1-Pan Apple Cider Rooster (Fast & Straightforward)

One skillet is all it is advisable make this tender and juicy apple cider hen. The method is very easy: coat hen thighs with a comfy, flavorful mixture of heat spices and cook dinner them in a skillet. Take away, after which put together an excellent easy apple cider pan sauce with candy apples and shallots. This can be a fast, crowd-pleasing 35-minute dinner recipe you’ll need to make on repeat all autumn lengthy!

When you love spiced apple cider and bounce for pleasure on the considered a fast & straightforward hen dinner, you’ll flip for this generously spiced apple cider hen dish. It’s splendidly savory, and has a kiss of sweetness from the apple cider and brown sugar.
FALL IN LOVE!
Right here’s Why You’ll Love This Apple Cider Rooster
- Fast and straightforward 1-pan meal
- Additional tender, juicy hen
- Mainly fall in a skillet 😉
- Cozy heat spices with salty, candy, and savory flavors
- Apple cider and butter clearly make a scrumptious pan sauce
- Undeniably attention-grabbing, so that you’ll need to make many times
If there’s one stand-out meal you make throughout the fall season… one that may have everybody speaking and demanding you make on repeat… it’s this.

The most effective a part of this dish, clearly in addition to its ease and the FABULOUS apple cider pan sauce, is the strong mixture of spices. I tailored this dish from a Cooking Light recipe I discovered, and added fairly a bit extra spice so the flavors actually stand out.
Use These Spices for the Greatest Taste
- Salt & Pepper
- Floor Coriander
- Floor Cinnamon
- Floor Nutmeg
- Dried Thyme Leaves
You additionally want hen, somewhat butter and olive oil, a contact of brown sugar, apples (no have to peel), shallots, and… the star of the present… apple cider. Make sure you use apple cider, the nonalcoholic beverage, and never apple cider vinegar. You’ll be deeply upset with that mistake!
Somewhat tip: Recent apple cider sometimes seems in grocery shops and farm markets round late summer season, however can get more durable to seek out by the top of the yr. To make sure I could make this cozy recipe all all through the winter, I prefer to freeze some apple cider in an ice dice tray, then defrost a few frozen cider cubes each time I need to make it. Or strive making your individual do-it-yourself apple cider!

Success Tip: Use Rooster Thighs As a substitute of Rooster Breasts
If you wish to make this recipe with hen breasts as an alternative of thighs you possibly can, however you’ll lose some taste. Rooster thighs are a fattier reduce of meat, so that they style a lot richer than hen breast meat. They’re additionally smaller than most hen breasts, so that they cook dinner sooner on the range. When you use hen breasts, I like to recommend shopping for the thin-sliced or tenderloin cuts.
However for finest outcomes with this recipe, I strongly advocate hen thighs.
Begin the Rooster, Then Make the Pan Sauce
Ideally, you need a reasonably large skillet for this recipe, and I normally use my 12-inch cast-iron skillet. In case your skillet is small, you possibly can cook dinner the hen in batches. You may also use a Dutch oven.
Sprinkle the spice combination on each side of the hen thighs, then cook dinner the hen in somewhat oil, flipping as soon as, till each side are golden-brown and the internal temperature has reached 165°F (74°C).

Take away the hen and put aside.
Add the butter to the pan (don’t wipe it out first—you need the flavorful spices and drippings from the hen in there for the pan sauce!), and swirl to coat. Add the apple and shallot slices and sprinkle with the remaining salt. Cook dinner, stirring sometimes, till they begin to soften. Pour within the apple cider, and cook dinner till the apples are crisp-tender, and the sauce has thickened a bit.

End up by including the cooked hen again to the pan—only for a pair minutes, to heat it again up and blend all the things collectively.
The method is loads like my reader-favorite cilantro lime hen and this creamy lemon thyme hen (one in every of my all-time finest dishes!).

