pineapple teriyaki chicken thighs

Ever since making the Raspberry Chipotle BBQ Chicken Thighs, I've kind of fallen in love with baked chicken thighs. They're super easy, the flavor possibilities are endless, they're juicy and tender, and they're usually fairly inexpensive.

So this week, I whipped up a quick pineapple teriyaki sauce to paint the thighs with and they turned out really delicious. I experimented with baking some with skin and some without. They both turned out very juicy and delicious! The pineapple sauce held the moisture in the skinless thighs nicely. The thighs with the skin on were definitely prettier, but not any more moist.

I baked the thighs at 375 degrees until the sauce on top turned a nice golden brown. It ended up taking close to an hour so next time I think I'll increase the temperature to 400 degrees. With a small increase in temperature like that I don't think you'll be in danger of not having the inside cooked before the outside browns, and it should make the whole process a bit faster. Since I cooked at 375, I'm still going to write the recipe that way. I just wanted to present the option.




Total Recipe cost: $9.94
Servings Per Recipe: 7-8
Cost per serving: $1.42
Prep time: 20 min. Cook time: 55 min. Total: 1 hr. 15 min.

INGREDIENTS		COST
1 clove	garlic	$0.08
2 inches	fresh ginger	$0.25
1 Tbsp	vegetable oil	$0.08
1/4 cup	soy sauce	$0.24
1 (18 oz.) jar	pineapple jam	$2.78
1/2 Tbsp	rice vinegar	$0.02
1/2 Tbsp	corn starch	$0.03
4 lbs.	bone-in chicken thighs	$6.46
TOTAL		$9.94

STEP 1: Peel the ginger (use a vegetable peeler) and grate it into a medium sauce pot with a small cheese grater. Mince the garlic and add it to the pot along with 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil. Saute the garlic and ginger over medium heat, just until soft (about one minute).

STEP 2: Add the soy sauce, pineapple jam, and rice vinegar. Bring the mixture up to a simmer over medium heat. Dissolve the cornstarch in just enough water to make a slurry and pour it into the bubbling sauce. Allow to simmer for about five more minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

STEP 3: Prepare a baking sheet with foil and nonstick spray. Place the chicken thighs on the baking sheet. Reserve about 1/3 of the pineapple teriyaki sauce in a bowl for spooning over the chicken after cooking (you don't want to contaminate this with raw chicken). Using about half of the rest of the sauce, brush a thick layer over the chicken.

STEP 4: Place the pineapple teriyaki coated chicken in the preheated oven and bake for about 20 minutes. Take the chicken out and brush with more sauce (not the sauce reserved for after baking). Brush as much on as possible. Place back in the oven and bake until the sauce turns golden brown and bubbly (about 30 minutes more).

STEP 5: Take the chicken out of the oven and allow to rest for about 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a serving dish and spoon some of the reserved (uncontaminated) sauce over top.

Step By Step Photos

First, peel the ginger and then grate it using a small cheese grater. Mince the garlic. Place both in a medium sauce pot with 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil. Saute just until soft (about one minute).


The one time I wanted pineapple jam, they actually didn't have it at the store. But they *did* have this apricot pineapple jam. I used it and it was still delicious! I ended up using the entire 18 oz. jar.


Add the jam, soy sauce, and rice vinegar to the pot with the garlic and ginger. Stir to dissolve the jam and allow it to come up to a simmer over medium heat.


While the sauce is coming up to a simmer, dissolve the cornstarch in just enough water to make a slurry (a tablespoon or so of water).


Pour the cornstarch slurry into the bubbling sauce. Stir it in and allow it to simmer for about five more minutes.


Place the chicken on a baking sheet covered with foil and non-stick spray. I experimented with skin on and skin off. They both turned out delicious and moist, although the skin on was prettier! The number of servings you'll get from this depends on how many chicken thighs you get per 4 pounds. One of my packages had four, while the other had 3... I didn't look before I purchased.


Pour off about 1/3 of the sauce for use after cooking the chicken - you don't want it to get contaminated with raw chicken. Using about half of the rest of the sauce, coat the chicken. The sauce may be kind of thin because it's hot, so don't worry if you can't get it on too thick. You'll be putting more on half way through baking.


Bake the chicken in a preheated 375 degree oven. After about 20 minutes, pull the chicken out and coat with more sauce (the "contaminated" sauce, not the reserved sauce). This is what my chicken looked like after the second coating. Place it back in the oven and bake until the sauce turns a nice golden brown (about 30 more minutes).


And this is what the chicken looked like after about 50-55 minutes of total baking time.


You can serve it as is (this picture) or spoon some of the reserved (uncontaminated) sauce over top (the top photo in the post). I liked having that extra bit of sauce spooned over top!