brand)
1/3 cup honey ( I use local honey – use your favorite brand)
2 tbsp soy sauce ( I use silver swan)
1 tbsp ginger – grated
4 cloves garlic – grated
1/3 tsp cayenne – optional and to your heat tolerance
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper – to taste
8 chicken thighs – or what ever you prefer

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 400*
2. In a sauce pan over med-low heat add the apricot preserves, honey, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Whisk to combine and cook until everything is smooth and well combined. About 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add in the apple cider vinegar and whisk to combine well. Set aside.
3. Grease a 13 x 9 inch dish and add the chicken in an even layer. Salt and pepper each side of the chicken. You want to flavor the chicken as well.
4. Pour over the sauce and turn the chicken to coat in the glaze. If you use skin on make sure the skin side is facing up.
5. Bake uncovered for about 35 to 45 minutes depending on your oven and how thick your chicken cuts are. Cooking times may vary. The internal temp of the chicken ( in the thickest part of the meat) should read between 165* and 170*.
6. Remove and let stand about 10 minutes before serving. Spoon some of the sauce over the chicken before serving. Sprinkle over some green onion for extra flavor and color.

• When it comes to heat you can add as much or as little as you want. We like a little heat but you can certainly leave it out. No problem what so ever and it tastes just as good. I grew up eating it without heat and so did my kids. It is such a family favorite. It really takes me back to my dads kitchen. It also smells amazing and it makes your house smell like apricots…. yumm.
• You can add more or less honey depending on your brand of preserves. I use smucker’s so I find that 1/3 cup is just sweet enough or us. Taste the brand of preserves and add a little bit of honey and taste. Go from there. Some brands are less sweet than others.
• If you prefer sugar free, use sugar free apricot preserves and a liquid sugar replacement. Judge according to your taste. As I have mentioned earlier, I have not used a sugar replacement so I can not tell you if it works or not. I am sure it will do fine. I have used sugar free apricot preserves and it turned out great.
• Use whatever cut of chicken you prefer. You do not have to use thighs if that is not your favorite cut of meat. You do you and all will be delicious. In the above photo I use boneless skinless chicken breasts that I cut in half to make 6 thinly sliced chicken breasts.