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One Pot Cider Braised Chicken with Caramelized Onions. Slow-cooked chicken in apple cider with fresh herbs, sweet caramelized onions, and mushrooms. If you’re looking for a cozy fall meal to make, start with this saucy braised chicken. All made in one pot, simple to put together, and totally delicious. Serve with warm bread and a side of wild rice and say hello to cozy fall nights.
Fall starts on Thursday, but per usual our fall here in the mountains has fully set in. Most of you know that we’ve had some chillier days and our leaves are beginning to show pretty shades of yellow and orange.
I love every bit of it and am trying my best to soak in the season. For us, here in the mountains, it will be gone in the blink of an eye. Our fall is fast and furious, warm days, chilly nights, and always beautiful.
I’m embracing the shorter days and colder nights with cozy dinners. Every year like clockwork, I make some sort of braised chicken. But this one is special and hands down my favorite of the bunch. It’s the onions combined with sweet, spiced apple cider. The pair together really do make for a wonderful saucy chicken.
The story is pretty simple.
I based the recipe pretty closely off my cider braised short ribs. We absolutely loved that short rib recipe last year. I made it multiple times throughout the fall and winter. But it’s still September and the days just don’t require short rib dinners yet.
I wanted something a little lighter and a little quicker cooking for weeknights.
Of course, the thought to swap-in chicken came to mind pretty quickly and sounded delicious. I changed up a few things, adding mushrooms into the mix, and using a quicker cooking method.
It’s truly wonderful and so simple to make.
Start with the chicken. I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs and breasts. My family is pickier and will not eat the skin. Though I’m sure it would add a lot of flavor to the dish!
Dredge the chicken through some flour, then give it a sear in a big, oven-safe pan. I only sear one side of the chicken since we just need one side crispy for the oven.
Pull the chicken out, add some butter, then toss on the onions. Start to slowly cook the onions down. I like to add a splash of apple cider to help the onions cook down a little quicker.
When the onions have reached a light gold color, toss in the mushrooms, garlic, thyme, and sage. I let the mushrooms cook for a minute, then pour over the remaining cider and wine. If you don’t drink wine, chicken broth is a great substitute.
I usually add a few sprigs of fresh thyme, then transfer the whole dish to the oven to braise low and slow.
Now I cooked this at 400 for a quicker time, but you can definitely reduce the heat to 325° and cook for 1-2 hours for a real low and slow braise. Either works great, it just depends on how much time you have.
I’ve been serving this with a side of homemade beer bread and wild rice pilaf – so good!
You must make the beer bread, it’s delicious with the savory-sweet cider pan sauce.
This is a wonderful Monday night dinner that’s easy enough for any night of the week. It’s certainly sure to become a family favorite. I can’t wait for Creighton to try this, I know he will love it.
Looking for other slow-cooked fall recipes? Here are a few ideas:
30 Minute Coconut Milk Braised Chicken
Healthier 30 Minute Beer Braised Chicken
Autumn Braised Chicken Escabèche with Roasted Apples and Grapes
Cider Braised Short Ribs with Caramelized Onions
Red Wine Cranberry Braised Short Ribs
Slow Cooker Red Wine Braised Short Rib Pasta
Slow Cooker Coq au Vin with Parmesan Mashed Potatoes
Lastly, if you make this Cider Braised Chicken with Caramelized Onions, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
This is a decent fall one pot recipe – definitely on the blander side. Could use some extra spices and flavours in my opinion but an easy to make and yummy one pan meal. I used convection bake at 400 and my sauce thickened nicely after ~40mins. Would probably make again with a few flavor tweaks.
Hi Carly,
I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback! I’m glad you enjoyed most of the recipe:) xT
This was delicious! I saw someone’s comment about trying it with pork chops and that sounds great. I did cut the recipe in half and thought it turned out great – not too many onions and not soupy. Will definitely make this again.
