These maple ginger chicken thighs are the perfect go-to chicken dinner. An easy maple ginger marinade turns into a sticky sweet and gingery sauce that coats crispy chicken thighs and apples.

12 days ago I paid someone $500+ to tell me how to eat for 3 months.

Are you laughing yet?

Yes, I’m a food blogger, a freelance recipe developer and photographer and I just paid someone to tell me how.to.eat.

Thing is, I know how to eat healthy, I’ve done paleo challenges, I’ve done calorie counting, I’ve even dabbled into the world of macros.

I probably know enough about food and health to be half way (or more) through a nutrition degree but refuse to pay any more money in schooling at this point in my life.

Maple Ginger Chicken Thighs
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Yet even with all that, here I am for the past few months, training pretty hard but not able to get my body where I want it to be (ideally a few pounds lighter to make bodyweight movements easier and leaner) because those damn chocolate bars hiding in the corner of my pantry and all the things you see on Instagram tempt me on a daily basis.

So, my solution was to spend enough money to make it sting and use that as accountability.

A pretty in depth questionnaire about my goals and current status later, I started a plan with a coach based around macro-nutrient percentages and meal timing and hopefully things will start to take shape.

I can say this so far though, of all the dietary challenges, fads, experiments I’ve done, this is by far the easiest because nothing is off the table.

While some people take macro diet approaches as an opportunity to slam donuts, sugary cereal and other processed foods, I’m not.

My pantry and fridge has remained the same, I’m still eating healthy, whole foods.

Roasted Maple Ginger Chicken Thighs

What has changed, is the lack of “recipes” I’m eating because spending 30 minutes on My Fitness Pal trying to figure out the macro nutrient breakdown in a recipe with 10+ ingredients is not something I have time for in my day.

That’s the hard part for me.

Instead, I’m cooking veggies in bulk and proteins separately (for easy measurement later) and then compiling on my plate per meal.

I don’t mind it, but as someone who loves being in the kitchen, who on a crisp fall day sometimes yearns to just start chopping onions, garlic and other random things to throw in a big pot and become soup or stew or chili, it can be a bit difficult.

I see all these people on Instagram (#rpstrength) spending their Sundays meal prepping and no less than 20 tupperware containers lined up on the counter filled with the exact same meal for the entire week and I want to cry.

The thought of that depresses me.

I can’t eat the same thing for 6 meals (because that’s how many meals I’m eating a day now) in 1 day, let alone 7.

I need variety! I actually like to cook!

Which brings me to these maple ginger chicken thighs.

You were thinking there was never going to be a segue, weren’t you?

Maple Ginger Chicken Thighs from the cookbook Maple

About a month ago, I received a copy of Katie’s cookbook, Maple.

Katie is the kind of person that makes you want to be a better person. She’s fun, bubbly, super sweet and we may have bonded over both having a love for lifting heavy shit on the many occasions we’ve hung out.

As a Vermonter who makes her own maple syrup in her backyard with her family, Katie is more than fit to write this book with 100 sweet and savory recipes celebrating maple syrup.

Maple came out last week and one of the first recipes that caught my eye was this one for maple ginger chicken thighs.

Firstly, everyone has (or needs to have) that one chicken recipe you come back to time and time again.

That one when you can’t think of anything else to make for dinner, becomes dinner. Katie’s head-note on this recipe promised me this would be that recipe and she wasn’t wrong.

Although, it’s neck and neck with with my maple miso chicken recipe!

Besides the draw of the apple cider, apples, shallots and thyme which are just perfect for this time of year, you know what else was great about this recipe in my eyes? Calculating the macros was a piece of cake!

Finally, a recipe I can make without losing my mind trying to figure out how much fat/carbs/protein there are in each serving.

The marinade/cooking liquid is so good you’ll want to drink the juices from the bottom of the baking dish.

It’s how I feel about this maple mustard chicken dish too. Must be that maple syrup!

The chicken gets nice and crispy on top while remaining juicy and tender on the inside (just like these chicken leg quarters cooked in the Instant Pot) then broiled to crispy perfection!

