A dinner full of flavor to add to your rotation: Spicy Maple Glazed Chicken with Cheddar Polenta. Chicken thighs pan-seared in a skillet until crisp and juicy, then coated in a really flavorful sweet and spicy glaze and served over creamy white cheddar polenta with caramelized butternut squash & wilted greens alongside. It’s a meal that’s every bit as delicious as it is satisfying.
Gathering and Prepping the Ingredients for Spicy Maple Glazed Chicken with Cheddar Polenta:
You’ll start by allowing the chicken to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes to take off the chill. This will help with even cooking and crisping of the skin.
In the meantime, you’ll want to work on cutting the butternut squash and getting it started roasting in the oven. Check out the notes section of the recipe for a full explanation on how to cut the squash.
The key is to slice it as evenly as possible, to coat the slices really well with olive oil, and to make sure they’re spread into an even layer on the sheet pan with no overlapping.
Preparing the Ingredients:
To cook the chicken, I’m using my standard method for bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs – crisping the skin in a hot skillet until crisp & golden, flipping the chicken thighs over, and then finishing them in the oven.
I love chicken thighs because it’s pretty hard to overcook them and they typically always turn out really juicy and tender. Plus, the glaze spooned over the crispy skin is extremely tasty.
But of course, you can swap the thighs out for boneless, skinless chicken breasts if you’d like (just sear them in a skillet over medium-high heat until golden on both sides and then finish cooking them in the oven).
While both the squash and chicken roast, you’ll whip up the sauce. It’s a mixture of butter, apple cider vinegar, whole grain mustard, and maple syrup with the addition of a red Fresno chili pepper for some heat. Everything gets combined and simmered until thickened into a glaze consistency.
Tips and Tricks
A little tip is that the glaze will continue to thicken as it cools. So if it’s looking too thin when it’s piping hot, it’ll thicken up as you allow it to cool down. I’d say give it about 10 minutes to cool before serving.
The combination of flavors in this sauce is perfectly balanced…a little sweet, a little spicy, with tang from the vinegar & mustard, and richness from the butter.
Finishing Up the Dish
The final two steps before plating are to make the polenta and quickly sauté the greens.
The polenta is flavored simply with fresh thyme as it cooks and finished with lots of cheddar cheese. A little butter adds a silkiness right at the end. Polenta hardens quickly as it cools, so once you take it off the heat, try to serve it as soon as possible in order to keep it creamy.
And for the greens, I’m using rainbow chard and quickly adding it to the hot skillet of chicken drippings after the chicken comes out of the oven. All it really needs after that is a splash of vinegar to brighten it up.
More Recipe Suggestions:
Spicy Garlic Lemon Butter Shrimp
Lemon Butter Chicken Piccata with Pesto Polenta
Honey Garlic Shrimp and Polenta
Scallops with Herb Brown Butter over Polenta
Rosemary Chicken with Cacio E Pepe Polenta
Spicy Maple Glazed Chicken with Cheddar Polenta
Equipment
Ingredients
Spicy Maple Glazed Chicken:
- 8 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 1 ¾ lb. butternut squash, peeled + sliced ¼” (see notes)
- olive oil
- kosher salt
- freshly cracked black pepper
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 large red Fresno chili pepper thinly sliced
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar plus a splash for the greens
- ¼ cup whole grain mustard
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 large bunch rainbow chard stemmed + roughly chopped
Cheddar Polenta:
- 4 cups water
- 1 small handful fresh thyme sprigs tied in kitchen twine
- 1 cup polenta see notes
- ½ lb. sharp white cheddar cheese shredded
- 2 tbsp butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Pat the chicken dry and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
- Place the butternut squash slices onto a sheet pan. Drizzle generously with olive oil and toss to coat. Spread them into an even layer. Season with a pinch of salt. Roast for about 30 minutes, or until tender and slightly caramelized.
- Meanwhile, heat a 12” cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom. Season the chicken well with salt and black pepper.
- When the oil is hot, place the chicken skin-side down into the skillet, working in batches so there’s no overlap. Cook for about 6 minutes, or until the skin is golden and crisp. Flip the chicken and cook for another minute or so. Transfer the chicken to a plate and repeat with the remaining thighs. Transfer all of the chicken back to the skillet, skin-side up, and roast for 25 minutes, or until cooked through.
- Meanwhile, heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the butter and chili peppers to the skillet. Allow the butter to melt and slightly brown as the peppers cook. Whisk in the apple cider vinegar, mustard, maple syrup, and water. Bring the sauce to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for about 12 minutes, or until thickened.
- To make the polenta, add the water, thyme and a pinch of salt to a 2qt saucepan. Bring to a boil. Whisk in the polenta. Reduce the heat to low and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often. Remove the thyme. Stir in the cheddar and butter until melted. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
- When the chicken comes out of the oven, transfer the chicken to a plate and return the skillet to the stove over medium heat. Quickly sauté the rainbow chard in the chicken drippings for just a minute or so until wilted. Season with salt and a splash of apple cider vinegar.
- Spoon the polenta onto a large platter. Arrange the squash, greens, and chicken over the polenta. Spoon the sauce over top. Garnish with any extra thyme leaves and more freshly cracked black pepper.
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