This Apricot Chicken Recipe combines juicy, tender, bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts with a sticky, slightly sweet apricot sauce. The chicken is seared on the stovetop and then finished in the oven to fully cook while dried apricots are cooked with onions to make a nice and thick sauce that is spooned over the chicken. Try serving it with rice or mashed potatoes to capture the yummy sauce.
Quick & Easy Apricot Chicken Recipe
Dried apricots are first softened then cooked with onions and herbs to create a slightly sweet savory sauce to pour over the most tender oven roasted chicken breasts. Just a few simple ingredients create a restaurant quality dish with just a few minutes of prep. Great for serving to friends or for a weeknight dinner.
The sweet, tangy apricot sauce pairs perfectly with the juicy, tender chicken. It’s a fun way to jazz up a basic chicken dish without overcomplicating things.
For this recipe, I chose to use bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts as the skin and bones add a ton of flavor and will prevent the breasts from drying out. If you want to use boneless chicken breasts, try this apricot chicken recipe instead.
Marinating the chicken in buttermilk is my secret for moist chicken breasts, it’s a trick my mother-in-law taught me. It’s not truly a Southern recipe if it doesn’t have buttermilk, right? Next you’ll sear the chicken on the stovetop and finish cooking them in the oven as you make the sauce.
The sauce has just a little sweetness from the apricots and apricot jam. It’s simple but delicious and adds a lovely fruity flavor to the chicken. I love fresh apricots, but here in the South I have to use dried apricots. It’s amazing how much flavor they retain when dried. They make the best apricot bars! If you have fresh peaches around, add them to this fruity chicken dish.
Since this recipe already has tons of great flavor, it’s perfect for serving with plain side dishes like mashed potatoes or rice.
This Apricot Chicken Recipe Will Be a Huge Hit
- It’s flavorful: The apricots paired with the sautéed herbs and aromatics create a savory, sauce that perfectly complements the chicken.
- It’s moist: Soaking the chicken in buttermilk produces a super moist, flavorful result.
- It’s easy: Mostly everything is cooked right on the stovetop and doesn’t dirty up a ton of dishes.
Here’s Your Grocery List
This is just an overview of the main ingredients in this dish. For the full list, scroll down to the recipe card.
- Buttermilk: This tenderizes the chicken and keeps it super moist. If you don’t have buttermilk, it’s super easy to make your own buttermilk with basic pantry staples!
- Bone-in chicken breasts with skin: The skin adds fat, which also adds flavor and helps keep the moisture in. You could also use bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs if you prefer, you’ll just need to adjust the cooking time.
- Dried apricots and apricot jam: The dried apricots are soaked to soften them up a bit and add a wonderful texture to the sauce. The apricot jam adds a little sweetness, if you want it sweeter, you can add more.
- Herbs: Thyme sprigs and a bay leaf add an earthy, herbal flavor to the sauce. You can play around with different herbs to get your desired result.
- White wine: This deglazes the pan and adds a depth of flavor to the apricot sauce.
Making Apricot Chicken Is So Easy
Step One: Marinate the Chicken
Pour buttermilk into a bowl and soak the chicken—this makes it tender and flavorful. When you’re ready, rinse it off, pat it dry, and season it up. You can marinate this overnight, but if you forget, even 30 minutes will help.
Step Two: Sear the Chicken
Heat some oil in a skillet and get that chicken nice and golden on both sides. Then, add the chicken to a baking dish and pop it into the oven to finish cooking while you work on the sauce.
Step Three: Soften the Apricots
While the chicken is baking, soften the dried apricots in some hot water. This step gives them a lovely texture for the sauce.
Step Four: Make the Sauce
In the same skillet, sauté onions with herbs until they’re soft and fragrant. Add garlic and a splash of wine, and scrape up those tasty bits from the pan. Toss in some broth, jam, and the softened apricots, then simmer until it thickens.
Step Five: Finish and Serve
Add a little butter to the sauce for extra richness and spoon it over the baked chicken.
Tips & Variations
- Use paper towels: Pat the chicken dry before searing to remove excess moisture, or the chicken may steam instead of sear.
- Apricots: Don’t have dry apricots? Use apricot preserves or canned apricots instead.
- Moist: To make sure the chicken is moist, remove each chicken breast when it reaches 165º; some will take longer than others, depending on how thick they are.
- Sweeten it: If you want this to be sweeter, you can add an additional tablespoon of jam. The recipe has a slightly sweet taste already but is more savory than sweet.
Serving This Chicken Dish
- White or brown rice, quinoa, Yukon gold mashed potatoes, or pasta
- Vegetables like roasted broccoli or asparagus
- Pair it with a broccoli salad
Proper Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let the chicken thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
To reheat, place a small skillet over medium heat and add the chicken and apricot sauce. Let it gently reheat until warmed through. You can also pop leftovers in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute to reheat.
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Bone-In Chicken with Dried Apricots
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in chicken breasts with skin
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 4 ounces dried apricots about ½ cup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons apricot jam
- 1 tablespoon butter
Instructions
- Place chicken in a ziplock bag or airtight container and pour buttermilk over it. Let it refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight. Rinse off buttermilk and dry with a paper towel. Salt and pepper both sides.
- Preheat oven to 350º. Cover a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- In a medium sized bowl, pour hot water over apricots and set aside for 15 minutes until softened. Drain.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts, skin side down and cook without moving for about 5 minutes. Turn and cook an additional 5 minutes. Transfer to the prepared pan, skin side up, and bake for 20-30 minutes depending on the size of the breasts. Remove each one when a meat thermometer registers 165º.
- While the chicken is baking, add the onions, thyme and bay leaf to the skillet and sprinkle with salt. Cook over medium heat until the onions have softened. Add garlic and cook an additional minute. Add wine and scrape up any brown bits. Cook until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock, apricots, and apricot jam and bring to a boil. Continue to cook until it thickens about 5-8 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Remove from the heat and add butter. Remove the thyme and bay leaf. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and serve.
Barbara’s Tips + Notes
- If you don’t have time to marinate in buttermilk overnight, even 30 minutes will make a difference.
- You can use chicken broth instead of white wine.
- To make the sauce sweeter, add more apricot jam to taste.
Nutrition
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Shelley says
I love apricot flavor and am looking forward to trying this dish this week or next.
I will post a review then.
Just a suggestion…add the buttermilk to the list of ingredients
Barbara Curry says
Thanks, I had it in there and somehow I must have deleted it. I hope you like this dish.