Apricot Chicken

A large skillet of apricot chicken on a table sop with a serving on a plate, halved apricots and a large bowl of rice.

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5 from 1 vote

Apricot chicken with its sweet and savoury flavours is the perfect family friendly dinner.

Prep Time10

Cook Time25

Total Time35

Course: Family Dinner Ideas

Cuisine: New Zealand

Keyword: Apricot Chicken, Apricot Chicken recipe, Easy apricot chicken recipe

Diet: Gluten free

Servings: adults

Calories: 324kcal

Author: Stacey

Ingredients

10 dried apricots
2 Tablespoon butter or oil
1 onion finely diced
2 medium carrots diced
1 stalk celery diced
3 cloves garlic (crushed)
600 grams chicken boneless breast, thighs or tenderloin (diced)
8 fresh apricots
400 grams diced tomatoes canned
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
½ cup chicken stock

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Start by soaking the dried apricots in half a cup of boiling water.
Heat the oil or butter in a pan. Add the diced onion, celery and carrot. Cook over a medium heat until the vegetables are softened, and have become golden brown (you want the caramelisation for the flavour).
Add the garlic to the pan, sauté for 1-2 minutes.
Add the diced chicken to the pan and brown
While the chicken is browning add the soaked dried apricots, soaking water and the tinned tomatoes to a blender or food processor, whizz until smooth
Add the apricot sauce, fresh apricots, cinnamon, and thyme to the pan
Simmer for 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked and the apricot sauce has thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy with steamed basmati rice and green vegetables.

Notes

I generally cook with olive oil, for some recipes though butter brings a lovely flavour, and this is one of those recipes, I find the recipe has a better flavor when I make it with butter.
As I said this recipe is perfect for the whole family, it can be used for baby-led-weaning or for a toddler dinner just make sure you remove their portion before you season with salt.
Store leftovers in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 4 months.
Dried apricots: The dried apricots which I soak, could be substituted for apricot preserves or apricot jam.
Chicken: I use boneless and skinless chicken breasts, chicken thighs or tenderloin (diced). You can use bone-in chicken pieces but the cook time will be longer
Fresh apricots: When apricots are not in season it is fine to use canned apricots which have been drained from their canning liquid.
Diced tomatoes: Any tinned tomatoes will work as they get blended in the sauce, so they can be whole peeled tomatoes, crushed, diced or puree.
Chicken stock or broth: This can be substituted for a chicken or onion soup mix made up with half a cup of water.

Nutrition

Thank You! https://logic-hatch.live/apricot-chicken/%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cscript%3Ewindow.wprm_recipes = {"recipe-21857":{"type":"food","name":"Apricot Chicken","slug":"wprm-apricot-chicken","image_url":"https:\/\/mykidslickthebowl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/apricot-chicken-12.jpg","rating":{"count":1,"total":5,"average":5,"type":{"comment":0,"no_comment":0,"user":1},"user":0},"ingredients":[{"uid":0,"amount":"10","unit":"","name":"dried apricots","notes":"","id":8936,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"10","unit":"","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"10","unit":"","unitParsed":""}}},{"uid":1,"amount":"2","unit":"Tablespoon","name":"butter or oil","notes":"","unit_id":8895,"id":9959,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"2","unit":"Tablespoon","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"2","unit":"Tablespoon","unitParsed":"Tablespoon"}}},{"uid":2,"amount":"1","unit":"","name":"onion","notes":"finely diced","id":8447,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"1","unit":"","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"1","unit":"","unitParsed":""}}},{"uid":9,"amount":"2","unit":"medium","name":"carrots","notes":"diced","unit_id":8902,"id":8866,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"2","unit":"medium","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"2","unit":"medium","unitParsed":"medium"}}},{"uid":11,"amount":"1","unit":"stalk","name":"celery","notes":"diced","unit_id":10069,"id":8741,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"1","unit":"stalk","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"1","unit":"stalk","unitParsed":"stalk"}}},{"uid":4,"amount":"3","unit":"cloves","name":"garlic ","notes":"(crushed)","unit_id":9061,"id":8422,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"3","unit":"cloves","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"3","unit":"cloves","unitParsed":"cloves"}}},{"uid":8,"amount":"600 ","unit":"grams ","name":"chicken ","notes":"boneless breast, thighs or tenderloin (diced)","converted":{"2":{"amount":"1.3","unit":"lb","unit_id":8939}},"unit_id":9126,"id":8430,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"600 ","unit":"grams ","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"600 ","unit":"grams ","unitParsed":"grams "},"unit-system-2":{"amount":"1.3","unit":"lb","unitParsed":"lb"}}},{"uid":12,"amount":"8","unit":"fresh","name":"apricots","notes":"","converted":{"2":{"amount":"","unit":""}},"unit_id":10072,"id":10073,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"8","unit":"fresh","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"8","unit":"fresh","unitParsed":"fresh"}}},{"uid":10,"amount":"400","unit":"grams","name":"diced tomatoes ","notes":"canned","converted":{"2":{"amount":"15","unit":"oz","unit_id":8905}},"unit_id":9126,"id":8742,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"400","unit":"grams","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"400","unit":"grams","unitParsed":"grams"},"unit-system-2":{"amount":"15","unit":"oz","unitParsed":"oz"}}},{"uid":13,"amount":"\u00bd ","unit":"teaspoon","name":"cinnamon","notes":"","unit_id":8894,"id":8362,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"\u00bd ","unit":"teaspoon","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"\u00bd ","unit":"teaspoon","unitParsed":"teaspoon"}}},{"uid":14,"amount":"1 ","unit":"tablespoon","name":"fresh thyme","notes":"","unit_id":8895,"id":10074,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"1 ","unit":"tablespoon","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"1 ","unit":"tablespoon","unitParsed":"tablespoon"}}},{"uid":15,"amount":"\u00bd ","unit":"cup","name":"chicken stock","notes":"","unit_id":8898,"id":8693,"conversion_item_snapshot":{"amount":"\u00bd ","unit":"cup","timestamp":1771409614000},"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-1":{"amount":"\u00bd ","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}}],"originalServings":"4","originalServingsParsed":4,"currentServings":"4","currentServingsParsed":4,"currentServingsFormatted":"4","currentServingsMultiplier":1,"originalSystem":1,"currentSystem":1,"unitSystems":[1,2],"originalAdvancedServings":{"shape":"round","unit":"inch","diameter":0,"width":0,"length":0,"height":0},"currentAdvancedServings":{"shape":"round","unit":"inch","diameter":0,"width":0,"length":0,"height":0}}}