Strawberry Jalapeño Chicken Recipe
The more ways I can find to incorporate ripe summer fruits into my savory cuisine, the better. Berries, stone fruits, and citrus add amazing dimensions of flavor, balance, and texture to rich or spicy dishes. The next time you have an abundance of juicy ripe strawberries from your garden or local farmer's market, showcase them in this strawberry jalapeño chicken skillet dish. We give the berries a quick pickle with fresh jalapeño slices, white balsamic vinegar, and crushed pink peppercorns to bring the sweet and spicy together. We brown bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs in the skillet till perfectly crispy and golden, and top them with charred shallots, more jalapeños, the fruity pickled mix, and a dreamy topping of crispy pancetta, creamy and tangy goat cheese, crunchy pistachios, and herbaceous summer-sweet basil.
What makes this skillet dish so appealing is the amount of contrasting elements that seamlessly come together in such a harmonious blend. This is a perfect dish to prepare for a dinner party or al fresco evening on the patio, yet also works well as a brunch dish. Pick some favorite sides to pair (I went with cheesy baked polenta), and get ready to wow your guests or dining companions.
Gather the strawberry jalapeño chicken ingredients
To make this strawberry jalapeño chicken dish, you will start out by pickling fresh strawberries and jalapeños in a mixture of white balsamic vinegar, granulated sugar, pink peppercorns, and kosher salt. Pink peppercorns have a vibrant floral and citrus flavor that pairs beautifully with the fresh strawberries. For the chicken, select bone-in, skin-on thighs. You will also need pancetta to crisp up and additional jalapeños and a shallot to saute in the rendered pancetta fat. After the chicken has cooked through in a cast iron skillet, you will make a pan sauce by first deglazing the pan with dry white vermouth. You will also need chicken stock for the sauce and some cold, unsalted butter. The butter is used to emulsify or "mount," the sauce and create a glossy texture that perfectly coats the cooked chicken. To garnish the finished dish, you will need crumbled plain soft goat cheese, raw pistachios, and fresh basil.
Step 1: Combine the pickled strawberry and jalapeño ingredients
In a large glass bowl, toss all the pickled strawberry and jalapeño ingredients together.
Step 2: Marinate the strawberries
Cover and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes for a quick pickling.
Step 3: Add the pancetta to a cast iron skillet
While the strawberries and jalapeños pickle, add the pancetta to a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat.
Step 4: Cook the pancetta until crispy
Cook until the pancetta is crispy and the fat has rendered (8-10 minutes). Monitor the heat so that the pancetta does not start to burn.
Step 5: Transfer the pancetta to paper towels
Transfer the pancetta from the skillet with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Set aside.
Step 6: Add the sliced jalapeños and shallots to the skillet
Add the sliced jalapeños and shallot to the skillet and increase the heat to medium-high.
Step 7: Cook until softened and charred
Cook for about 2 minutes until softened and charred. Remove from the skillet and set aside with the pancetta.
Step 8: Add the chicken thighs to the skillet
Place the chicken thighs skin-side-down in the hot skillet fat and season with the salt and pepper.
Step 9: Brown both sides of the thighs
Allow the thighs to cook undisturbed for about 10 minutes or until the skin is deep golden brown and crisp, then flip to brown the other side.
Step 10: Continue to cook until the thighs reach 165 F
Continue to cook the thighs over medium heat until the internal temperature reaches 165 F.
Step 11: Rest the chicken
Remove the chicken to a rack set over a parchment-lined baking sheet to rest.
Step 12: Deglaze the skillet
Deglaze the skillet with the vermouth, scraping up any browned bits and allowing the alcohol to cook off for 1 minute.
Step 13: Add the chicken stock
Add the chicken stock and cook to reduce by half.
Step 14: Swirl the cold butter into the pan sauce
Remove the pan from the heat and swirl in the cold butter, bit by bit, until the sauce is glossy.
Step 15: Return the chicken to the pan
Return the chicken to the pan, glazing with the pan sauce.
Step 16: Add the jalapeños and shallots
Top with the charred jalapeños and shallots.
Step 17: Drain the strawberries
Drain the pickled strawberries and jalapeños.
Step 18: Add the pickled strawberries and jalapeños to the chicken
Top the chicken with the pickled strawberries and jalapeños.
Step 19: Garnish and serve the strawberry jalapeño chicken
Finish the dish by sprinkling the crispy pancetta, crumbled goat cheese, pistachios, and slivered basil over top. Serve immediately.
What pairs well ith strawberry chicken?