Then there’s the apples, oh the apples. They might be my favorite part of this whole dish as they bake down and absorb all the amazing maple, ginger flavor from the marinade. One of my favorite ways to cook with fresh ginger is using it in marinades like this. This balsamic fig glazed chicken recipe has a lot of the same qualities.

This chicken recipe alone is worth buying the book for but I can guarantee you, you’ll fall in love with all the recipes, the gorgeous photography and the eye-opening educational look into the art of sugaring.

One of my favorite little touches in the book is the notation on each recipe for paleo, vegan and gluten-free where fitting and I think you’ll be shocked at how many delicious sounding recipes there are for each!

Grab the book on Amazon, it’d make a great holiday gift!

More fall-perfect dinner recipes:
Sheet pan chicken and sweet potatoes
Slow cooker BBQ apple pulled pork sandwiches
Butternut squash noodles with spinach and ricotta

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4.50 from 2 votes

Maple Ginger Chicken Thighs

Servings: 8 servings
Prep: 12 hours
Cook: 1 hour
Total: 13 hours
These maple ginger chicken thighs are the perfect go-to chicken dinner. An easy maple ginger marinade turns into a sticky sweet and gingery sauce that coats crispy chicken thighs and apples.

Ingredients 

  • 1 shallot, finely sliced
  • 3/4 cup apple cider
  • 1/2 cup dark pure maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon finely grated ginger
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves, plus a few sprigs for the roasting pan
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 8 bone-in chicken thighs
  • 3 medium apples, peeled, cored and quartered (pears can also be used as a substitution or along with apples)

Instructions 

  • In a medium bowl whisk the shallot, cider, maple syrup, grated ginger, apple cider vinegar, chopped thyme leaves, kosher salt and ground black pepper.
  • Pour marinade into a large plastic storage bag and add in the chicken thighs. Seal bag and let chicken marinate in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours, turning the chicken in the bag once.
  • Once ready to cook, preheat your oven to 400 degrees, add chicken to a 9×13 baking dish and arrange apple slices and thyme sprigs around the chicken.
  • Pour the marinate over the chicken and bake the chicken for about an hour or until the chicken is fully cooked. Baste the chicken with the marinade a few times during the cooking process.
  • Remove from oven, let cool a few minutes then serve.

Nutrition

Serving: 1SERVINGCalories: 382kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 31gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 166mgSodium: 429mgFiber: 2gSugar: 22g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Dishes
Cuisine: American
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Founder and Writer at Running to the Kitchen | About

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.

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9 Comments

  1. Ahhh….I’m glad I’m not the only one who have that problems. As a foodie myself, I’m always concerned about food I eat. Not to mention when we need to eat out and try out some other recipes. Phewwww….we’re all on the same boat :) And this chicken recipe is so droolworthy! I love Katie’s book, maple. And it motivates me to spend more time in the kitchen.

  2. Im always looking for new ways to make chicken because I have fallen in the habit of just making basic baked chicken (aka dried and bland). The flavor combo in this sounds incredible and I have almost all ingredients on hand! Score!

  3. Instagram is tempting! I actually think it’s interesting how I get double the likes when it comes to sweet treats. If I post something savory, I get much less. Our bodies and our minds certainly have their own idea of what’s good for you.

  4. First of all thank you soo much for sharing this recipe! I am thrilled you love it too. And second, good for you to do what you are doing with your diet. I will be really interesting to see if it helps with lifting heavy $h!t. I am guessing it will. I just saw the video on instagram of you lifting (that must have been from the competition) and you look so freaking bada–. I am psyched to see where you go from here.

  5. OMG I am right there with you. I almost signed up and paid for the whole life challenge just to get a new perspective on waht I am eating to see if I can push past the barriers that seem to not want to move while I am training. But, I didn’t and now I am regretting it. I think I may break down after the holidays and give it a go.
    Love that you used chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts, sometimes a little thigh is a good thing.

  6. I’m always amazed by your ability to get through different food challenges. I can’t wait to hear how this one goes for you!!