These Chicken Thighs With Cranberries are marinated in a sweet maple syrup glaze for maximum flavor, then baked until tender in one simple pan. Sweet, savory, and beautifully caramelized, this cozy holiday-inspired dish feels festive without the fuss.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- ⏲️Ready In: 1 hour and 20 minutes, including marinating
- 👪Serves: 6
- 🍽 Calories and Protein: 398 kcals and 24 grams of protein
- 📋 Main Ingredients: Chicken thighs, maple syrup, oil, cranberries, rosemary, and both.
- 📖 Dietary Notes: Dairy-free, gluten-free, grain-free, and paleo
- ⭐ Why You'll Love It: It's a juicy, one-pan chicken dinner with the perfect balance of sweet cranberries and savory, caramelized flavor.
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As a mom, I’m always looking for easy dinner wins that feel a little extra, and these oven-baked chicken thighs with cranberries deliver every time. The maple marinade makes them tender and flavorful, while the burst of fresh cranberries brings a festive pop of color that feels just right for any holiday table. Bonus: it all comes together in one pan with barely any cleanup, just like my Hawaiian chicken sheet pan recipe.
I love serving this alongside a warm gluten-free sweet potato casserole and a cozy maple protein latte for a holiday meal that looks beautiful, tastes indulgent, but takes way less effort than it seems. This dish is a staple in my holiday rotation because it’s naturally sweetened, packed with protein, and never fails to impress, even when I’m short on time, kind of like the recipes in the Busy Mom's Cookbook.
Jump To
- A Quick Look At The Recipe
- 💭Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Ingredients and Substitutions
- Flavor Variations
- How To Make Chicken Thighs With Cranberries
- Expert Tips To Make It
- How To Serve It
- How To Store Them
- Chicken Thighs With Cranberries FAQs
- More Gluten-Free Chicken Thigh Recipes
- One Pan Cranberry Chicken Thighs Recipe
💭Why You'll Love This Recipe
Healthy: Naturally sweetened with maple syrup this cranberry chicken recipe is the best blend of sweet and savory flavor.
Allergy-friendly: This chicken dish is dairy-free, gluten-free, and paleo-approved, making it a great choice if you’re cooking for someone with allergies.
Flavorful: Bursts of tangy cranberry with the sweetness of maple syrup and a herby base from rosemary. Add in a dash of coconut amino,s and the rich flavor comes up a notch.
Prepare in advance: Save yourself some kitchen time and marinate the chicken the night before!
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Coconut aminos: This can be replaced with gluten-free soy sauce if you like; the dish will have the same flavor. I do this with inside out egg rolls, and it tastes just fine. Learn more about hidden sources of gluten and check your sauce first!
- Chicken thighs: You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs ,but you’ll want to scale back the cooking time a bit so that they don’t dry out. Cook them until a temperature of 165F is reached.
- Chicken broth: Homemade broth is best for the recipe as it’ll bump up the health benefits (and avoid a lot of excess sodium). For nights I don’t have any, I use bone broth powder so I can whip it up in under a minute.
Have extra cranberries? Whip up this apple cranberry smoothie with them!
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Flavor Variations
Cherries: Swap the cranberries for fresh (pitted) cherries for a new taste. This makes the gluten-free chicken dinner a great summer dish!
Orange: Cranberry orange chicken is a delicious flavor combo. Try adding some orange juice to the marinade and zesting over the chicken thighs.
Herbs: Of course, adding in some extra herbs can change the taste of the cranberry chicken. Mint would be delicious.
How To Make Chicken Thighs With Cranberries
Step 1: Blend together the marinade and drizzle over the chicken thighs, making sure they’re all coated.
Step 2: Once marinated, scrape off the top of the thighs and brush on a bit of oil.
Press into patties
Step 4: Finish by removing the rosemary sprigs and broiling the dish until golden. Serve.
Expert Tips To Make It
The chicken thighs can be marinated for 30 minutes up to 2 days. So, you can easily prepare the recipe in advance if needed.
Don’t overlook scraping off a bit of marinade and re-brushing with oil. It gives the skin the BEST golden, crunchy top.
Use bone broth powder to save yourself some time if you don’t have homemade broth on hand. This way, you get all the healing benefits but none of the extra work. This is one of my favorite mom hacks!
How To Serve It
Below are a few favorites to make this one-pan cranberry chicken into a full meal.
Grains: Serve the maple cranberry chicken alongside some steamed rice or even herb cauliflower rice.
Vegetables: Maple candied Brussels are delicious here as well as sesame roasted sesame root vegetables. Of course, basic glazed carrots and green beans are perfect too.
Potatoes: We do a lot of roasted sweet potatoes, which makes a tasty addition.
How To Store Them
Let the cranberry chicken thighs cool completely before storing them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days, along with any sauce that was leftover.
You can also store it in a freezer-safe container for up to three months. Let it thaw overnight in the fridge before you need it.
To reheat the chicken, place it in a covered skillet with a splash of broth or water over medium to low heat until warmed through.
Chicken Thighs With Cranberries FAQs
You can use boneless chicken thighs to make cranberry chicken. Just make sure to adjust the cooking time for the thighs as they won’t take as long, and you don’t want them to dry out. Cook the thighs to 165F and use a meat thermometer to check.
The secret to cooking juicy chicken is, in part, letting the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes, as well as only cooking the chicken to 165F. Cooking it well and above to dry out your chicken.
More Gluten-Free Chicken Thigh Recipes
If you tried this Chicken Thighs With Cranberries Recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes!
One Pan Cranberry Chicken Thighs Recipe
Ingredients
Marinade Ingredients
- ⅓ cup fresh cranberries
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons coconut aminos or soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary
- ¼ cup chicken or vegetable broth
Chicken Thigh Ingredients
- 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or olive oil
- ⅔ cup fresh cranberries
- 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
Instructions
Marinating the chicken thighs
- Using a standard blender, blend together the marinade ingredients until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Place chicken thighs in a single layer in baking dish, spoon marinade over chicken thighs taking care to coat completely.
- Cover baking dish tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes up to 48 hours.
- Remove baking dish from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cooking the chicken thighs
- Scrape marinade off tops of chicken thighs using a spoon or rubber spatula, being careful not to tear the skin.
- Brush tops of chicken thighs with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add ⅔ cup cranberries and 4 sprigs of rosemary to marinade surrounding the chicken.
- Bake chicken thighs for 20 minutes then, using a meat thermometer, check internal temperature of chicken until it reaches 165 degrees. Once chicken reaches 165 degrees remove from oven.
- Preheat broiler to high and remove rosemary sprigs from baking dish.
- Brush tops of chicken thighs with 1 tablespoon of maple syrup and place in broil for 3-5 minutes until chicken skin is nicely browned. Watch closely, checking every minute to make sure chicken does not burn.
- Remove chicken from oven and spoon marinade from dish, over chicken. Let rest 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
Disclaimer:
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data"
Nutrition
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