Apple Braised Chicken Recipes

BRAISED CHICKEN THIGHS AND APPLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degree F. Sprinkle the chicken generously with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large, deep ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Place the chicken in the skillet skin-side down and cook, flipping once, until golden on both sides. Transfer to a plate.
• Reduce the heat to medium, add the thyme and leeks to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Pour in the wine and use a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom. Cook until the skillet is nearly dry. Stir in the broth, apple cider and a pinch each of salt and pepper and bring to a boil.
• Use a fork to mash the butter and flour together in a small bowl until smooth. Whisk the butter-flour mixture into the skillet until dissolved. Stir in the apples and remove from the heat. Nestle the chicken skin-side up in the skillet along with any collected juices from the plate. Bake until the chicken is cooked through, about 25 minutes.

APPLE BRAISED CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a large, heavy-bottomed skillet, warm oil over high heat.
• Toss chicken with flour in a medium bowl, patting off excess.
• Place chicken in skillet and brown well on both sides.
• Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
• Reduce stove temperature to low and add onion to skillet.
• Sauté, stirring often, until onion is tender and lightly browned.
• Stir in apples, cider, chicken broth, salt, ginger and chicken.
• Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes.
• Use a slotted spoon to transfer chicken, onions and apples to a serving dish.
• In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and 2 to 3 Tbs of pan juices.
• Combine cornstarch mixture with remaining pan juices, whisking constantly.
• Simmer for one minute.
• Pour sauce over chicken and serve.
• Yields 1 chicken breast and about 3/4 cup of apple-onion mixture per serving.

BRAISED CHICKEN WITH APPLES AND SAGE

Steps:

• Pat chicken dry and sprinkle all over with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown chicken well, starting with skin sides down and turning over once, 10 to 12 minutes total. Transfer chicken to a plate and pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet.
• Add butter, brown sugar, apples, and shallots to fat in skillet and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until apples are browned, about 5 minutes.
• Add broth, vinegar, and sage and deglaze skillet by boiling, stirring and scraping up any brown bits, 1 minute. Return chicken, skin sides up, to skillet along with any juices accumulated on plate. Reduce heat and simmer, loosely covered with foil, until chicken is cooked through and sauce is slightly reduced, 20 to 25 minutes.

CIDER-BRAISED CHICKEN THIGHS WITH APPLES AND GREENS

Steps:

• Pat the chicken thighs dry and season generously with salt and pepper.
• In a Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat the oil over medium. Cook the chicken thighs skin-side down, undisturbed, until the skin is golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Flip and cook until lightly browned on the other side, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
• Pour off all but about 3 tablespoons of fat from the pot, turn the heat to medium-low, then add the shallots and sage. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Be careful not to let the garlic burn.
• Add the cider, cider vinegar, mustard, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until the cider has reduced slightly, 2 to 3 minutes. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the pot, skin-side up. Pour just enough broth around (not on!) the chicken to cover the sides of the thighs but not cover the skin on top.
• Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to low. Partly cover and gently simmer until the thighs are cooked through and tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a clean plate or sheet pan (if you'd like to broil the chicken in the next step), raise the heat to medium, and add the kale and apple to the pot. Cook, tossing often, until all the kale is wilted, the apples are just softened and the liquid has reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. While the greens cook, if you'd like to crisp the skin on the chicken, pop it under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Taste for seasoning, and stir in 1 or 2 more teaspoons cider vinegar to taste. Divide the chicken and kale mixture among shallow bowls; serve with crusty bread to mop up broth.