This Catalina Chicken recipe is so flavorful and crazy easy. It only requires chicken and 3 other ingredients for a really flavorful sweet and sour sauce. We love this served over rice with a veggie on the side. And right now I need easy.
Since we’re keepin’ it real around here this week, let me give you a little peek into my life right now. Remember when I showed you my office last week?
Well here’s the view out my master bedroom:
And my super stylish entry (I swear there’s not a body in that bag.)
Annnnd don’t forget the kitchen.
We’re moving. Well, in the process of moving. And life is chaotic. The other day my 4 year old actually said, “Hey Mom, weeemember the time you made us chicken wif sawad for dinner? Can you do that again?” Um yeah. We’ve been in a cereal/pizza/fend for yourself kind of mode for a couple of weeks now. Which happens to be the perfect time to pull out some of the crazy-easy-totally-not-fancy-but-hot-yummy-and-homemade recipes I like. The kind of recipes we don’t always post on our blog because the foodies out there tell us they’re not foodie enough. Luckily we’ve never claimed to be fancy-foodies. We’re realists. So here’s a realist recipe. It’s one of those old-school iconic chicken dishes that’s been around forever. And yes, it uses pretty much all pre-packaged store-bought ingredients, but sometimes that’s exactly what you need! I have bunch of recipes like this up my sleeve so you may get a few more in coming weeks as I try to pack my life up, unpack it again, and try to not live completely off of Happy Meals.
For this you’ll only need a few basic pantry items. I always keep this stuff around because it will last forever in the pantry and then it’s always available when I need a quick, last-minute meal.
Apricot jam is pretty standard, but I use Apricot-Pineapple a lot, and even peach. They’re all great. There’s another version that uses a can of whole cranberry sauce instead, and that one is good too. Catalina or Russian dressing works here, too and you can make this with pretty much any cut of chicken you want. See? Easy peasy!
Start by putting your jam in a bowl and adding the Catalina dressing. If your jam is particularly jamm-y, it helps to heat it up a little in the microwave to make it easier to stir.
Most recipes don’t call for this next ingredient, but I always add a little apple cider vinegar to cut the sweetness and balance the flavors. Just a half teaspoon does it.
Next bust open that packet of soup mix. You’re not making soup- just using the dry mix here. Add half of it to the sauce (that’s about 1 1/2 tablespoons, but you can just eyeball it.)
This is also something I do a little different. I use the remaining half of the soup mix to season the chicken itself. You can definitely just throw all of the ingredients in a pan and pop it in the oven like I know a lot of people do, but I find that seasoning the chicken pieces, and then searing them in a hot pan first develops flavor, adds depth, and results in juicier chicken and a thicker sauce. So just just sprinkle the rest of the soup mix on your chicken and rub it in with your hands to evenly coat.
If you’re using really large chicken breasts like I am, you might want to just cut them in half for easier cooking and serving.
Heat up a large skillet, dutch oven, or other oven-proof pan. When it’s nice and hot, drizzle in a little olive oil and swirl to coat the bottom. Place your chicken pieces in the pan and sear them for 2 minutes on each side, they should be slightly golden brown.
If you’re using an oven-safe pot already, just pour the sauce on top and spread it out. Otherwise, you can transfer your chicken pieces to a baking dish and pour the sauce on there. If you have little brown bits on your skillet, I’d pour some of the sauce in there and heat it to a simmer while scraping those bits off and add those to the baking dish too.
Depending on what type of chicken pieces you’re using, baking time will vary. The very best method of baking chicken is to own a good meat thermometer. Then you’ll always end up with perfectly cooked meat. Cook until the thickest portion reaches 165 degrees. For boneless, skinless breasts it will probably only take about 20-30 minutes.
When you take it out of the oven, let it cool for 10-15 minutes and then serve chicken, ladled with sauce, over hot white rice.
The sauce will be substantially thinner than when you poured it on top (and will thicken the longer it sits) If you want some of those bits of fruit and onion, just use a slotted spoon and spoon it on top.
It kind of tastes like a sweet and sour sauce- or my husband is always reminded of Hawaiian food, like Huli Huli Chicken.
I’m telling you, there’s nothing like a great sauce spooned over hot white rice- one of my favorite comfort foods!
