Apricot Chicken Thighs are sweet and savory and made in one-pan. This is a delicious comfort food dish that’s excellent for a busy weeknight and interesting and lovely enough for entertaining on the weekend.
Very reminiscent of Chicken Marbella, this apricot chicken skillet dinner is sweet, savory, hearty and so pretty!
The sweetness from the apricots is such a delicious contrasting flavor in the sauce with the briny olives. Add to that, caramelized onions, garlic, herbs, a generous splash of vermouth and succulent chicken, and watch out!
The Ingredients
(I often suggest brands I love and use — these are only suggestions and this is not a sponsored post.)
- olive oil. I like this one.
- boneless, skinless chicken thighs - Fresh raw chicken should be a light pink color with little to no odor, soft and moist.
- shallots - Shallots are slightly more mild and delicate than red onions. Try to choose those that are firm, heavy for their size and without bruises.
- garlic - Look for firm heads of garlic without any soft spots or green shoots, which are an indication it's old. (Raw garlic cloves should be firm without any dark spots.)
- Kalamata Olives - Pitted.
- Manzanilla olives - Pitted.
- dried apricots - When you choose dried apricots for this recipe, they should be plump and soft. These are my favorites.
- vermouth - Vermouth is fortified wine that includes botanicals, sugar, and spirits. It's the use of botanicals (herbs, spices, and bitter roots) that gives Vermouth a unique flavor.
- dried oregano
- honey
- fresh basil - Look for perky bunches and avoid any brown, bruised or yellow leaves. The smaller the leaves, the more tender they'll be.
- salt - I cook with Kosher salt. I prefer it for a few reasons: its larger flake size, it's less refined and usually doesn't contain additives, and it does a great job enhancing the flavor of foods without making them taste salty.
- pepper - Preferably freshly ground.
(See recipe card below for quantities.)
How to Make it
This easy apricot chicken recipe is relatively quick to whip up . . .
- Sear the chicken in a very hot skillet with olive oil. Brown both sides and then remove it from the pan. Set aside.
- Then over medium heat, in the same skillet, sauté shallots, garlic, olives and apricots.
- Deglaze the pan with vermouth and when it has almost completely reduced, add the oregano. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Return the chicken to the pan and spoon some of the olive-apricot mixture on top. Reduce the heat to low, drizzle with olive oil and honey, and cover. Cook just until the chicken is cooked through.
(More detailed instructions are in the recipe card below.)
Substitutions and Additions
- I suggest a combination of Kalamata and Manzanilla, but you can use your favorite olive varieties.
- Red onions can substitute the shallots, though they're a bit stronger in flavor.
- The recipe calls for vermouth, but chicken with apricots is also fantastic with dry sherry. Or if you don't want to add either, substitute with more of the vegetable stock.
- You can substitute fresh oregano for the dry if you'd like. Use about a third the amount.
- You can use chicken breasts instead of the thighs if you prefer. You can use bone-in, though the cooking time will be longer. I prefer skinless in this recipe to prevent the sauce from being too greasy.
- If you want to add a little heat to this dish, sprinkle red chili flakes on top.
Recipe Tips
- Make sure pan is very hot before you add the chicken to sear it. (You should hear a sizzling sound!) Otherwise, it won’t brown as quickly or easily. In this first step of searing it, we’re not cooking it through (that happens later).
Serving Suggestions
- I serve this Apricot Chicken recipe with a side salad and warm bread. The meal is a hit with my whole family. Italian Herb Bread and Little Gem Salad with Avocados are both delicious with it.
- It's also great to serve a rice dish with it. Spoon some of the apricot sauce over it.
Other Skillet Chicken Dinner Recipes
Making it Ahead
- Ideally, Apricot Chicken should be served right after it's finished cooking. That's when the chicken will be at it juiciest. However, it's still excellent the next day. Let it come to room temperature and refrigerate in an airtight container, then to reheat it, set it out at room temperature for about 30 minutes, place it in a casserole dish in a 375°F oven just until it's hot, about 15 minutes.
- Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- It can be kept in the freezer for up to 2 months in an airtight container of freezer bag with a bit of room for expansion.
More Must-try Chicken Recipes
- Chicken Roulade with Prosciutto and Basil
- Roasted Chicken with Apple and Bacon
- Caprese Chicken with Spinach
- Shredded Dutch Oven Chicken
I hope you love this apricot chicken as much as I do!
