Apricot

The Best Worst Chicken Recipe

by:
July 27, 2015
4.5
2 Ratings
The Best Worst Chicken Recipe
Photo by I swear it's better than it looks
  • Makes 4 chicken thighs
Author Notes

I've written this recipe as my mom dictates it to me over the phone each time I call her to ask her again for the "weird chicken recipe with the apricot jam and onion stuff," but with slightly more exact measurements than she calls for. That being said, it is really hard to mess up so feel free to eye-ball all the ingredients. And don't try to get ahead of yourself and make the ingredients at home—stick with the pre-mix pack, Smucker's, and store-bought 'yaki (it's all part of the charm). Oh and by the way, it is crazy delicious. —Leslie Stephens

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
  • 1 packet Lipton's onion mix
  • 3 heaping tablespoons Smucker's apricot jam
  • Teriyaki sauce, as needed (the more non-homemade, the better)
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Rinse the chicken thighs and place them snugly in an small baking dish. I used an 8- by 8-inch dish. (Note: Cara Nicoletti says you don't need to rinse chicken since all of the bacteria will cook off during baking anyways, but follow your heart.)
  2. Pour the onion mix into a small bowl, then use a spoon to combine it with the apricot jam. (As my mom says, "Three heaping spoonfuls should do it, but the more jam the better so don't worry about it.") While continuing to stir, pour the teriyaki sauce in about 1 tablespoon at a time until you have "sort of a marinade-y consistency." I'd guess I end up using about 4 tablespoons total, but give or take a tablespoon and you're good to go.
  3. Use a spoon to dollop the marinade over the chicken, making sure to cover it completely and get lots of sauce over the skin—the sugar in the jam will caramelize and the onion bits will get crunchy, which is just the thing you want to eat with chicken skin.
  4. Bake the chicken for 1 hour, or until the sauce has caramelized lightly and the chicken is cooked though (I'll sometimes take it out at 45 minutes and cut into one of the thighs to double check).
  5. Serve over something that will soak up all the saucy goodness like brown rice with some roasted broccoli on the side. Enjoy!
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4 Reviews

FrugalCat
FrugalCat October 4, 2020
I had such a 80's flashback reading this. My mom used this product called Saucy Susan, which was a jarred peach/apricot glaze that wasn't sweet like jam. The onion soup mix is a great flavoring agent as well. You can also use some of those dry french fried onions.
 
Erin W.
Erin W. October 4, 2015
Can you make this ahead (by soaking in marinade, for instance)? Also, I accidentally bought boneless, skinless thighs. Will it still work?
 
Leslie S.
Leslie S. October 4, 2015
I've never tried marinating it first but it may take away from the crispness of the dried onion mix and it's so quick to mix together that I don't think marinating ahead will save more than 2 minutes (it's my go-to easy recipe!). And I love this recipe because it makes the skin crispy and I've never tried it without the skin but I'm sure it'll still taste good! But try it and let me know how it works!
 
Erin W.
Erin W. October 5, 2015
Great stuff! I went back to the grocery store and switched out the boneless thighs for skin on, bone in. My 4-yr old loved this recipe.