Hello, friends! How about an easy weeknight dinner? This spicy cherry chicken is juuust that.
Now that I’m back in my own new (!) kitchen and breaking it in, I’ve not only gotten my cooking vibes back, but I’m also taking the opportunity to use some of the many condiments that I’ve lugged around for the last six months. I got a pretty good start on it at mom’s but I still have so many more. This one features two quite nicely and was so good that I have a feeling that I’ll use them up in no time.
In my real, working girl that tries to eat healthy life, I’m all about the bowls and salads: a green, a protein, a bean, a cheese and a crunch, and I’m always mixing up the components to bring in new flavors. I will admit that my go-to protein was always, always the Trader Joe’s harissa chicken. That is until they heartlessly discontinued it.
Disaster.
But then I put on my big girl pants and figured out how to recreate it.
However, because variety is the spice of life and jam makes up the bulk of the condiments in my pantry (one of the things I like to collect on my travels- and one of the major gifts I get from my friends on theirs), I’m spicing up my bowl-protein game with some cherry jam (a very Michigan thing, btw) and spicy Korean gochujang sauce.
Believe me, it works.
Add a squeeze of lime, a dash of oil and a healthy bit of garlic, this marinade levels up ordinary chicken thighs, making it the star of any bowl, plate, sandwich or wrap that you could imagine. Served here with a blend of sautéed brussels and red cabbage- a very good idea as well!
Saucy!
Spicy Cherry Chicken
Spicy cherry chicken thighs, marinated in sweet cherry jam and gochujang, brightened up with garlic and lime for the perfect weeknight meal!
Ingredients
- 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 2 TB olive oil
- 1/4 cup cherry jam
- 1/3 cup gochujang sauce
- 1 lime, juiced (about 3 TB)
- 1 heaping TB minced garlic
- 1/4 tsp salt
Directions
- Step 1 Mix all the marinade ingredients in a large bowl and mix well until combined. Add the chicken thighs and coat thoroughly.
- Step 2 Refrigerate at least 1 hour, or overnight if desired.
- Step 3 Preheat the oven to 375F. Place the chicken in a single layer in a glass baking pan (I used a pie plate). Bake until chicken is cooked through, approximately 30 minutes, maybe a little more if your thighs are very thick.
- Step 4 Serve with your favorite sides, and enjoy!