Enjoy!
Apricot Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 3 pounds chicken thighs, boneless, skinless
- 1 cup shallots, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped garlic, roots removed
- ¾ cup pitted Kalamata olives
- ½ cup pitted Manzanilla olives
- ¾ cup roughly chopped dried apricots
- ½ cup vermouth
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ¼ cup fresh basil, washed and dried, roughly chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Add 1 tablespoon of the oil to a large skillet (cast iron is best). Place the pan over medium-high heat. Lightly sprinkle both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper and add them to the pan once it’s very hot. Sauté just long enough to lightly brown, about 1 minute per side. (Do this in two batches if it’s a tight fit.) Remove the chicken and set it aside on a plate covered with foil.
- Turn the heat to medium-low and add the shallots. Stirring a bit, once they begin to soften, add the garlic and sauté for another couple of minutes. Add the olives and apricots and sauté, stirring often until everything begins to brown, about 4 minutes.
- Move the pan away from the heat and add the vermouth. Turn the heat to medium-high and using a deglazing spatula, scrape any bits of the ingredients stuck to the bottom of the pan off, and into the mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Here’s How to Season to Taste.) When the vermouth has almost completely reduced, stir in the oregano.
- Return all of the chicken pieces to the pan, placing them more or less beneath the olive-apricot mixture. Reduce the heat to low, drizzle evenly with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the honey, and cover. Cook just until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
- Sprinkle with the basil and serve.
NUTRITION
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angiesrecipes
What a great combo of flavours! Chicken thighs are the BEST part of the whole bird 🙂 Definitely on my must try list.
valentina
Thank you, Angie. I hope you love it as much as we do! 🙂 ~Valentina
Marissa
I love your savory sweet creations, Valentina! Love that you used thighs here too (I think they're underrated!), so juicy and flavorful. We'll be trying this soon!
valentina
I completely agree that thighs are underrated. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by, Marissa. Hope you have a great weekend! ~Valentina
nancy
You KNOW this recipe has my name all over it right? Honestly, Valentina I LOVE this dish - don't even need to make it know that I would adore every single bite!!!
valentina
Thank you so much, Nancy! And so easy, too. 😀 ~Valentina
Eha
Oh this one will go straight to the top of the 'to-do' list ! Chicken thighs, shallots, Kalamata olives and vermouth for me . . . am looking forwards to it ! Methinks in the unlikely event of leftovers they would survive till the next day . . . 🙂 !
valentina
Yay! I hope you love it, Eha! 🙂 ~Valentina
Clara Jenkins
Wow! What a delightful recipe thank you so much for the idea. I would like to try this recipe for my husband I wish he will like this thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
valentina
Thanks, Clara. I hope you and your husband love it as much as we do! 🙂 ~Valentina
Jeff the Chef
What gorgeous colors! How interesting to use vermouth. I'll bet it's delicious.
valentina
Thanks, Jeff. Sometimes I just grab what I have in the pantry and it works really well. 🙂 ~Valentina
Cathy
I love skillet dinners and this one with a Moroccan flair has my name all over it.
valentina
Thanks, Cathy! Wish I could hand you a plate right now. 🙂
Liz
I love skillet dinners! And this one will not disappoint with the varieties of flavors and textures. Yummy!
valentina
Thank you, Liz. Enjoy! 🙂 ~Valentina
Gerlinde@Sunnycovechef
A wonderful recipe, apricots and olive add so much flavor to the chicken thighs. It reminds me of a chicken dish I had in Marrakech several years ago.
valentina
Thanks, Gerlinde. Oh how I'd love to try something like this in Marrakech! 🙂 ~Valentina
Kelly | Foodtasia
So. Much. Flavor! Valentina, this chicken dish looks so wonderful and full of flavor! I love the combination of savory and sweet - and the touch of briny is fantastic!
valentina
Thanks so much, Kelly! Yes, the sweet-salty thing is wonderful. 😀 ~Valentina
2pots2cook
Sweet salty with a bit of vermouth is absolutely our favourite with some salad. Thanks and enjoy the day 🙂
valentina
Thank you, Davorka. I hope you have a great day, too! 🙂 ~Valentina
David @ Spiced
I love the sound of this recipe, Valentina! To be honest, I don't think I'd ever had warm olives until this past weekend when we ordered them as an appetizer. Wow! Now I want to try this dish at home with the warm olives and flavorful chicken thighs!