I prefer to garnish the dish with extra thyme, plus some contemporary rosemary if I’ve it readily available. To serve, place the hen thighs on plates, then prime every bit of hen with an enormous scoop of apples and shallots, together with that scrumptious apple cider pan sauce.
FAQs
Coriander brings plenty of taste to this dish, so I don’t advocate skipping it or substituting it. In an absolute pinch, you possibly can substitute with floor caraway, or with 1/4 teaspoon every dried oregano and floor cumin.
You possibly can, however you’ll lose some taste. Apple cider is contemporary, unfiltered, and sometimes unpasteurized, so it’s extra just like the uncooked, purer model of juiced apples. Apple juice has had the pulp and sediment filtered out, and is pasteurized to increase its shelf life.
Most apple varieties work for this recipe, although I’d avoid softer, mealier varieties like Pink Scrumptious and McIntosh, which might cook dinner down into mush. I have a tendency to make use of one tart apple (like Granny Smith) and one candy apple (like Honeycrisp). I take advantage of this similar half tart/half candy trick just about each time I bake with apples, whether or not I’m making apple pie or apple cinnamon bread.
My finest apples for baking additionally applies right here. 😉

What to Serve With Apple Cider Rooster
This hen recipe pairs with many various aspect dishes. I prefer to serve it with inexperienced beans and rice, which may each be made on the range as effectively. (Typically I’ve to provide my oven an evening off!)
However this apple cider hen can also be tasty with potatoes or candy potatoes, a contemporary inexperienced salad, dinner rolls or brown butter sage dinner rolls, or cornbread. When you’re feeding a bigger crowd and need some extra substantial aspect dish choices, strive inexperienced bean casserole, candy potato casserole, or zucchini casserole.

Skillet Apple Cider Rooster
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook dinner Time: 22 minutes
Whole Time: 35 minutes
Yield: serves 4
Class: Dinner
Technique: Cooking
Delicacies: American
Description
One skillet is all it is advisable cook dinner this tender, juicy hen with candy apples and apple cider sauce. A mix of spices add impeccable taste, and the apple cider sauce is made proper in the identical skillet! Overview recipe Notes earlier than beginning.
Directions
- Warmth a big 12-inch skillet over medium warmth. I normally use a cast iron skillet, however any skillet this dimension works. You may also use a Dutch oven.
- In a small bowl, combine collectively 3/4 teaspoon salt, the coriander, cinnamon, nutmeg, dried thyme, and pepper. Sprinkle the spice combination over each side of the hen thighs.
- Add a drizzle of oil to the new skillet, and swirl to coat. Add the hen thighs to the pan. Cook dinner for five minutes, then flip and cook dinner for five extra minutes or till cooked by means of (internal temperature must be at the least 165°F (74°C)). Switch hen to a plate and canopy flippantly. You’ll add it again to the pan in the long run of the following step.
- Add the butter to the pan (no have to wipe it out first), and gently swirl to coat because it melts. Add the brown sugar, apples, and shallots, and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook dinner, stirring sometimes, till apples start to melt, about 5 minutes. Pour within the apple cider and cook dinner, stirring sometimes, till the cider sauce has barely thickened, about 5 minutes. Add the hen again to the pan and cook dinner for two minutes.
- Take away from warmth. Spoon the apple combination over the hen to serve. Garnish with contemporary thyme and rosemary, if desired.
- Leftovers maintain effectively within the fridge for a number of days. The butter within the sauce will solidify, however when you reheat, all of it comes again collectively. You possibly can reheat on the range over medium warmth or within the microwave.
Notes
- Particular Instruments (affiliate hyperlinks): Cast-Iron Skillet | Tongs | Instant-Read Thermometer
- What can I take advantage of as an alternative of coriander? Floor coriander brings plenty of taste to this dish, so I don’t advocate skipping it or substituting it. In an absolute pinch, you possibly can simply go away it out or substitute floor caraway, or 1/4 teaspoon every dried oregano and floor cumin.
- Can I take advantage of hen breasts as an alternative of hen thighs? You possibly can, however you’ll lose some taste, and so they might take longer to cook dinner. For finest outcomes, I strongly advocate boneless, skinless hen thighs.
- Can I take advantage of apple juice as an alternative of apple cider? You possibly can, however you’ll lose some taste. Apple cider is contemporary, unfiltered, and sometimes unpasteurized, so it’s extra just like the uncooked, purer model of juiced apples. Apple juice has had the pulp and sediment filtered out, and is pasteurized to increase its shelf life.
- Recipe tailored from Cooking Light.
Diet
- Serving Measurement: 1 serving
- Energy: 247
- Sugar: 19.7 g
- Sodium: 523.1 mg
- Fats: 9.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 23.1 g
- Protein: 17.4 g
- Ldl cholesterol: 95.2 mg
Key phrases: apple cider hen