Combine Maple Syrup, Dijon Mustard and fresh Lime Zest for the best Dijon Chicken you have ever had! This easy chicken recipe will impress the whole family!
I am in the habit of defrosting chicken, meat or fish at least two days before I want to use it. My refrigerator is on the cooler side and it just seems to take that long. It requires a bit of advance planning but, I am already pretty organized when it comes to meal planning so it’s not usually that big of a deal.
The other night I went into our garage where we have an upright stand-alone freezer to grab a package of chicken and the light inside the freezer was off. I assumed the door was ajar and then noticed that most of the chicken and beef was just about defrosted! The frozen vegetables were ruined and luckily I wasn’t too stocked up on fish, shellfish and pre-prepared meals so there wasn’t too much in there to be ruined.
I found myself at 8:30 PM needing to immediately cook about 12 pounds of bone-in, skinless chicken and with 2 whole chickens that would be defrosted enough to cook the next day. Along with the vegetables and ground beef, I lost other odds and ends that were just not salvageable.
Pretty frustrating! Especially when all of the products are grass-fed and organic. The stockpile is so expensive, even though I buy in advance to take advantage of sales and promotions. It was painful to toss any of it but it had to be done.
Now, of course this had to happen on the night when I was most in need of hitting the grocery store and my pantry was looking quite bare. I didn’t have many of the ingredients I would want or need to create a couple interesting dishes. Considering it was so late in the evening, I knew there was no time to run out and grab a few things so I had to get creative with what was in the house.
I immediately pre-heated the oven and grabbed a big dutch oven.
The first chicken was quickly doused with salt and pepper, lightly coated with a spray of olive oil then tossed in the oven and baked. About 10 minutes before the baking time was up, I brushed the chicken pieces with bottled BBQ sauce from my fridge then finished them by broiling to caramelize the sugars in the sauce.
The next package of chicken was treated with a quickly mixed blend of Indian spices (mustard seeds, cumin seeds, garam masala, ground coriander and cayenne), braised with onion and garlic in coconut oil, then slow cooked on the stove top with a large can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes. It was surprisingly good and I wish I would have stopped to write down the exact ingredient amounts but maybe I’ll make it again some day.
Stuck with one more package of chicken to cook, this time skinless, bone-in chicken breasts and very little left in the pantry and fridge to get creative with, I grabbed Dijon mustard and Maple Syrup from the fridge and added a couple spices and the only fresh herb I had left in the house – parsley. I let this chicken marinate while I finished cooking the other two and had the sense to take pictures in case it came out tasty.
Extra bonus was that I was able to take a finished picture of it the next day since it turned out great and we had LOTS of cooked chicken to choose from for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I have also seen versions of this Maple Dijon Chicken done with Honey but have never tried it. If any of you do sub Honey for Maple, let me know how it is!
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below!
- 3 to 3 1/2 pounds bone-in skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil
- pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- zest of half small lime
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley plus more for garnish [img src=" http://www.everydaymaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/IMG_8661.jpg" width="550"]
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Finely chop large handful parsley, measure 2 T into a bowl and set remainder aside for garnish. Combine mustard, maple syrup, oil, spices and lime zest into bowl with 2 T parsley. Whisk together until well blended. Remove 1 to 2 tablespoons of marinade to a separate dish and set aside for later.
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Add skinless chicken breasts to a large freezer bag with remaining marinade, seal bag and massage into chicken until well coated. Refrigerate for at least one hour or until ready to cook (overnight is OK).
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Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with tin foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Arrange chicken breasts on baking sheet, allowing a bit of space between each. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven, set oven to Broil and evenly brush remaining marinade over chicken.
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Broil for 5 minutes until browned.
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Serve with chopped parsley sprinkled over and Enjoy!
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
john@kitchenriffs says
Dijon has such great flavor and combines so nicely with chicken (or pork – we had some with pork last night). I haven’t tried it with maple syrup, though. Great idea! I’ll give that a whirl. Sorry about your freezer! I hate it when that happens. But it looks like you managed to make the best of things. Anyway, interesting post – thanks.
EverydayMaven says
I like to say it’s like a grown up honey mustard 😉
Norma Chang says
Understand just how you feel. Some years ago had a power surge from lightning (that’s what I was told) that killed my freezer. Did not realize until it was too late to salvage anything. Good that you had the energy an skills at that time of the night to cook up those tasty chicken dishes.
EverydayMaven says
Our freezer is relatively new (3 years) so I was quite surprised that something was actually wrong with it!
Eha says
Happened to me day after a big shop a month or so ago! I am not a temperamental person but very rude terminolgy was used at the four walls whilst trying some salvage. Live rurally with a pocketbook which would love to be thicker 🙁 ! Own fault, freezer door found agape when I walked in in the morning: why the Fisher-Paykel did not beep, have no idea!!! Methinks I have done something like this with honey and liked it: now i want to try the maple syrup . . . thanks!
EverydayMaven says
I wish the door would have just been ajar like I first thought but now I have a whole other repair problem on my hands!
Shut Up & Cook | The Attainable Gourmet says
Way to save the goods and make a delicious meal while you’re at it. Impressive!
EverydayMaven says
Thanks lady – it was a challenge for sure!
Hannah says
Oh no! I’m sorry to hear about your freezer and feel your pain with having to throw out food. Thank goodness you discovered it when you did and could salvage all this chicken. And I’m very impressed with the creative dishes you whipped up at a moment’s notice! This Dijon maple chicken sounds divine – just the kind of flavors I enjoy. I have to say, my boys would love to have a selection of chicken for breakfast!
EverydayMaven says
I can’t say my boys were sad about it Hannah. Plus, we had two roasted chickens (like 4lbs each) to cook the next day. I think I am chickened out for a little while lol!
kirsten@FarmFreshFeasts says
Alyssa,
Oh, no! I had a chest freezer in the basement die on me last summer. It was full of cow, and under warranty. Luckily we caught it when only the top container of ice cream was unsalvageable, and my neighbors stepped up to hold all my stuff until we could get a service technician out to handle the warranty repair. Which turned out to be more expensive that a refund! We turned around and got an upright and rearranged the kitchen and breakfast nook so that every thing is in the same area, and I can easily here that all the freezers are running. I’m so sorry you lost good food. Though I appreciate your skill at turning chicken into goodness really quickly
EverydayMaven says
Oh man, if my freezer was totally full when this happened, I think I would have lost it! You are so fortunate to have such great neighbors and that your freezer was under warranty! Have a great weekend Kirsten 🙂
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
Love the flavors you used here!
EverydayMaven says
Thanks Laura – it’s such a great combination, almost like a grown-up version of honey mustard.
sandra says
We are always looking for new ways to make chicken. This looks like one we should check out.
EverydayMaven says
This is so easy and full of flavor Sandra! Thanks for stopping by – off to check out your site 🙂
Meghan @ The Tasty Fork says
Looks like everything worked out! That chicken looks amazing!
EverydayMaven says
Thank you Meghan and thanks for stopping by. Off to check out your site 🙂
Joanne says
Girl, that is the WORST. But it sounds like you handled it well and nothing will go to waste! WIN.
EverydayMaven says
A couple things went to waste but I was trying not to freak out about it!