valentina
So cool you just tried warm olive this past weekend! Delicious, right? Thanks for the visit, David. 🙂 ~Valentina
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
This is totally my kinda dish, Valentina! Savoury/sweet/salty and just delicious! This would be so good for a weeknight dinner or entertaining, alike. Hubby would love too! Hope you're having a lovely week so far, my friend 🙂
valentina
I hope you're having a great week, too -- and enjoy! Thank you. 🙂 ~Valentina
mimi rippee
This is lovely! I can't wait to try it. Love the ingredients.
valentina
Thanks, Mimi! 😀
David Scott Allen
A million years ago I had a dish called Chicken Marbella from the Silver Palate. I found the recipe and decided it was too fussy! Your dish has all the best parts of that but made so easy! (Who knows, maybe Chicken Marbella is easy - I was young and probably intimidated!) Can’t wait to try this, Valentina!
valentina
I hope you like it, David. It is pretty easy to "throw" together. Thanks! 🙂 ~Valentina
David Scott Allen
I made this last evening! I was supposed to be cooking and photographing for a blog post but my main ingredient was unavailable till tomorrow. So? Plan B with Valentina! We all loved it and the drizzle of honey really rounded out the flavors! Thanks for another wonderful recipe that was even better than silly old Marbella!
valentina
David, you made my day! I'm so happy you liked this recipe. And I can't wait to see what your unavailable ingredient is! 🙂 ~Valentina
Alene
I made this tonight for 2 of us. I thought it was very good but a fair amount of work for a weeknight. But I know your site is Cooking on the Weekends. Lol! The one thing I thought was that I wished there was some liquid in it at the end. The olive/shallot/apricot mixture was yummy but a little dry. I have a very powerful cooktop and am certain to keep the heat on a burner temperature lower than the recipe indicates. So maybe I accidentally dried up the liquid that was left. If not, I would make this again but add something to make a sauce of sorts. Any suggestions? Thank you!
valentina
Hi Alene, Thanks so much for all of this great feedback. I think adding a little chicken stock would help with this -- probably about 1/2 cup. You can add it with the vermouth. I recently got a new stove (yay!) and the burners are much more powerful than before, so I know what you mean. I love it, though. Thanks again for reading and cooking my recipes! 🙂 ~Valentina
Cynthia
Hello Valentina — this is a lovely recipe — no fuss but with a complex mix of flavors that can turn a quick weeknight dinner into something special. My one suggestion re your recipe as written: instead of “1 cup shallots, thinly sliced,” it should read “1 cup thinly sliced shallots” — it’s a distinct difference in terms of amounts specified, and I believe you meant the latter rather than the former? And then 2 tablespoons roughly chopped garlic, roots removed; 3/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives; 1/2 cup pitted Manzanilla olives; 3/4 cup roughly chopped dried apricots; and 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh basil, washed and dried.
I’m new to your site and will enjoy checking out your other recipes. Thanks!
valentina
Hi Cynthia, thanks so much for writing in. I'm happy you're enjoying my recipes, and I really appreciate your feedback. I agree with you, and I'm going to edit the recipe accordingly. 🙂 I try to write every recipe in the same format for consistency, but it many cases, I should change it to be more clear. Thank you so much and hope you have a great day! ~Valentina
Nadine
I made this recipe tonight for dinner and it was a big hit with my husband and me. I already had all the ingredients at home and it came together super fast. (Funny, how I found this: I saw a recipe for chicken thighs, apricots and carrots in the NYT food column, but after taking a closer look that recipe needed apricot preserves and mayo. I didn't want anything that heavy, but I decided I wanted apricots with chicken thighs tonight. I'm so glad I stumbled upon your blog and this recipe. I will be back. Thank you for helping make dinner so yummy tonight.
valentina
Hi Nadine, You made my day! 🙂 I'm so happy you landed on my recipe and that you and your husband loved it. Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know. I hope you keep trying the recipes. Warmly, Valentina
David Scott Allen
After commenting years agi, I must say that we (okay, I) have made this so often -- it is such a comforting and flavorful dish. Thank you for all the goodness you bring to our kitchen and dining room!