Ah, the lowly chicken thigh – I never really liked them until I started slow cooking with them – when slow cooked, thighs take on an almost beefy flavor! And boy oh boy are they inexpensive – they’re on their way to becoming my favorite chicken part!
So, here’s a recipe I took and adapted for the dutch over – although I’m pretty sure you’d have great luck in the slow cooker as well!
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
10 boneless skinless chicken thighs
3/4 cup honey
3/4 cup soy sauce (can use lite)
3 tbsp ketchup
3 cloves garlic
1 tbsp grated ginger root
1 20 oz can of pineapple tidbits – or 1/2 cup orange juice
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup water
Heat oil in the dutch oven on top of the stove. and place chicken thighs until just evenly brown on all sides. Note here, that on the chicken thighs – they’re totally easy to de-bone and skin yourself if you want to save some money (and we reserve the bones and skin to make chicken stock!)
In a bowl, mix honey, soy sauce, ketchup, garlic, ginger and pineapple juice drained off of can OR you can use the orange juice here (if you want to skip the extra sweetness from the pineapple at the end – I think the dish works both ways).
Cover, place dutch oven in the oven and cook 4 hours at 250 degrees.
Mix the cornstarch and water in a small bowl, remove thighs from dutch oven, blend the cornstarch mixture into the remaining sauce in the dutch oven to thicken. Add the pineapple bits to the sauce until warm.
Serve sauce over the chicken.
*A slow cooker can be substituted, just make sure you brown the thighs on the stove first.
