I love any excuse to use fresh cranberries in cooking and baking when they make their annual appearance and this cranberry chicken dish is a great way to showcase their bright, tart flavor in an easy weeknight meal that’s also festive enough for a special occasion or holiday dinner.
There’s always a bag of fresh cranberries in my refrigerator from November through January. In fact, I’ll usually buy extras to freeze so I can use them all winter long. I think they’re highly underused as people tend to gravitate towards their dried, sweetened counterpart more often. Not me though. Give me that bright, tart, punchy flavor over the fake sweetened stuff any day. It’s why the only cookie I want at Christmastime is these cranberry chocolate chip cookies and why this cranberry curd tart is still my favorite dessert I’ve ever made.
This cranberry chicken dish is the perfect way to incorporate fresh cranberries into an easy dinner. The fresh cranberries liven up a simple creamy garlic white wine sauce and a few sprigs of fresh rosemary bring festive flair and lovely herbaceous flavor.
What You’ll Need
Part of the beauty of this recipe is its simplicity. There’s just a handful of ingredients that transform into a deliciously colorful seasonal dish.
Chicken — I like using bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for this recipe. Making this dish in a skillet allows for wonderfully crispy chicken skin which adds extra flavor to the sauce.
White wine — Any white wine you’d drink is fine for this recipe, although I prefer drier options versus sweet. If you don’t cook with alcohol, omit the wine and use more broth.
Chicken broth — Along with the wine, this creates the simple sauce to coat the chicken and work up all the brown bits in the pan from searing that add lots of flavor.
Flour — Helps thicken the sauce. For a gluten-free dish, use a gluten-free 1:1 flour of your choice.
Rosemary and garlic — Fresh rosemary and its woodsy flavor along with fresh garlic are key in this recipe to flavor the sauce and complement the cranberries.
Cranberries — Fresh or frozen thawed cranberries are added to the skillet at the end of cooking, just until they’re warmed through and right before they start to break down and pop. Their tart flavor complements the savory white wine garlic sauce perfectly.
Substitutions
I don’t recommend substitutions in simple recipes like this often because when they’re so pared down already, even something small like using a dried herb instead of fresh can make a big impact. But I understand sometimes you’re in a pinch.
- Dried rosemary can be used in place of fresh. You’ll want to increase the amount though to get a similar level of flavor.
- Cornstarch can be used in place of flour to help thicken the sauce. This is also another good gluten-free option.
- Try other types of chicken cuts if you don’t have bone-in, skin-on thighs on hand. Boneless works just as well, but you’ll want to cut down on the cooking time. You can also use chicken breasts if you prefer.
- Making this outside of cranberry season? Cherries actually work really well as a swap. You can use fresh or frozen pitted sweet cherries or tart cherries. This goat cheese fried chicken features a cherry compote with tarragon sauce offering a similar vibe.
Additions
Cranberries and orange are a classic pairing. I love adding some orange zest to the sauce of this cranberry chicken recipe when I have fresh oranges on hand.
You can also use lemon zest instead. When I do that I find that a touch of honey is a good idea so the sauce isn’t overly zingy.
Serving Ideas
The garlic white wine pan sauce of this recipe is something you’ll want to lick up every last bit of. That’s why I like pairing this meal with roasted garlic mashed potatoes to soak it all up. Rice, mashed yuca or mashed rutabaga are also good options.
For vegetables, parsnip puree is a lower-carb swap for potatoes while green beans or roasted Brussels sprouts make a good pairing for winter meals.
More Savory Ways to Use Cranberries
Cranberry quinoa salad
Cranberry pesto stuffed lamb
Avocado lentil cranberry salad
Cranberry Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, about 1-1.5 pounds
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup white wine
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons flour, gluten-free if needed
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat. Once hot, add the chicken, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook until browned on both sides, about seven minutes each. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the chicken broth and flour, pour into the skillet and use a spatula to scrape up any leftover chicken bits. Add in white wine, garlic and rosemary. Stir continually until sauce begins to thicken, about five minutes.
- Add the chicken back to the skillet and simmer for another 10 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.
- Add in cranberries and cook until just warmed for about a minute or two. Remove from heat and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
