Thursday, February 28, 2013

Bourbon Braised Chicken with Carmelized Onions


Bourbon chicken is typically cooked on the grilled and often times with an Asian flair.  It's been a tad bit too cold to fire up the grill and I was craving more of a savory, Southern kick than a sweet candy, fruity dish.

After pouring over several recipes that included peaches, apples and lots of brown sugar, I decided to craft this to satisfy my cravings and was so pleased with the outcome.

I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but this would definitely work with any cut of chicken you desire.  If using skin on chicken, after browning the chicken pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the excess fat from the skillet..

2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, mashed
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup bourbon
1/2 cup chicken broth
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season the chicken with the salt and pepper.

Heat 1 tablespoon of Canola oil in  a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the onions and saute until they begin to caramelize, stirring frequently.  Once the onions are caramelized, remove from the skillet with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add the remaining tablespoon of Canola oil to the same skillet and sear the chicken breasts on both sides over medium-high heat.  About 3 to 4 minutes per side.  Remove the chicken breasts to a platter.

Add the balsamic vinegar and bourbon to the skillet and bring to a simmer while scraping up any browned bits left behind from the chicken.  Simmer for about 5 minutes then stir in the cayenne, the mashed garlic cloves and the chicken broth.  Arrange the chicken breasts in the skillet return to a simmer, lower heat, cover and continue simmering until the chicken is cooked through, about 25 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a generous ladle of the Bourbon and Caramelized Onion sauce.




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8 comments:

Gloria Baker said...

this look absolutely delicious!!!

A Sunflower Life said...

Oh this sounds good, and I would enjoy it much more than the sweeter versions of this dish. Can't wait to try it!

Big Dude said...

Mighty fine creation Katherine. Since I BBQ year round, being too cold to grill doesn't compute for me :-)

The JR said...

I like this pick better than the sugar laden ones you mentioned.

teresa said...

delicious! i'm always excited about ways to jazz up chicken!

Chris said...

This might be a repost because blogger crashed when I wrote this first time:

But Alexis already told me that we have to make this earlier this week when she saw your post on FB or twitter.

Blond Duck said...

I'd lap this up!

Jeane M. said...

I nom this one! Definitely going in my weekend menu. Got my eye on your next posts.