Recipe

Apple-Sage Chicken Saute

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 20 min
Serves: 4

All too often we forget that apples can star in the saute pan as well as the fruit bowl. Make them buttery and sage-scented and cozy them up beside juicy chicken and you’ve got the best of market fresh dining. You won’t find a more delicious use for that “apple a day.”

Ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 tbsp (15 mL) butter
1 cup (250 mL) apple juice
1 cup (250 mL) apple cider
2 tbsp (30 mL) Dijon mustard
1 tsp (5 mL) sage, dried
1 pinch thyme, dried
1 pinch salt
2 apples

Instructions

1 Melt butter in a large wide frying pan set over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden tinged, from 3 to 4 minutes a side. Reduce temperature if it is turning dark brown. Meanwhile core the unpeeled apples and cut into 8 wedges each. Whisk juice with the Dijon to evenly blend.
2 When chicken is browned, pour the juice mixture overtop. Sprinkle with the sage and thyme. Arrange apple wedges around the chicken. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and cook until chicken feels springy when pressed and a meat thermometer reaches 165°F (74°C), about 4 minutes a side for breasts and 3 minutes for thighs. Turn apples occasionally. Remove chicken and apple wedges to a platter.
3 Turn heat to high. Use a wooden spoon to scrape browned bits from the pan bottom. Boil, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until juice is reduced to a thick glaze, about 3 minutes. Pour any chicken juices collected on the plate into the sauce. Spoon or pour over the chicken.