MONDAY MORNING RECIPE - MARINATED CHICKEN THIGHS - 8 servings

Today's I went to Craving Tasty hosted by Victor.  Our chicken was excellent!  The original recipe can be found here.  Victor suggests marinating the chicken thighs overnight, or at least up to 24 hours to get the best results.  He sometimes makes the marinade in the morning to let the thighs marinate during the day, and then cooks them in the evening for dinner. Another suggestion is to bake the chicken thighs on the top rack, which helps with browning and crisping. Also, if you want more browning done, pop them under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes at the end of the baking cycle. I always recommend going to the food blog as I don't always type all the notes out.  And you will see the photos, which are always great.

Marinated Chicken Thighs - serves 8 people

Preparation time: 15 minutes - Cooking time: 30 minutes 

Total time: 55 minutes 

Calories: 341

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 4 lbs)

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp sesame oil

4 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp lemon juice (or lime juice)

5 Tbsp maple syrup (or honey)

6 cloves garlic (minced)

½ tsp black pepper (freshly ground)

2 tsp kosher salt (plus more to taste)

Mix all ingredients for the marinade together in a large bowl or a plastic bag. Add the chicken and make sure that every piece is covered evenly. Can be marinated in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to 2 hours or, but overnight is preferred.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Place the chicken and all of the marinade in a baking dish. Bake uncovered at 450 degrees F for 25-30 minutes with the skin side up, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. 

To make sure the chicken tops are nicely browned and do not dry out, baste the chicken thighs in the juices and marinade about 15-20 minutes into baking.

To get a nicely browned, crisped up skin, turn on the broiler for 2-3 minutes when the thighs are almost done cooking. Monitor broiling very closely as the tops may burn if broiled for too long.

Changes we made: 

Worcestershire Sauce is a stable in our pantry.  I was surprised to see we had run out.  We eat avocados quite often which we share, and we put a couple of teaspoons in each space left by the seed.  Gregg came up with this idea years ago and it is a good way of eating them.  After turning out the pantry we decided not to go up to the store just for Worcestershire Sauce, but it's on the next grocery list.  We will stick to the ingredients next time.  (Another way I used Worcestershire Sauce is when I make a Shepherd's Pie.)  

All that being said Gregg replaced the Worcestershire with 1 tablespoon of Mirin and 1 tablespoon of Oyster-flavored sauce.  It probably altered the taste a bit but it was still a delicious flavor.

We have leftovers as we cooked a whole packet of chicken.  There is enough for another meal, and also we thought it would be good to take up to the Shenandoah's and have a picnic.

We roasted a selection of veggies for the side dish: thinly sliced potatoes, a quartered onion and carrots.  A little salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive or avocado oil.  Put them on the tray after stirring to coat the veggies, pop in the oven on the shelf below for as long as you have the chicken cooking.

We should have put something green on the plate, not only for the nutrition but it would have looked prettier.

Thanks for visiting and enjoy your week.