This balsamic glazed chicken adds a new spin to your average chicken meal. The juicy chicken is marinated in a homemade balsamic marinade and is topped with caramelized onions and a drizzle of balsamic glaze.
Balsamic Chicken Glaze
Balsamic may be the go-to salad dressing, drizzling for fruit, or sauce for your brussels sprouts, but not many think to use it as a marinade for chicken.
Once you get a bite out of these balsamic glazed chicken breasts, you’ll immediately understand what a wonderful pair the two make! It takes the flavor of your chicken to a whole new level. Throw some caramelized onions into the mix, and you’ve got yourself a delicious chicken that is savory, a little sweet, and melt-in-your-mouth good.
Why You’ll Love this Balsamic Glazed Chicken Recipe:
- Easy Recipe: This balsamic chicken recipe uses simple ingredients and is ready to eat in under an hour!
- Delicious Meal: With the balsamic marinade as the star of the show, you’ll have everyone raving about this dinner.
- One-Skillet Recipe: This recipe can be made all in one skillet, which means less mess and fewer dishes.
How to Make Glazed Balsamic Chicken
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
- In a 9” cast iron skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add the sliced onions and saute on medium-low for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- In a large bowl, prepare the marinade. Prep and season the chicken, place it into the marinade bowl and mix, letting the chicken marinate for 15 minutes in the fridge.
- Reheat the cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Place the marinated chicken into the pan and cook as instructed (in the recipe card).
- Spoon the caramelized onions over each piece of chicken and pour the leftover marinade over the chicken pieces and into the bottom of the pan. Cover the pan with a lid and cook on medium-low heat for about 8-10 minutes.
- Then, uncover the pan and allow the sauce to simmer and reduce for about 3 minutes. Once thickened, turn off the heat and spoon the thickened sauce over the chicken. Serve and enjoy!
Ingredient Notes
- Olive Oil: Prevents the onions from burning while cooking.
- Onion: I love the addition of caramelized onions in this recipe and feel like it really makes this dish stand out. Of course, if you’re in a pinch, the onion step can be omitted, but I highly recommend it.
- Balsamic Vinegar: The star of the show. Make sure to choose a high-quality brand, as this is the main thing you’ll be tasting!
- Brown Sugar and Honey: Add a bit of sweetness to the balsamic and help it to thicken up and turn into a glaze faster!
- Tomato Paste: Adds a rich, umami flavor to the glaze, deepening the flavors.
- Seasonings: Garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper all enhance the flavor of the glaze, giving it more depth!
- Chicken Breasts: This recipe can definitely also be made with boneless, skinless chicken thighs! Just adjust the cooking time since they may cook for 4-5 minutes less once covered in the pan.
Absolutely! This glaze is great on boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Just add a bit more time once covered in the pan.
Nope! I love the addition of caramelized onions, but you can always leave them out. Simply skip step 1.
Nope! If you cook the glaze down too early, it can burn once added to the chicken. Cooking it down as instructed in the recipe saves both time and dirty dishes!
Properly cooked chicken should register 165°F on an instant-read thermometer!
Yes! I highly recommend letting the chicken rest before slicing into it to lock in the juices!
Have any leftover balsamic glaze? Here are a few tasty ideas for leftovers!
- Cook it with grilled or roasted veggies.
- Drizzle it on a pizza with sliced tomatoes and goat cheese.
- Coat it over wild salmon before grilling or roasting.
- Drizzle it over a Caprese salad.
- Use it as a flavorful dip for grilled cheese.
Make Ahead Instructions
You can marinate the chicken in the refrigerator up to 1 day in advance of when you plan to cook it.
Storage Instructions
Store leftover balsamic glazed chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Enjoy cold or reheated in the microwave.
Freezing Instructions
Freeze balsamic glazed chicken in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Substitutions
- Feel free to use white or red onions instead of yellow.
- Switch things up by using a flavored balsamic vinegar, such as truffle or raspberry!
- You can use all brown sugar or all honey to sweeten the glaze instead of both.
- You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead of breasts.
Serving Suggestions
Tips for the Best Balsamic Glazed Chicken
- If your chicken breasts are different thicknesses, place them in a Ziplock bag and pound them with a meat mallet or rolling pin until they are an even thickness. This will allow them to cook more evenly.
- Use high quality balsamic vinegar for the best taste.
- Marinate the chicken for at least 15 minutes or up to overnight for the best flavor!
- Sear in a cast iron skillet for the crispiest chicken.
- Use an instant-read meat thermometer to avoid overcooking the chicken.
There are lots of fun and delicious ways to dress up your chicken and make it a delicious and flavorful meal. We hope you enjoyed this recipe, and be sure to let us know how yours turned out in the comments below!
More Balsamic Chicken Recipes!
If you’ve made this recipe, please be sure to let us know by leaving a star rating or a comment below. Enjoy!
Balsamic Glazed Chicken Recipe
This balsamic glazed chicken is just the right amount of savory, a little sweet, and melt-in-your-mouth delcious! It’ll be your new favorite way to spice up your chicken dinner.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
Total Time : 1 hour
Marinade Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 6 people
Instructions
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In a cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add the sliced onions and sauté on medium-low for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer the cooked caramelized onions to a bowl and set aside. Keep the skillet on the stovetop to cook the chicken later.
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, 2 yellow onions
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In a large bowl, prepare the marinade by mixing 2 tablespoons of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, honey, tomato paste, minced garlic, chopped thyme, salt, and pepper together.
½ cup balsamic vinegar, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 3 cloves garlic, 1½ teaspoon chopped fresh thyme, 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
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Pat the chicken pieces with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place seasoned chicken into the marinade bowl and mix, letting the chicken sit in the marinade for 15 minutes in the fridge.
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
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Using the cast iron skillet from earlier, reheat over medium-high heat. Remove each piece of chicken from the marinade and place into the pan, searing over medium heat for 4-5 minutes per side, until the chicken is charred and caramelized.
-
Spoon the caramelized onions over each piece of chicken and pour the leftover marinade over the chicken pieces and into the bottom of the pan. Cover the pan with a lid and cook on medium-low heat, for about 8-10 minutes, until the chicken registers 165°F on a meat thermometer.
-
Uncover the pan and allow the sauce to simmer and reduce for about 3 minutes. Turn off the heat once it has thickened and spoon thickened sauce over the chicken in the pan.
-
Allow the chicken to cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Sprinkle with chopped parsley as garnish!
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Notes
- Feel free to use white or red onions instead of yellow.
- Switch things up by using a flavored balsamic vinegar, such as truffle or raspberry!
- You can use all brown sugar or all honey to sweeten the glaze instead of both.
- You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead of breasts.
- If your chicken breasts are different thicknesses, place them in a Ziplock bag and pound them with a meat mallet or rolling pin until they are an even thickness. This will allow them to cook more evenly.
- Use high quality balsamic vinegar for the best taste.
- Marinate the chicken for at least 15 minutes or up to overnight for the best flavor!
- Sear in a cast iron skillet for the crispiest chicken.
- Use an instant-read meat thermometer to avoid overcooking the chicken.
Storage: Store balsamic glazed chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition Facts
Balsamic Glazed Chicken Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 317
Calories from Fat 117
% Daily Value*
Fat 13g20%
Saturated Fat 2g13%
Trans Fat 0.02g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g
Monounsaturated Fat 8g
Cholesterol 97mg32%
Sodium 787mg34%
Potassium 690mg20%
Carbohydrates 15g5%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 12g13%
Protein 33g66%
Vitamin A 224IU4%
Vitamin C 8mg10%
Calcium 34mg3%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.