Balsamic Braised Chicken and Veggies

Balsamic Braised Chicken and Veggies

It’s easy to fall into a bit of a rut when you’re making weeknight meals.  You want them to be quick and easy but you want them to taste good too.  Everybody loves chicken.  It has to be one of the most popular protein choices out there, but it can get a little boring if you keep doing it in the same old ways.

This dish shakes it up a bit with the sweet acidity of balsamic and cider vinegars. You won’t believe how vinegar tends to sweeten and mellow after it simmers a bit.  

And I used thighs because they’re more succulent and fare better in braised dishes.  Breasts can dry out so I tend to save them for quick pan-fried applications. There are also plenty of sauteed veggies in the recipe to add some complexity to the sauce and round-out the flavors a bit. 

I almost wish I had added a few potatoes.  I’m thinking that the onions and vinegar in the braising liquid would have given the absent potatoes the feeling of one of those warm vinegar based potato salads.

Oh well.  There’s always next time. 

Balsamic Braised Chicken and Veggies

Prep time: 10 min

Cook Time: 45 min total

Servings: 2 - 4

Ingredients

• 5 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into thirds lengthwise
• salt and pepper, to taste
• ½ cup corn starch
• 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 carrots, peeled and chopped into large pieces
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped into 8 wedges
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms, cleaned & halved
• 1 clove garlic sliced
• ½ cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsps cider vinegar
• 1 ½ cups chicken broth (or 1½ cup water & 1½ tsp gf chicken bouillon)
• 2 tbsp butter
• parsley (garnish)

Video Tutorial: 

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F or 190 °C
2. Heavily season the chicken thigh pieces with salt and pepper then toss them into a gallon sized Ziploc bag with the corn starch and shake until they’re nicely coated. 
3. Preheat a large cast-iron skillet to a medium-high heat then add the olive oil and brown chicken on all sides, remove from the skillet and set aside. 
4. Add the carrots, peppers and onions and saute for about 5 minutes until they just start to brown, then add the mushrooms and garlic and saute for another 5 minutes then remove the veggies from the pan.
5. Add the balsamic and cider vinegars to the pan and stir until reduced by half (which happens fairly quickly in cast iron) then add the chicken broth and stir until it is well combined with the vinegar.
6. Return the chicken to the pan and simmer for 2 minutes then add the veggies to the pan, bring to a boil then remove from the stove top and bake uncovered in a preheated 375°F or 190°C oven for 30 minutes.
7. Once it comes out of the oven, stir in 2 tablespoons of butter to make the sauce glossier, scatter over some fresh chopped parsley and serve.