Chicken with sweet and sour peach sauce

A quick and easy one pan dish!

This one-skillet chicken dish is full of summery flavours and takes very little time to prep or cook. There’s no need to peel peaches unless you’re fussy about eating the skin. If doubling the recipe, you’ll need to cook the chicken in batches and you may need to add a little extra oil between batches. The peach sauce is also delicious served over grilled chicken or fish.

Ingredients

• 4 large boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1.5 lbs / 680 g)
• Few pinches kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 5 teaspoons (25 mL) vegetable oil, divided
• 1/2 cup (50 g) diced onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary or thyme
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) white wine or water
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) maple syrup or honey
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup (125 mL) chicken broth or water
• 3 medium-sized ripe peaches, washed and sliced

Method

• Sprinkle the chicken pieces on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 3 teaspoons (15 mL) of the oil to the pan and swirl the pan so the oil evenly coats the bottom of the skillet.
• Gently place the chicken in the hot pan and cook for about 7 minutes per side, or until cooked through and golden brown. Do not disturb for the first 5 minutes of cooking so the chicken has time to get crispy and release from the bottom of the skillet. Also, don’t crowd the meat or it won’t brown as well – cook in batches, if necessary. The meat is ready to remove from the pan when the internal temperature of the thickest part of each piece is 165F.
• Transfer the cooked chicken to a clean plate; cover loosely with foil to keep warm and set aside.
• Make the sauce in the same skillet (don’t wipe it out after the chicken) placed over medium heat. Drizzle in another 2 teaspoons of the oil. Add the onion and sauté, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes, until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and herbs; cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute longer. Deglaze the pan by adding the wine; stir to scrape up the delicious ‘stuck bits’ from the bottom of the skillet. Cook 2-3 minutes, until wine has mostly evaporated.
• Stir in the maple syrup, vinegar, mustard, chicken broth and sliced peaches; cook for about 6-8 minutes, or until the peaches are soft.
• Return the chicken to the skillet; heat just until warm, spooning the sauce over the meat.

Serves 4.