I have never gotten so many compliments before, let alone for a piece of chicken. David suggested calling this chicken, “So Good it Can’t Be Described, Explosion on Your Taste Buds Chicken.” Exactly. I have never encountered a dish that is so basic and simple to put together yet creates such a big pay off. This chicken, quite simply, is one of the most savory things I’ve ever eaten. If you are the busiest person on the planet and don’t have much cooking experience, but you have to prepare a meal to woo the love of your life, cook this chicken!
To make this chicken, which you should absolutely do immediately, preheat your oven to 450º F. Then, mix together 1/2 cup of dijon mustard, 1/4 cup of maple syrup, and 1 tablespoon of rice/rice wine vinegar.
Put 1.5 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs into a foil-lined or disposable oven-proof, 8×8 inch baking dish. Six thighs came in my package, which made enough to serve 3 people. Then, salt and pepper the thighs. Pour your maple mustard mixture over them, turning the thighs in the mixture so they are fully coated.
Put the chicken thighs into the oven, and let them bake for 40 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165ºF. Baste the tops of the chicken with the sauce half way through. I find that a meat thermometer is essential in cooking because it allows me to check for doneness without cutting into the meat and losing its precious juices. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving. Plate the chicken, whisk the sauce that remains in the baking dish, and then spoon the extra sauce over the top. Sprinkle over some fresh rosemary. If there is ever a time to use fresh herbs, THIS IS IT! The flavors are just so good together. Enjoy the savory goodness of this meal!
I adapted this recipe from “The I <3 Trader Joe’s Cookbook” by Cherie Mercer Twohy. Thanks, Jenna!
Shopping list:
- Chicken thighs- 1 package
- Dijon mustard- 1/2 cup
- Maple syrup- 1/4 cup
- Rice/rice wine vinegar- 1 tablespoon
- Fresh rosemary
- Salt and pepper
Wish we had loved this as it had good reviews, but we truly found it just so-so. Husband said “meh”, oldest son said “not bad but we don’t need to do it again” and sadly that’s how I felt as well. Easy dish, definitely not terrible, but not “spectacular” either dang it. Thank you tho!
If you didn’t like this you didn’t make it correct! It’s very important to use “pure maple syrup” the other items you can mess around with but don’t!!! It’s wonderful
This is a family favorite in our home! My ” men are pleased” whenever I make this!
Dijon and chicken are wonderful together. This is one of my “go to” no fuss dinners that never disappoints and minimizes my time slaving over a hot stove!
What can I use instead of mustard? Would sour cream work?
I liked this pretty well but my men (husband and son) didn’t like it as much.
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Needs bacon on top!
I am surprised that so many of the people don’t think this was totally a great recipe. My husband and myself loved it we give it 4 stars.
Man-pleasing? What do you do, blow him after he eats?
Leave!
what kind of reply is this, terrible!!!
sick reply, stay off of here, What an Idiot
hahahaha are you for real? dollar store syrup you dirty birdie!
Have SOME class lady.
Further more did you use real maple syrup? By your dirty comment I bet you used dollar store “syrup”
hahahaha are you for real? dollar store syrup you dirty birdie!
Yes
Idiot jerk…
Agreed. Stuff the prudes! They prolly never blow anyway!
That was vulgar!!
Blowing your ol man is only an option if you don’t know how to cook, & is your “cool hipster” way of apologizing for sucking as a woman… hope that helps =)
aMAZING! (singing). Restaurant quality and gobbled up like we were starving. Very tasty and EASY!!
I didn’t have rosemary, used Italian herbs instead and still turned out delish! Very easy to prepare, cook, and even the ingredients that are just sitying in the pantry just made this dishan extra ordinary meal! Yay! Good job!
My Family loved it. The grandchildren 10 & 7 spooned out the Sauce after there wasn´t any chicken left. My daughter´s-in-law asked what the ingredients were. I think they will be making it. I used the equal amount of maple syrup and mustard. Was great!
