Orange and Soy Glazed Chicken Thighs

Serves 4

by Dawn Yanagihara-Mitchell
from Fine Cooking
Issue 103
Last Edit Date: 11/19/2010 7:10:17 PM

Who said weeknight chicken and rice has to be boring? Not so, here. This chicken dish gets its earthy flavor from shiitake mushrooms, onions, and soy sauce and its sweetness from sugar, fresh orange juice, and a touch of zest.

more about:

Vegetable oil for the broiler pan
8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, trimmed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
16 small to medium shiitake mushrooms, stemmed
3 medium scallions (green parts only), cut into 3-inch lengths
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbs. mirin
1/2 tsp. finely grated orange zest
2 Tbs. fresh orange juice
1-1/4 tsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds

Position a rack about 7 inches from the broiler and heat the oven to 450°F. Line the bottom of a broiler pan with foil and lightly oil the top of the pan.

Season the chicken all over with 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Arrange the shiitake in 8 pairs, gill sides up, on the prepared broiler pan and season with salt and pepper. Arrange 2 or 3 scallion pieces on top of each mushroom pair, then put a chicken thigh, skin side up, on top. Press with your hand to flatten. Roast until the edges of the chicken begin to brown and an instantread thermometer inserted in a thick part of the biggest thigh registers 165°F, about 20 minutes. Turn the broiler to high and broil until the skin is crisp and deeply browned, 5 to 6 minutes, rotating the pan once for even browning.

While the chicken is cooking, combine the soy sauce, sugar, mirin, and orange zest in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

In a small bowl, stir the orange juice and cornstarch; add this mixture to the saucepan. Return to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and glossy, about 1 minute.

To serve, transfer the chicken, scallions, and mushrooms to dinner plates, drizzle with the sauce, and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.

Serving Suggestions

There’s no better accompaniment to this dish than white rice.

nutrition information (per serving):
Calories (kcal): 390; Fat (g): 21; Fat Calories (kcal): 190; Saturated Fat (g): 6; Protein (g): 33; Monounsaturated Fat (g): 8; Carbohydrates (g): 17; Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 5; Sodium (mg): 960; Cholesterol (mg): 115; Fiber (g): 2;

Photo: Scott Phillips

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by esspoe, 5/21/2013This was really tasty!! I added minced ginger to the glaze, and cut the sugar down by half. Delicious. I served over a bed of cauliflower.

by Kaye55, 5/20/2013My dinner was not planned so I did not have the mushrooms or green onions but I knew I would love the glaze since I love Asian flavors. My husband cooked skinless, boneless thighs in a frying pan with olive oil. We made the glaze and then added to the cooked thighs and the sauce thickenup up even more. We sprinkled the sesame seeds on top. We love this recipe. I'd like to make again with the mushrooms and serve with roasted carrots and Lundberg rice.

by almadenmike, 5/18/2013This dish looks better than it tastes. It looks great, but the taste is just so-so. There's nothing particularly wrong or 'off' with it -- I do like the bake-then-broil method -- but there's just nothing distinctive about it. The sauce is pretty blah, and having the mushroom and green onions beneath the thighs is awkward. With some perking up, this could be a relatively easy-to-make 4-star dish.

by tonyalfrey, 5/30/2012It is delicious. But it has a TON of salt from the soy sauce used in the sauce. Even low-sodium soy sauce will add a ton of salt to this dish. It's really a shame because it /looks/ great and it /tastes/ great if you can tolerate the HUGE amount of salt in the sauce.

by MichelleH29, 9/4/2011Super delicious! I have made this several times now; only modification I make is leaving out the scallions (hubby doesn't like). Since we love mushrooms, I always use more. Serve with Basmati rice.

by Danamay07, 9/4/2010Made this dish many times!! The mushrooms are a great complimentary addition to the chicken. It's also a great meal the next day (drizzle the sauce over the chicken and keep in fridge).

by TheMomChef, 2/16/2010The sauce makes this dish. Read my full review and see a picture. http://themomchef.blogspot.com/2010/02/orange-and-soy-glazed-chicken-thighs.html

by sewapel, 1/13/2010