Balsamic Glazed Caprese Chicken … “Soooo Delicious!”
Servings: 6
Ingredients:
-
- 6 skinless , bone-in chicken thighs .. CHICKEN TENDERS WORKS GREAT ALSO
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano*
- 1 teaspoon dried basil*
- 1 teaspoon salt
- cracked black pepper , to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (or a light spray of cooking oil spray)
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 2 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar , packed
- 1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes , I DID NOT ADD THESE
- 8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 6x 1/2-inch slices**
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
- Season each chicken thigh with the oregano, basil, (OR ITATLIAN SEASONING) salt and pepper.
- Heat the oil (or cooking spray) in a large oven-proof pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken on both sides until golden brown, about 4 minutes each side. Transfer chicken to a plate; drain most of the excess oil, leaving about a teaspoon
- Return the skillet back to the stove; fry garlic until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar; stirring to combine while heating through. Bring to a simmer, while stirring occasionally, until glaze has thickened (about 5-6 minutes).
- Return the chicken to the pan, turning in the glaze to evenly coat. Add 1 cup of the whole cherry tomatoes?… option, around the chicken and place the chicken into the oven … 350. Bake until the chicken is completely cooked through (about 15 minutes or less … don’t want to dry out).
- Top each chicken with a slice of mozzarella cheese; return back into the oven .. “broil” for 3-5 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Note: I used fresh mozzarella that I had frozen and it worked great.
- Slice regular tomatoes and place them on top of the cheese; pour over some of the balsamic sauce from the pan and garnish with fresh basil. Serve immediately.
- If wanting to serve with extra balsamic glaze (as pictured above), make your glaze while the chicken is in the oven. Combine the vinegar and sugar in a small pot and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, allowing to simmer while stirring occasionally, until the glaze is thickened and reduced by half (about 3-4 minutes). Drizzle over the chicken when ready to serve and add fresh chopped basil.
- Optional: 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar , packed.
Recipe Notes
*You can substitute Italian seasoning or pizza topper .