Strawberry Jalapeño Chicken Recipe
Chicken thighs are browned till perfectly crispy and golden, and topped with shallots, pickled strawberries and jalapenos, pancetta, and tangy goat cheese.
Ingredients
- For the pickled strawberries
- 2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
- 1 large jalapeño, thinly sliced with seeds intact
- ½ cup white balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon whole pink peppercorns, lightly crushed
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- For the chicken
- 4 ounces pancetta, diced
- 2 large jalapeños, sliced into ¼-inch thick rounds, seeds removed
- 1 large shallot, peeled and sliced into thin strips
- 2 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- ⅓ cup white vermouth
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 3 ounces soft goat cheese, chilled and crumbled
- ⅓ cup shelled raw pistachios, roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced
Directions
- In a large glass bowl, toss all the pickled strawberry and jalapeño ingredients together.
- Cover and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes for a quick pickling.
- While the strawberries and jalapeños pickle, add the pancetta to a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat.
- Cook until the pancetta is crispy and the fat has rendered (8-10 minutes). Monitor the heat so that the pancetta does not start to burn.
- Transfer the pancetta from the skillet with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Set aside.
- Add the sliced jalapeños and shallot to the skillet and increase the heat to medium-high.
- Cook for about 2 minutes until softened and charred. Remove from the skillet and set aside with the pancetta.
- Place the chicken thighs skin-side-down in the hot skillet fat and season with the salt and pepper.
- Allow the thighs to cook undisturbed for about 10 minutes or until the skin is deep golden brown and crisp, then flip to brown the other side.
- Continue to cook the thighs over medium heat until the internal temperature reaches 165 F.
- Remove the chicken to a rack set over a parchment-lined baking sheet to rest.
- Deglaze the skillet with the vermouth, scraping up any browned bits and allowing the alcohol to cook off for 1 minute.
- Add the chicken stock and cook to reduce by half.
- Remove the pan from the heat and swirl in the cold butter, bit by bit, until the sauce is glossy.
- Return the chicken to the pan, glazing with the pan sauce.
- Top with the charred jalapeños and shallots.
- Drain the pickled strawberries and jalapeños.
- Top the chicken with the pickled strawberries and jalapeños.
- Finish the dish by sprinkling the crispy pancetta, crumbled goat cheese, pistachios, and slivered basil over top. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
| Calories per Serving | 888 |
| Total Fat | 63.7 g |
| Saturated Fat | 21.3 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.2 g |
| Cholesterol | 266.9 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 24.0 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3.8 g |
| Total Sugars | 14.7 g |
| Sodium | 1,112.3 mg |
| Protein | 49.6 g |
What's the advantage to using bone-in skin-on chicken in this strawberry jalapeño chicken recipe?
With so many different cuts of packaged chicken at the grocer, it might be tempting to just grab whatever is on sale or seems easiest to work with. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are a super-versatile offering that does not require much fuss when cooking, and are perfect for dishes that require cutting the chicken into smaller pieces before cooking, or preparations that would be difficult to eat with the skin and bones intact. Yet, when you remove the skin and bones, you also remove the elements that give the cooked chicken a lot of flavor.
With this recipe for strawberry jalapeño chicken, the crispy chicken skin is not only a tasty part of the finished dish, but it also helps to seal in both flavor and moisture to prevent your chicken from drying out. The skin clings to the pan sauce, making every bite of the chicken truly savory and luxurious. The bone inside also keeps the meat moist, and because the chicken is so tender after cooking, it is easy to cut away and enjoy.
What would be a good substitution for the vermouth in the pan sauce?
When making sauces, I love incorporating wine. Whether it is red or white, a high-quality dry wine adds a bit of acidity and donates a generous amount of flavor after the alcohol cooks off. There is another variety of wine that I think makes a fantastic cooking companion — vermouth. Vermouth is a fortified wine, meaning that a neutral spirit has been added, which increases its ABV. Vermouth also has a lively mix of botanicals, making it an excellent addition to cocktails. Vermouth comes in both dry white and sweeter red varieties, and is typically served as an aperitif if not in a cocktail.
Dry white vermouth is a versatile culinary ingredient, but it might not be something you keep on hand (or the bottle in your liquor cabinet has oxidized). For this recipe, a dry white wine such as sauvignon blanc or pinot gris would serve as an excellent substitution. You could also try using a Grüner Veltliner, which will have some of the herbaceous and botanical hints of the vermouth. No matter your choice, always remember that what you put into your dish is what you will get out of it. Make sure you choose a wine that you can enjoy drinking as well as cooking with.