Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! Sometimes I get really excited about recipes. Can you tell? This Balsamic Chicken Skillet is one of those recipes. It’s just so freaking easy, the flavor is big, and it looks all pretty and fancy. :D I love it and I hope you will too.
The marinade for this Balsamic Chicken Skillet is super simple and uses basic pantry staples, which means you can probably whip it up any time you want. When the delicious marinade hits the skillet it cooks down to a gloriously thick and rich glaze that coats the chicken in flavor. Using chicken thighs is key for this recipe because they are small and cook quickly, but always stay moist and tender. Plus, they’re really inexpensive, especially when you buy a value pack like I did, which will help keep this recipe affordable.
Whole Milk Mozzarella is Key
Another key to making this recipe so scrumptious is whole milk mozzarella. None of that “part-skim” stuff here. Whole milk mozzarella melts 100x better than part-skim mozz, and has a really rich flavor. Fresh mozzarella (the kind packed in water) also melts beautifully and would work well in this recipe.
Top Your Balsamic Chicken Skillet with Herbs
If you happen to grow basil, slice up a few leaves and sprinkle them over the chicken after it cooks. I don’t have a basil plant anymore, so I just used some fresh parsley to keep things budget friendly. Either way, a little bit of fresh green makes all the difference.
How to Serve Balsamic Chicken Skillet
You can serve this Balsamic Chicken Skillet over rice or pasta, but served some Marinated White Beans with the chicken this time.
Balsamic Chicken Skillet
Servings 6Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ( $0.22)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.08)
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar ($0.39)
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce ($0.09)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.05)
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs ($3.02)
- 4 oz. whole milk mozzarella ($0.91)
- 2 Roma tomatoes ($0.54)
- 1/4 bunch fresh parsley ( $0.20)
Instructions
- Prepare the marinade by stirring together the olive oil, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, minced garlic, and some freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a pepper mill).
- Place the chicken thighs in a gallon-size zip top bag or a shallow dish and pour the marinade over top. Stir to coat the chicken in the marinade. Marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 8 hours, turning occasionally to redistribute the marinade.
- When ready to cook the chicken, heat a large skillet over medium flame. When the skillet is hot, carefully take the chicken thighs out of the marinade and place them in the hot skillet. Cook the chicken thighs until cooked through and browned on each side (about 5 minutes each side). While the chicken is cooking, slice the mozzarella into six pieces, slice the tomatoes (at least 12 slices), and roughly chop the parsley.
- Once the chicken is cooked through, remove it to a clean plate. Pour the remaining marinade into the skillet and let it boil over medium heat, stirring often, until it has reduced to a thick and rich glaze.
- Turn the heat under the skillet down to medium-low, return the chicken to the skillet, and spoon some of the glaze over each piece. Place a slice of mozzarella on top of each piece of chicken, followed by two slices of tomato. Place a lid on the skillet and let it heat through until the mozzarella is melted. Top the chicken with the chopped fresh parsley, then serve.
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How to Make Balsamic Chicken Skillet – Step by Step Photos
Prepare the marinade first, by stirring together 2 Tbsp olive oil, 2 Tbsp brown sugar, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 cloves of minced garlic, and some freshly cracked pepper.
Place six boneless, skinless chicken thighs in a gallon-size zip top bag, or in a shallow dish. Pour the marinade over top and stir to coat the chicken in the marinade. Marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 8 hours.
When you’re ready to cook the chicken, heat a large skillet over medium flame. When the skillet is hot, carefully add the chicken pieces (there will likely be some sputtering and splattering). Cook the chicken on each side until browned and cooked through (about 5 minutes on each side).
Remove the cooked chicken to a clean plate and pour in the remaining marinade. Let the marinade boil until it is reduced to a thick glaze. Stir the marinade often while it boils.
While the chicken and glaze are cooking, slice the mozzarella into six pieces (one for each piece of chicken). I bought a one pound block, so I cut it into quarters, then sliced one quarter into six slices.
Slice two Roma tomatoes, making sure you have at least twelve slices, or two for each piece of chicken.
Once the glaze is thickened, turn the heat down to medium-low and return the cooked chicken to the skillet. Spoon a little of the glaze over each piece of chicken, then top each one with a slice of mozzarella.
Place two slices of tomato on each piece of mozzarella. Place a lid on the skillet and let the chicken heat through until the mozzarella is melted.
Once the mozzarella is melted, sprinkle chopped fresh parsley over top and serve. I also added a touch more cracked pepper.
You can also drizzle a little of that glaze from the bottom of the skillet over top… Oooooh yeah. This Balsamic Chicken Skillet is gonna earn you some POINTS.
Hi Beth! This recipe looks delicious, but I have one question. I hate raw tomatoes (except for in salsa, weirdly), but I love cooked tomatoes. If I were to top this recipe with cooked/grilled tomatoes instead, do you think I should cook them separately? Or do you think I should put them under the broiler in step 5 instead of just covering the pot with the lid? Would broiling in the last step mess up the cheese or the sauce?
Thanks again for continually putting out amazing recipes. It’s so, SO appreciated!
It’s possible that the broiler could burn the cheese, but I think if you just keep an eye on it and make sure the chicken is far enough away from the broiler that it cooks a little slower, that would work. You could also dice the tomatoes and cook them with the balsamic glaze as it boils down. :)
This sounds delicious Beth! It’s going to be dinner this Sat. night for myself and DH! I’m going to make several, marinate one in the fridge for dinner and put two more in the freezer for freezer meals. Then all I have to do is add mozzarella and
tomatoes on a busy night!
