Funny story – I was going to make this honey balsamic chicken with chicken thighs, but they were $3.49/lb. and the boneless, skinless chicken breasts were on sale (again) for $1.99/lb… so… yeah. Chicken tenders it was!
Obviously not everyone will catch this $1.99/lb. chicken sale as often as I do, so go with whatever cut is the best deal. To make this recipe with something like chicken thighs, just brown the thighs in the skillet (just like I did with the breasts) and finish cooking them in the oven for about 20-30 minutes at 375 degrees. Prepare the sauce in the skillet in the same manner as listed below. The sauce should be enough for four medium sized chicken thighs.
This chicken is bursting with flavor from the tangy balsamic vinegar, sweet honey, and rich butter. I seasoned mine simply with salt and pepper, but if you want a more herbal flavor you could always add a pinch of dried basil or thyme.
Honey Balsamic Chicken Tenders
Honey Balsamic Chicken Tenders
Servings 4Ingredients
- 2 medium 1.5 lbs. chicken breasts ($2.99)
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar ($0.80)
- 1 clove garlic ($0.08)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided ($0.24)
- to taste salt & pepper ($0.05)
- 1 Tbsp butter ($0.10)
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar ($0.40)
- 3 Tbsp honey ($0.33)
Instructions
- Slice the chicken breasts on a diagonal into six strips each. Place the strips in a quart sized zip top bag along with 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar, one clove of garlic (minced), 1 Tbsp of olive oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix the ingredients in the bag and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
- When you’re ready to cook, heat the second tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, cook the strips until browned on both sides (about 2-3 minutes each side). You may have to do two batches. Place the cooked chicken on a clean plate.
- Turn the heat down on the skillet to medium-low and add the butter and last 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar to the skillet. Use a spoon to stir the mixture and dissolve the sticky bits off of the bottom of the skillet. Once the mixture has dissolved together, add the honey, increase the heat, and allow the sauce to simmer until thickened (about five minutes).
- Once the sauce has thickened, season to taste with salt and pepper (I just used a pinch of each). Add the chicken back to the skillet and toss to coat in the warm balsamic sauce. Serve immediately.
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Nutrition
Step By Step Photos
First slice the chicken into strips approximately 1 inch wide. Cut the strips on a diagonal across the chicken breast so they are a fairly uniform length and width.
Place the sliced chicken in a zip top bag along with 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar, a clove of minced garlic, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at elast 30 minutes.
When you’re ready to cook, heat the second tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. When the oil is nice and hot, add the chicken strips. Cook until golden brown on both sides. You may have to cook in two or three batches.
The more browned your chicken is at this step, the better the color will be at the end. This first batch of strips was kind of blond…
But the next batch got nice and brown. Place the cooked chicken on a clean plate.
Your skillet will likely have a coating of sticky residue in it, which is a good thing. This is flavory goodness and will dissolve into the sauce.
After removing the cooked chicken, reduce the heat to medium-low so that the butter will not burn. Add the butter and balsamic vinegar. Stir the mixture together, allowing the butter to melt and the residue on the bottom of the skillet to dissolve into the liquid.
Once everything has dissolved off of the bottom of the skillet, stir in the honey. Increase the heat (if needed) and allow the mixture to bubble and simmer until thickened. This should happen fairly quickly – about 5 minutes. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.
Add the cooked chicken back to the skillet and coat it in the honey balsamic sauce.
Serve warm and ENJOY!
I just have to tell you that this recipe is my 16 year old’s favorite way to have chicken. Last time I made it she said that it was Birthday Dinner worthy…high praise indeed!! Thanks so much for this simple but delicious recipe!
I just made this tonight & it was SO good! My husband (who is usually the cook in the family) said this is the best thing he’s eaten in a long time!! I served it over rice – which was great because the rice sopped up all the sauce & made it really tasty.
I made this recipe tonight- AMAZING. Simple, satisfying, and full of flavor. Will definitely be making this again! I served this dish with broccoli and a side of quinoa- perfect combo. Thanks Beth for this awesome recipe!
Delicious!! I used raspberry infused balsamic vinegar because that’s all I had. Husband and kids asked me to put it on the weekly menu! Thanks for an easy yet tasty recipe!
So, it isn’t actually chicken tenders, just sliced chicken breast?
Yep. You can use tenders, of course, but sliced breasts will be less expensive.
Hi there, I plan on trying this recipe for one on the weekend. Would you suggest halving the recipe (1 chicken breast) or keeping leftovers refrigerated? Wondering how they would keep in the fridge. Any insights? Thanks!
I think this one is definitely better fresh, so I’d cut the recipe in half. The glaze kind of soaks into the meat when its stored in the refrigerator, so it’s not quite as good the second day.
Thanks! I’m trying it tonight :)
Made this last night and my husband and I loved it! Super easy recipe that I will make again. And these are all ingredients we usually have hanging around the house. The only change I made was adding more garlic, 3 cloves. I may add more next time. Because the more garlic the better is my motto.
Great quick & easy recipe. For someone who works in an office 9 hrs a day but also tries to eat clean and healthy this is a gem…btw…great with asparagus! Thx!
I bought the tenders by accident. I thought I was buying boneless breasts and I had a plan for them. Thanks for an emergency recipe to deal with these tenders. The taste was good but even though I did not overcook the tenders they seemed dry. Will try this with boneless thighs. I think that will be an improvement.
These are OMG Awesome…like, lick the plate clean!!! :D My new favorite, thanks for recipe!
Love your recipes… keep up the great work..
I was wondering if I can add the honey to the marinade. I plan to grill these today and want the honey flavor too.
Yes, that should work okay :)
I tried this, followed the directions exactly, & it had a burnt taste :/
This was fabulous. This is the second BudgetBytes recipe I’ve tried, and I’m wishing I knew about your blog a long time ago. I don’t know how I’ve never happened across it before, but I’m glad I did.
I love to cook, and a lot of the time I do my own thing, but sometimes I’m lazy and don’t feel like creating. I’m also very cheap (by necessity – not being able to find a job SUCKS!). Your blog is perfect for both of these issues.
I had some expensive buckwheat honey that someone gave to me, and three tablespoons of it was plenty. I definitely didn’t need to add more honey. It has a super strong flavor, but that’s not a bad thing. Chicken breasts are kinda boring without adding strong flavors. Next time, given that this honey is crazy-sweet and strong, I might even halve the amount.
There are only two of us, and we have a bunch of leftovers in the fridge right now, so I halved the recipe. I used two 6-oz chicken breasts cut into thirds. I kept the sauce amount the same, because we’re into our sauces in this house. It went well with the steamed broccoli and mashed sweet potatoes I served it with.
The only flavor component it was missing, in my opinion, was a little bit of kick. But, that’s probably just me. I like things to be fairly spicy. I’m going to try adding crushed red pepper to the marinade and maybe the sauce next time. If it doesn’t work out, I’m keeping your recipe as-is. It’s awesome.
An excellent recipe.. Simple, inexpensive and just right for a pair of older folks..:O)
Any left go into a quesadilla……
I have been experimenting with flavored balsamics and this fits right in…