Hey Janette,
Happy Tuesday!! I am delighted to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it:) xx
Hi Tieghan! I made this recipe tonight and it went very wrong. I did the crockpot version and the sauce was very clear, thin, and did not have a lot of flavor. It did not condense down and the onions didn’t wilt like you can see in your picture. I’m wondering where you think I went wrong? My husband thinks the onions let out too much water
Hey Madison,
Thanks for trying this dish, so sorry it did not workout for you! It sounds like the onions never really caramelized, so sorry about this! I would try the stove top version next time or caramelize the onions and then add to the crockpot. I hope that helps! xx
This was very good! I did not find there to be too much liquid at all. The first 1/2 cup of cider cooked away and then the rest went into the oven and when it was time to serve there was a nice thick sauce…I used cider and wine. I served it with roasted potatoes and green beans. My hubby loved it. He has stopped asking ” Is this a Teighan recipe?”- he knows if he loves his dinner it is. 🙂
Hey Joy,
Lol love to hear this!! Thanks so much for making this dish, I am so glad it was a hit! xT
I’m making this tomorrow, and I’m wondering if you use any oil or butter when the chicken is seared? Surely you don’t use a dry pan…?
I used 1/2 butter and 1/2 Olive oil, just to keep it from sticking. Turned out fine.
Hi Jane,
Sure, you can use a little of either to sear the chicken. I hope this recipe turns out amazing for you, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
5 stars per my husband! I omitted the mushrooms and added one thin sliced apple that I mixed with the onions. The onions definitely took more than the given time to cook down but I let them do their thing. I also used 1.5 cups total of Cider and .5 cups of white wine – any more than that would have been too much liquid. I served over egg noodles with roasted broccoli. The sage made this a perfect fall dinner!
Hi Stephanie,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe out and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was a hit! xx
Woof. I usually love every recipe here but this was a huge flop for me. Way way too much liquid and the onions didn’t Carmelize—just were soggy and floated in the liquid. Flavor was decent but i think the overall texture and soupy ness ruins it.
Hi Kelsey,
So sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xx
5 stars per my husband! I omitted the mushrooms and added one thin sliced apple that I mixed with the onions. I also used 1.5 cups total of Cider and .5 cups of white wine – any more than that would have been too much liquid. I served over egg noodles with roasted broccoli. The sage made this a perfect fall dinner!
Hey Stephanie,
Perfect! I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I am so glad it was a hit! xx
This was delicious, but I agree with other commenters that there’s too much liquid. I’ll definitely make again but will cut down the liquid by maybe 1/3. I used boneless skinless chicken breasts that cooked perfectly, but I’ll probably butterfly them next time and add some seasoning (other than S&P) when I brown them because they were pretty thick and ended up being just very chicken-flavored, lol! But that’s my own problem, not a recipe problem. Thanks for this tasty fall dish!
Hey Meghan,
Thanks so much for making this dish and sharing your feedback! Sorry about the liquid, let me know if you make it again:) xx
Made this tonight-
Husband and 3 year old approved! My daughter ate all the mushrooms! Only has sparkling apple cider which I used and I think it worked just fine. I actually just realized I forgot to add the cup of chicken broth or wine and it still turned out great, not too much liquid like others have commented. Served alongside pasta and the sauce flavored the pasta perfectly.
Hey Allison,
I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you and appreciate you giving it a try! Happy Monday! xT
I just made this tonight. Mine did not “carmelize” or brown like yours. It had a lot of liquid in it after 40 mins in the oven. It still tasted AMAZING!!! We all really loved the flavor and I served it with the 5 ingredient beer bread so we could soak up the juices. Just not sure what I did wrong. Any idea??
Hi Jen,
Thanks so much for giving this dish a try! Next time, I would allow the onions to caramelize longer than the 5 minutes and you can simmer the sauce down on the stove top. I hope this helps! xx
I love this but it was too much liquid. Next time I’d only use 1.5 cups cider, and 1/2 cup wine. Otherwise yummy!
Hi Michele,
Thanks for making this dish and sharing your feedback! Sorry to hear you didn’t love it! xT
I made this about two weekends ago after a quick stop at the apple orchard! This recipe was delicious!!!! I used chicken breasts and it was wonderful! Great flavor and not that difficult to make at all.
Hi Robbie,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it! xx
I browned both sides of chicken breasts. Removed from cast iron skillet and caramelized onions until medium golden. Followed recipe except only added a quarter cup of wine, no fresh herbs due to hurricane issues in Tampa, Fl but added dried thyme and rosemary. Braised uncovered in cast iron at 325 for one and a half hours. Perfect!!!!!
Hi Kim,
Fantastic!! I love to hear that this dish turned out well for you, thanks so much for trying it out! xT
I can’t find apple cider, will apple juice do?
Hi Jennifer,
Yes, that will work too! I hope this recipe is delish, let me know if you have any other questions! xT