Oh my goodness, this was delicious and super easy! The boyfriend is snobby about chicken thighs loved it as well, such a fan of your site!!
Made this last night for my boyfriend and me, and it was great. It was tangy and salty, and the glaze thickened up perfectly without any effort. I poured the leftover sauce in a tiny tupperware, cut up the chicken and more tomatoes, and had it for lunch as a salad.
This recipe is delicious, healthy, easy to prepare, and price effective. You can’t ask for anything more. I will definitely make it again.
I would shred or grate the cheese rather than slice it. It melts faster and more evenly and looks nicer.
Made this tonight and it was very tasty. A bit on the sweet side for my personal taste – when I make it again I will probably reduce the brown sugar – also the olive oil to decrease the calories. Didn’t have Roma tomatoes – I subbed grape tomatoes cut in half and cooked them while the sauce was reducing. They worked well. Served over pasta. This will be a repeat in my home.
I’m kind of disappointed that the marinade for these chicken thighs is the exact same as your balsamic chicken thighs recipe :\
Correct! I based this recipe off of that one. :)
What adjustments would you make if doing this recipe with breasts?
I’d probably pound the breasts out so they were an even thickness throughout (so they cook evenly). Other than that, the cooking method should be the same. The amount of time needed to cook the chicken in the skillet will just depend on the size of the pieces. Chicken thighs always stay more moist and tender than breasts, though.
In all the food safety classes I’ve taken over the years, we were always told in order to reuse a marinade in this way, it must be brought to a rolling boil and kept that way for ten minutes. I personally think that may be a bit over precautious, but something to not regardless
This is a lot like my bruschetta chicken, except I grilled breast pieces and finished it under the broiler. (And made some bruschetta). This is going on my shopping list this week, thanks Beth!
Is it possible to still use chicken breasts instead for this recipe?
They might be a bit more dry, but you could do it. I would suggest pounding the breasts so they are an even thickness beforehand, to help them cook faster and more evenly.
One general comment — Beth, most of us don’t have gas ranges. Electric is much more common, especially among people who are middle/lower-class and who read budget-related blogs like yours. It would be super helpful for us as readers if you could translate the gas temps to electric…is “medium flame” the same as medium (actually, the center tick mark on the dial) on my stove? I assume that it is, but I just wanted to give you a heads up about the fact that most of us don’t have gas. And for some of your other recipes, like the various kabobs you’ve broiled, can those recipes be made with electric ovens?
Yep, it’s generally the same, although every single range, whether it’s gas or electric, is going to be a bit different with the settings. So you always have to take the heat settings with a grain of salt and just get the “feel” for your equipment. The type of cookware you use makes a big difference, too. Using a thin pot or pan can make a medium-low setting burner cook like it’s medium-high. Electric ovens often have broilers, too, and they can be used for the kebabs. :)
Wow, Aurelia. Maybe it’s a regional thing. I’ve been lower-income my whole life in Boston and have always had gas ranges. The last cooking class I taught did have an electric range for me to use and I fumbled with it like I’d never used a stove before. At my shitty apartment now, my old gas oven doesn’t have any temps left on the dial, so I just guess that 350 is setting the dial to the vertical 12/6 position. Also, it looks like some fiberglass insulation had been torn up (possible old rodent problem?) in the broiler, so we just don’t use it. The guy who owns and manages our property is as close to a slumlord as I want to get (again). Technically, my stove “works”, so there’s no getting a new one. But ya, like Beth said, we just have to learn how our own equipment works (or doesn’t).
I agree on the whole “learn to work with what you have” concept. I’ve just moved to a new apartment, so I’m re-learning on this new stove.
As for gas vs electric ranges, I live on the west coast, and no one has gas here. Literally nobody I know owns a gas range. I think it’s a difference in electricity types/prices. Here, all of our power is either hydroelectric or wind (or solar in California), so our electricity is 50%+ renewable energy and costs only about half of what yours does. As a result, most buildings don’t use any gas at all, so installing an electric range would also require running a gas line to the building.
That’s surprising to me! Having lived in NYC, Chicago, and Providence, my experience was always that older/cheaper apartments tend to have gas stoves. Most older stoves have gas ranges, the only people I know with electric stoves live in houses or in newer apartment buildings. I agree with Flynn, sounds like it might be a regional thing!
I agree, I think it’s not only regional, but how old your place is. Here in the south there are a surprising number of buildings that have not been significantly updated in the past 40-50 years and they all still have old gas stoves. Gas is often touted as “high end” these days, but they make super cheap/basic gas stoves, too. I had a brand new, but super cheap and basic, no-frills gas stove in my last apartment. Gas is really popular here in the south (surprise, suprise), so you find gas ranges all over and in every quality level.
Interesting – I’ve only had an electric stove in the nicer rent houses and now the house I own. Always had gas in the cheaper places.
The balsamic glaze and mozzarella cheese sound like they’d be delicious together!
This looks wonderful! I will be making it using chicken breasts instead of thighs. Do you have any recommendations on anything I might alter due to the change?
I would suggest pounding out the chicken breasts so they are an even thickness. This will help them cook faster and more evenly. :)
My mouth is watering right now. I’m looking forward to making the Balsamic Chicken Skillet for dinner soon. :-)