Tonight’s dinner was inspired by a recipe from Eating Well magazine. I don’t cook out of Eating Well nearly enough, and I tell myself that every time I make a recipe that I consider a repeater from them. I say dinner was inspired, because I didn’t follow the recipe 100% and I do think it needs a tiny bit of tweaking. Namely, some seasoning.
Have you seen the show Masterchef at all? Meh, it’s okay. It’s something to watch while we’re rather impatiently waiting for the return of House in the fall, and I’ve been putting it on the DVR to watch when I feel like vegging. One of the running themes in the critiques of a lot of the dishes is a lack of seasoning. That’s one area I’ve been paying a little more attention to when I cook- and you really can tell when you don’t use enough salt or pepper in a dish. The dish just tastes flat, and not quite balanced. A little touch of salt goes a long way- and this chicken needed some salt.
The biggest change I made to the recipe was that I used bone-in, skin-on chicken, as that’s what I had thawing for dinner. The second biggest change was that I didn’t grill the chicken, I baked it. The third change was that I used pineapple chunks instead of rings. Hey- I said this dish was “inspired by” didn’t I? Maybe I should link to the original recipe for those who are so inclined.
Eating Well’s Pineapple-Teriyaki Chicken
The kids gobbled this one up, and Andy seemed to enjoy it as well. My piece of chicken was good- but it needed more salt and pepper for my tastes. The pineapples that cooked with the chicken didn’t do anything for me taste-wise. They weren’t particularly tasty cooked up with the chicken, in my humble opinion. However. Next time I make this, I really want to use fresh pineapple instead of canned- and that, I suspect, will make me sing a completely different tune.
Teriyaki-Pineapple Chicken
1 whole cut up chicken 1 20-ounce can pineapple chunks in juice- juice drained and reserved1/3 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce 1/4 cup chicken broth 3 tablespoons brown sugar salt and pepper to taste 1 teaspoon cornstarch 2 teaspoons water
Place the cut up chicken pieces in a zipper bag or a bowl with a lid.
Combine the reserved pineapple juice, soy sauce, chicken broth and brown sugar in a small bowl. Whisk together, and add salt and pepper as desired. Pour the marinade over the chicken pieces. Place in the refrigerator and marinate for at least 2 hours- turning at least once.
(Note: I strongly suspect this could be frozen at this point to be thawed and cooked at a later date.)
Preheat oven to 375ºF. Drain the marinade into a small saucepan and place the chicken parts in a 9×13 baking dish. Scatter the pineapple chunks amongst the chicken pieces. Place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes.
Meanwhile. Bring the marinade to a full boil and boil for about five minutes. Combine the water and the cornstarch, mix until smooth, and add to the marinade. Cook until slightly thickened, and remove from heat.
After 40 minutes, baste the chicken pieces with the cooked and thickened marinade. Bake for another 5 minutes. Check the chicken for doneness by poking a thick breast or thigh with a skewer. When the juices run clear, the chicken is done. If the juices are not clear, baste again with the marinade and bake for another five minutes. Continue repeating until the juices run clear.
Serve immediately.