Bourbon chicken is a dish with New Orleans roots that’s easy to make with chicken thigh pieces cooked in a sweet brown sugar, bourbon, ginger, garlic, and soy sauce glaze. Serve with rice for a restaurant-worthy meal.
Bourbon Chicken
Bourbon chicken is a dish with New Orleans roots that's easy to make with chicken thigh pieces cooked in a sweet brown sugar, bourbon, ginger, garlic, and soy sauce glaze. Serve with rice for a restaurant-worthy meal.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs cut in 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- ¼ cup minced onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 1/3 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 1/3 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
- 1/4 cup bourbon or apple juice
- 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2 cups cooked rice
- 2 green onions sliced
Instructions
- Gather Ingredients.
- Toss chicken with 1 tablespoon cornstarch in a medium bowl.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat; add chicken. Cook and stir until browned; transfer to a plate using a slotted spoon.
- Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in same skillet. Add onion, garlic, and ginger; cook and stir until softened and fragrant, 1 to 3 minutes.
- Stir remaining 1 tablespoon cornstarch, soy sauce, broth, bourbon, brown sugar, vinegar, and crushed red pepper together in a small bowl.
- Add sauce mixture to skillet; cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
- Return chicken to skillet. Cook and stir until coated in sauce and heated through, about 2 minutes.
- Serve over rice. Top with green onions.
Notes
Test Kitchen Tips
This top-rated user recipe was tested in our test kitchen. Here are some tips from our culinary experts
- Don’t like the taste of bourbon? No problem! Use apple juice instead.
- This bourbon chicken is best served with rice,” says recipe cross-tester Sarah Brekke. “You could add some stir-fried veggies to boost the nutrition.
Editor’s Note
This recipe was tested in our test kitchen and updated to use chicken thighs. It was reworked as a stir-fry recipe, omitting the marinating and baking steps that are in the video.
