Chicken With Caramelized Onions
Who ever said making a delicious dinner had to be complicated?!
We’ve got a very budget-friendly weeknight dinner that cooks up quickly and tastes amazing. All you need are a chicken breasts and onions to whip up a super satisfying meal! While onions are normally supporting characters when it comes to dinnertime, here, we’re letting them shine. Slice ‘em up and throw them in a pan – it really doesn’t get much easier. They caramelize beautifully when you cook them low and slow, and make for a great way to dress up a protein – they offer so much flavor! You’ll feel like a gourmet chef and the family will definitely be impressed!
Initially the onions will really fill up the skillet, but as they cook down they will condense in both size and sweetness, and the balsamic vinegar will offer a wonderful savory contrast. As for the chicken, sometimes chicken breasts are quite large, so for the sake of speed – this is a weeknight dinner after all – we cut them in half, or just use thinly sliced chicken breast tenders, if that’s what we find at the store…whatever you have on hand will do! The finished product here is a tender chicken topped with savory and sweet sautéd onions. Drooling just thinking about this!
Chicken With Caramelized Onions
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts, halved
- 2 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (alternatives: marsala wine or beef stock)
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
- Salt and pepper
Preparation
- In a large skillet over medium-low to medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and add sliced onions. Season with salt and cook for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Onions will reduce and begin to brown in color.
- After 30 minutes, add balsamic vinegar and bring temperature to medium-high heat. Continue cooking until the wine has evaporated and the onions have become a dark, honeyed brown. In the last 5 minutes, toss in thyme and finish cooking.
- While the onions are cooking, prepare chicken breasts: season with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
- In a separate skillet over medium-high heat remaining olive oil and sauté chicken breasts until cooked through and nicely browned, about 5 minutes per side. Set aside.
- To serve, top chicken with caramelized onions.
Recipe adapted from The Crepes Of Wrath