Grilled Chicken with Apple-Mustard Glaze
Grilled chicken brushed with a sweet and tangy apple-mustard glaze and served with a creamy apple sauce. Fresh apples, onion, garlic, and sage form the base for both, while a little chili gives the glaze a gentle kick.
Equipment
- Large saucepan
- Small saucepan
- Immersion blender
- Fine-mesh sieve
- Cutting board
- Chef’s knife
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Kitchen scale
- grill
- Tongs
- Pastry brush
Ingredients
Apple Base
- 350 g (12 oz) tart apples cored and cut into wedges
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 garlic cloves chopped
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp butter
- 3 tbsp water
Chicken
- 4 chicken breast fillets
- Salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- Olive oil for brushing
Apple-Mustard Glaze
- 100 g (3½ oz) strained apple purée
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 20 g brown sugar about 1½ tbsp
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 fresh sage leaves finely chopped
- Small pinch of chili flakes
- Salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp butter
Creamy Apple Sauce
- 200 g (7 oz) strained apple purée
- ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 dl chicken stock ½ cup
- 1 dl (½ cup) cream
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1 - 2 tsp brown sugar
- 1 fresh sage leave finely chopped
- ½ - 1 tsp apple cider vinegar or to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- Salt if needed
Instructions
Make the Apple Base
- Heat the olive oil and butter in a saucepan. Add the apples, onion, and garlic and cook over medium heat for a few minutes, until the onion softens and the apples begin to soften.
- Add the water, cover, and cook gently until the apples and onions are completely soft.
- Blend until smooth with an immersion blender.
- Pass the purée through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing it through with a spoon to make it smooth.
Make the Glaze
- Place one-third of the apple purée in a small saucepan. Add the Dijon mustard, brown sugar, soy sauce, sage, chili flakes, salt, and black pepper.
- Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the glaze thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the butter. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Make the Sauce
- Place two-thirds of the apple purée, Dijon mustard, chicken stock, soy sauce, brown sugar, and sage in a saucepan.
- Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for a few minutes.
- Add the cream and simmer gently until the sauce has thickened slightly.
- Stir in the apple cider vinegar and season with black pepper. Taste before adding salt, as the soy sauce already adds saltiness.
Grill the Chicken
- Pat the chicken fillets dry and season with salt and black pepper. Brush lightly with olive oil. Grill over medium-high heat until the chicken is almost cooked through.
- Brush the chicken generously with the apple-mustard glaze and continue grilling, turning and brushing with more glaze, until the chicken is fully cooked and the glaze is lightly caramelized.
- Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before serving.
- Serve with the creamy apple sauce and your choice of sides.
Notes
Use tart apples. Their acidity works particularly well with the mustard and balances the brown sugar in the glaze.
You can also make this recipe with unsweetened apple purée if you don't have fresh apples on hand. You'll need about 300 g (10½ oz). Sauté the onion and garlic in the butter and olive oil first, then add the apple purée and continue with the recipe as written.
The glaze contains brown sugar, so apply it toward the end of grilling to prevent it from burning.
Taste the sauce before adding salt, as the soy sauce provides some saltiness.
Sage works especially well with apples and grilled chicken, but use it sparingly so it doesn't overpower the other flavors.
The apple base can be prepared ahead and refrigerated until you are ready to make the glaze and sauce.
If the sauce becomes too thick, loosen it with a little chicken stock or water.