Cider-glazed chicken thighs with butternut squash, apples, cranberries & pecans – a dinner that smells like fall 🍂
This may just be my favorite fall dinner to date 💛
There’s a certain kind of evening that makes you want to shut the world out and just… roast dinner in the oven. The air turns that exact kind of crisp where your windows fog a little, your slippers make soft sounds on the floor, and you realize with deep satisfaction that dinner can, in fact, cook itself if you let the oven do the work.
That’s where this chicken comes in – a true one pot wonder!
You sear the chicken, toss in the vegetables, pour the cider, and the oven turns it all into magic while you light a candle and pretend you live in a cottage somewhere in the English countryside (or in Middle Earth, I don’t judge.)
The pecans get toasty, the cranberries plump up in the juices, and by the time it’s done, your kitchen smells like the best parts of October ✨
Roasted chicken, warm apples, and the cozy scent that fills the kitchen before dinner ✨
Printable recipe
Maple Cider Chicken Skillet
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs (bone-in or boneless)
- salt & pepper (to taste)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 medium onion (cut into thin slices (about 1 cup))
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 4 cups peeled & diced butternut squash or sweet potato (about 1 small squash or 1 large sweet potato, ½-inch dice)
- 1 large apple (quartered, cored and sliced crosswise (about 1 ½ cups))
- 1 heaping cup green beans (trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces)
- ½ cup apple cider (unsweetened if possible)
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules (optional, but adds great depth)
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup roughly chopped pecan halves
Instructions
- Prep:Heat your oven to 400°F. Get your ingredients ready.Heat a large, oven-safe skillet or braiser (about 3.5 quarts or slightly bigger) over medium-high heat.
- Sear chicken:Pat your chicken dry and season both sides with salt and pepper. Drizzle a bit of oil into your warm skillet and place the chicken skin-side down. Don’t rush it – give it 4–5 minutes to really brown.Flip the pieces and cook 2 more minutes on the other side. They don’t need to be fully done; they’ll finish in the oven. Remove the chicken to a plate and set it aside.💡 Tip: If your pan feels crowded, do this in two batches.6 chicken thighs, salt & pepper, 1 tablespoon oil
- Sauté the vegetables:Turn the heat down to medium. Add your chopped onion, garlic, and butternut squash (or sweet potato). Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper.Cook for 4–5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they start to soften and get those golden edges that make your kitchen smell incredible.Now stir in the sliced apples and green beans and cook for another minute or two.1 medium onion, 3 cloves garlic, 4 cups peeled & diced butternut squash or sweet potato, 1 large apple, 1 heaping cup green beans
- Deglaze & make the sauce:Pour in the apple cider and scrape up all those tasty browned bits from the bottom – that’s pure flavor.Whisk in the Dijon, maple syrup, vinegar, bouillon, and rosemary. Let it all bubble together for a minute or two until the sauce smells like fall and friendship.½ cup apple cider, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules, ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- Into the oven:Nestle the chicken thighs right on top of the vegetables, skin facing up. Spoon some of the pan juices over each one.Slide the skillet (uncovered) into the oven and bake for 15 minutes.Then, open the oven, give the vegetables a gentle stir, and baste the chicken with the cider sauce.
- Cover & finish baking:Loosely tent the pan with foil so the chicken skin doesn’t go too dark. Bake another 15 minutes.Uncover, gently stir the dried cranberries into the vegetables, and sprinkle the pecans over top. Give everything one more loving baste with the juices, then bake 5–8 minutes more – just until the cranberries plump and the pecans toast.💡 Tip: Make sure your cranberries are in liquid, or else they scorch!½ cup dried cranberries, ½ cup roughly chopped pecan halves
- Serve & swoon:The vegetables should be tender, the chicken juicy and golden, and the kitchen smelling like the coziest autumn evening.Spoon a little cider sauce over each piece right before serving – that’s the secret that ties it all together.
Tips from my kitchen
Salt in layers: A little on the chicken, a little on the vegetables, and a last pinch before serving. It’s the secret to the flavor actually tasting “complete.”
Maple syrup matters: The real stuff gives depth. The fake stuff gives stickiness.
Don’t overthink the cider: Any non-vinegar apple cider or even apple juice with a splash of vinegar works. You just need that fall-gold sweetness.
Baste, don’t rush: When you spoon those cider juices back over the chicken halfway through, that’s where the magic happens.
Leftovers: Keep them covered in the fridge for up to 2 days. I usually shred the chicken and reheat everything with a spoonful of cream or butter stirred in – it becomes a cozy chicken hash situation.
If you want a side dish, these are my family’s favorites.
You don’t need a side, but if you want one, go for something simple:
- Crusty bread to soak up the sauce
- Creamy mashed potatoes if you’re in the mood for full comfort
- Or wild rice to make it feel rustic and autumn-vacationy (personally my favorite!)
And… a sprinkle of extra pecans at the table never hurts 😉
A truly cozy dinner – like a crisp-golden fall day on your plate!
In full honesty, my kids don’t love the vegetables and pan juices. They pick out the chicken, avoid the “orange stuff,” and insist apples are for snacks, not dinner.
And that’s fine. They get plain rice and chicken, I get the cozy skillet of maple-glazed vegetables; and a kitchen that smells like maple, fall and good choices.
Oh, maple cider chicken, how I adore thee.
Hyperbole, perhaps. Still true? Almost certainly. This is the kind of meal that’s humble but still special. Sweet, tangy, buttery, savory – and definitely one of my all-time favorites. I hope you’ll enjoy it, too!
Made with care, from my kitchen to yours ✨
Comments
No Comments