Followed the recipe to a T, even checking the temperature with my thermometer my husband tried really hard to scrap the Dijon stuff(as he called it) off. Finally he said he just couldn’t do it and to throw the last piece away(I only made half the recipe). He said it was no reflection on my cooking because I’ve only cooked one meal he hasn’t liked in the past five years so he knows I can cook. He also said if he went to your home and you had prepared this he would think you just couldn’t cook. I was not a fan either and my man was so far from pleased.
I read the comments and was shocked by the pure vitriol of some of the people. If you didn’t like it, either keep it to yourself or just politely tell others that it’s not your cup of tea. Being an ass shouldn’t be something you are so proud of that you have to post it to a recipe site. Grow up.
I’d been wanting to try this for months now and finally made it tonight. My husband and I thought this was one of the best oven-baked chicken recipes we’ve ever tried. It was amazing! I left off the rosemary and it was fantastic as is. Thank you so much. I’m extremely happy I doubled the recipe too. More leftovers!
YUMMO! I made this for dinner tonight for my “man” and my son and it was FABULOUS! I used 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.(I used 2 pans) I added fresh mushroom slices & real bacon pieces to the dish before I baked it. I doubled the sauce, because I made fettuccine noodles to go with it. I added fresh rosemary to the top the last 5 minutes in the oven. It was absolutely AMAZING! Definitely a keeper!
Man Pleasing dinner
I made this exactly according to the recipe, no changes, which is unusual for me. My MO is to first sauté some onions and garlic to whisk into the sauce. I wish now that I had. My husband said it was “okay” but not the best chicken he’s eaten. I didn’t like it at all, the taste to me was very blah. I won’t be making it again.
Has anyone made this recipe using chicken breast? How was it?
I’ve made it with both chicken thighs and chicken breasts. We love both.
This was a huge thumbs down at our house 🙁 none of us ate more than trying one bite. My man was not pleased to say the least.
I plan on trying, but using breasts instead.. I hate chicken thighs, maybe that’s why others didn’t have success with it. I’ve found that chicken thighs just don’t taste good regardless of how they’re cooked. But that’s just me, I definitely plan on trying soon.
Also people should remember that everyone’s tastes are different so while this may have been the perfect mixture & combination of ingredients for her family you may have to tweak things for your own.
I’ve made this using raw honey instead of syrup and I have made it with balsamic vinegar instead of rice/rice wine vinegar. Both tasted great! My family loved it!
OK, so I tried this a couple of days ago. Edible, but nothing spectacular. The side dishes helped. A couple of observations: I dislike the sexist title of the recipe (HEY! Not only do real men cook, but we also like things other than basic road-kill and taters!); and if anybody you prepare this for is diabetic, be aware that real maple syrup is super-concentrated sugar. Sorry. but I don’t have a burning desire to make this again.
This is my go-to recipe for company, and every time I make it, the recipe is requested. We LOVE this chicken, have made it countless times. The fresh rosemary really is the key! Thanks for this.
Truth… We just pulled it out of the oven. Tastes awful and smells worse. It would be a first to say I want to turn on the disposal and dump the whole panful into the sink. I dunno if it’s that rice wine vinegar but soooooooooooooooo bad. We are big cooks and love to try new recipes. We were really looking forward to this.
I use Red Wine Vinegar instead (simply because that’s what I have on hand). Maybe you’d prefer it with that? I also marinate mine in the sauce all day and add a touch more syrup than it calls for. 🙂
My entire family was not the least bit pleased with this meal. I followed the recipe to the t and thought it would be a true family pleaser. We couldn’t even finish what was on our plates, the taste was awful!
After reading a lot of the reviews, have to throw in my two cents. Gonna make this tonight for the third or fourth time. Always a big hit with the hubby, and while I’m not a huge chicken thighs fan, I nosh on it too.
I make it as the recipe calls for. Very easy and provides a meal that tastes like it took hours.
My husband and I love this recipe! Rather than fresh rosemary I garnish it with sliced green onions and serve it all over brown rice, and veggies on the side. Yuuum!!
