Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs Recipe

Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs RecipePhoto by: Taste of Home Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs Recipe Rating 4

“I love the flavor of chicken baked with apples, and when I had a bumper crop of green beans, I wanted to include them, too. This recipe is the tasty result.” —Kathy Rairigh, Milford, Indiana

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Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs Recipe
  • Prep: 30 min. + chilling Bake: 55 min.
  • Yield: 5 Servings
30 55 85

Ingredients

  • 3 cups apple cider or juice
  • 1 medium onion, sliced
  • 1 medium lemon, sliced
  • 4 fresh rosemary sprigs
  • 1/3 cup kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, divided
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
  • 2 cups cold water
  • 10 bone-in chicken thighs (about 3-3/4 pounds)
  • One 2-gallon resealable plastic bag
  • 1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
  • 3 medium tart apples, cut into wedges
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

  • In a Dutch oven, combine the cider, onion, lemon, rosemary sprigs, salt, 1/4 cup brown sugar, garlic, bay leaf and peppercorns. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir until salt and brown sugar are dissolved. Remove from the heat; stir in water. Cool brine to room temperature.
  • Place chicken in the 2-gallon resealable plastic bag. Carefully pour cooled brine into bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible; seal bag and turn to coat. Place in a roasting pan. Refrigerate for 2 hours, turning occasionally.
  • Place beans and apples in a greased roasting pan. Drain chicken; place in prepared pan. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 40 minutes.
  • Combine the minced rosemary, oil, pepper and remaining brown sugar; sprinkle over chicken. Bake 15-25 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer reads 180° and beans are tender. Yield: 5 servings.

Nutritional Facts 2 chicken thighs with 3/4 cup bean mixture equals 591 calories, 32 g fat (8 g saturated fat), 163 mg cholesterol, 817 mg sodium, 30 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 47 g protein.

Originally published as Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs in Taste of Home June/July 2010, p53

Light-Bodied White Wine

Enjoy this recipe with a light-bodied white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio.

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Reviews for Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs (8)

Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs Recipe

Apple-Brined Chicken Thighs

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Reviewed on Nov. 25, 2011 by Dianne2706

I love this brine. I have used it on pork and chicken and it adds so much flavor that you don't even need anything else.


Reviewed on Oct. 30, 2011 by Peggywyly

Loved it. May brine longer next time. The green beans and apples were very good but would also like to try other vegies. Not hard to make but start early!


Reviewed on Feb. 27, 2011 by sabrina_m_haynes

not hard to make, but not worth any of the effort, couldn't taste the apple juice past all of the salt.


Reviewed on Feb. 21, 2011 by melodious88

We grilled the chicken instead of baking it, and it was great!


Reviewed on Sep. 27, 2010 by dbadair

I will definitely marinate the thighs longer next time I make this. It was very good but I felt like it would have had more flavor with a longer marinade time.


Reviewed on Sep. 19, 2010 by aug2295

This was delicious! I saved the recipe for fall, with in season apples and end of season green beans and yum, top notch. The chicken was moist and flavorful and I agree that the recipe was easier than it seems although you do have to start earlier than usual, so probably a weekend meal.


Reviewed on Jul. 30, 2010 by joeychick

I cannot begin to explain how delicious this dish was. I had family in town visiting, and I saw this recipe in a recent issue and thought it would be good to make while they were in town. I doubled this batch (about 16 thighs), but still used only one onion & one lemon for the brine. For the veggies, the fresh green beans in my produce section looked anemic, so I picked up a 12 oz bag of frozen beans then supplemented with some broccoli, carrots, and snow peas. Also, we pan seared the thighs before we put them in the oven. Then after they were seared, we baked them with the veggies for 20 minutes, then put on the brown sugar, oil, pepper, and rosemary paste and baked them for about another 15 minutes more. We felt like they needed some firming up, and the pre-bake pan searing did just the trick. That paste made the chicken so nice and crusty and sweet, and the vegetables... oh the vegetables. They were so sweet and tasty. I will most definitely make this a staple in my kitchen.


Reviewed on Jun. 06, 2010 by cafritz

This seems like it would be alot of work to make, but seriously, the hardest part was cleaning the chicken. It tasted wonderful.

 
 
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