Thanks for the recipe!!
if it’s bone in how long should it cook for?
Sometimes I substitute dry herbs for fresh. In this recipe you MUST use fresh rosemary it makes the recipe fabulous! Love this!
Maybe those people who didn’t like this used Pancake syrup instead of maple syrup. Not the same at all. If you did, you should retry this with real Maple syrup. It is significantly more expensive, but worth it.
Idiot Jerk….get lost !
I plan to try this for my son and I tomorrow night for dinner. I am so sorry that some people have shown their poor upbringing. How disrespectful those people are to insult a woman who was kind enough to share a recipe that she believes will enrich you’re life. Where were you raised? In a barn in West Virginia? Be kinder to others. Especially those who are willing to take risks and share something that MAY enhance your lives. Keep ugly disrespectful comments to yourself. What are you teaching your kids!
I agree, K. Everyone has different tastes and although I WAS born in a barn in West Virginia, I was brought up to NEVER insult or poke fun at another person’s taste in food. Bad manners and incredibly self-centered. No need to be dishonest, either. If you didn’t like something, simply say you didn’t like it or it didn’t suit your tastes. You don’t even have to justify yourself. There is no reason, however, to be mean.
I am making this for Sunday dinner, for about the 10th time. My family loves this recipe, as is, no substitutions. You must use REAL maple syrup, it makes all the difference. Unfortunately for me, i dont always have fresh rosemary, so i crush a little dried for the top at the end and its still delicious. This is my son’s favorite chicken meal. Thanks to the generous person who posted this, its a keeper!
I was able to roll fresh mushrooms into the chicken thighs. Awesome!
It is okay but I like the honey mustard recipe I use much better that has a little curry in it instead of rosemary and the ratios are opposite-1/2 cup honey to 1/4 cup mustard (1/2 tsp curry). It is also better with a whole bone in chicken. Good, but just good, whereas I love the other recipe I make.
My family enjoyed it very much, to the point that it is a repeat recipe. However I did find it easier to line the dish with foil to make cleanup a lot.
I’ve made this many times and each time it gets better. Sometimes I use real maple syrup, or honey or chicken breast with the bone. I’ve added bacon, mushrooms, onion. It’s a good recipe to follow to the t or to mess around with. To those who “hated it”, try the recipe again.
Thank you for the ideas! My guys really liked it. I did not. But I am make no it again tonight. Witty and followers, don’t let the Negative trolls get to you. Some people have to much time on their hands. Also as mentioned by others here we all have different tastes don’t get bogged down by the negative energy!
I liked this! I make it over pork chops and it was pretty good
We LOVE this chicken! My son, a college student, loves it so much he requested the recipe so he could make it while he was away at school.
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I’ve made this several times and it’s turned out great.
Followed the recipe entirely.
Perhaps using too much fresh Rosemary might have affected the flavors.
Love it with rice.
I have now made this recipe twice and neither time did it look like your pictures. Mine never browns and the sauce is always thin. I don’t know if it’s because I use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs or what. No idea why mine doesn’t come out as indicated. It smells great but not pleasing to the eye. Your pics are great!
BTW I used real maple syrup but the sauce was not thick at all.
Why are these filthy comments not being deleted???????? If they are not deleted I will not be visiting this site again no matter how good the recipes may be!!!!!
Sayonara!
I just made this last night. I know people’s tastes are different, but I just don’t get these people who said it was awful and they couldn’t eat it. WHAT???? This is delicious! One of my go-to dishes. The woman I work with who turned me on to this recipe also loves it…she told me yesterday she has it at least once a week..it is that good!
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A regular pleaser at my home, I do use Honey Dijon mustard which may result in less mustardy taste and follow the recipe exactly otherwise. Very delicious.
This dish is so yummy and easy, I used a crockpot instead of the stove and it came out great!
only one thing wrong with this dish… it pains me that i could not hve used double amount of chicken///i gave it a nine out of ten
THANKU
It turn out great for me!:)