Easy Catalina Chicken
Adapted by Our Best Bites
1 cup Apricot or Apricot-Pineapple Jam (Peach is yummy too)
1 cup Catalina Salad Dressing (Russian works too)
1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 envelope dry onion soup mix (like Lipton)
3-5 chicken (breasts, bone-in/boneless, thighs, tenders, whatever)*
olive oil
*The amount of chicken you use is very flexible. If you use less, you’ll just have lots of sauce, and if you use more- you’ll have less sauce to spoon over rice, but there’s plenty to cook that much chicken.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat a large oven proof skillet or dutch oven to medium-high heat on the stove top. If you don’t have an oven proof one, you can use any skillet and just transfer your chicken to a baking dish after searing.
While pan is heating, place jam, Catalina dressing, cider vinegar, and 1/2 of the onion soup packet (just eyeball it) in a bowl and stir to combine. Set sauce aside. Sprinkle remaining onion soup mix onto chicken pieces and pat on all sides with clean hands.
Drizzle olive oil into hot pan to coat bottom of pan. Place chicken pieces in and cook without moving for 2 minutes. Flip chicken to other side and cook for 2 more minutes. Pour sauce over chicken and spread out evenly over chicken pieces.
Place pan in oven, uncovered and cook until chicken registers 165 on a meat thermometer. Different parts of the chicken will vary in time so gauge according to what you are using. boneless skinless breasts usually take about 20-30 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool at least 10 minutes. Serve chicken and sauce over hot white rice. Serving size varies according to how much chicken you make, but serves a bunch!
Lastly, if you’re stuck in cold, chilly weather and want to dream of tropical paradise (like this)
Sea Cuisine is featuring some of my work on the Seafood Spot Blog today!
This past June, my husband and I headed to the insanely gorgeous island of Anguilla, to capture photographs and write articles about the amazing food there.
Click over to see photos of our trip, and read about some of the adventurous eating I did!
Questions & Reviews
Does this recipe work with sugar free jam and fat free Catalina dressing? Trying to cut some sugar calories. Thanks.
Love this recipe. We use Russian dressing as well. If it helps anyone out with how long to cook chicken for, I did all Boneless skinless thighs (2lbs) and it took 40 min. To register 165 on thermometer 😉 thanks for sharing all your delicious meals with us. Love this site!
This sounded great until the Onion Soup mix, it has MSG and my family is extremely allergic. Is there something else I could use ?
Thanks Nate
I just tried this recipe and my family loved it! All three of my boys ate it which is great! My 3 year old never eats meat and ate a bunch of this chicken! I had some leftover pineapple I stuck in my food processor and added to the apricot jam. And I used light Catalina and brown rice mixed with white. I love all of your recipes!
WE’ve used this recipe for years (but with the russian dressing)–such a quick thing to be able to take dinner to someone and always good! We have added ingredients as the years have gone on–and kids are older and will eat more! We cut up pineapple, bell peppers, sometimes jalapeno and onion and add to the sauce–makes it a little chuncky but very yummy!
THanks for all these recipes—I teach a very early morning class for church and study most of the day lately and it’s so nice to be able to open one of the cookbooks or look online and find something quickly that I know I have all the ingredients for or more importantly my entire family will enjoy! You guys have been life savers the past couple months as I get used to my crazy schedule! THANKS!
This was wonderful and super easy. We all loved it, even my super picky 7-year-old. I made it in my Pampered Chef deep covered baker (cause I was pressed for time) and it turned out great. Thank you OBB!
I tried this last night. It was super good. Since I’m always looking for easy things I can make when we’re traveling in our RV, I’m especially happy to find this. It’s good for any night of the week, but it’s a dream recipe for traveling. Thanks!
I just made this. It was super quick, super easy, and very tasty to boot.
Thx for a great recipe.
I love easy meals! I’ve stopped following a lot of foodie blogs because they ARE too foody. Just one more reason why I love your recipes and blog. Thank you!
I just want you to know that even though we were on opposite “teams” this election year, I loved your gracious explanation of the election reference and your comment about loving this country and supporting the President, no matter who he is. I don’t come to this blog for politics, and wasn’t bothered by your brief reference to being on the other team, but your explanation made me feel even more affection and respect for you. Your blog is one of my very favorites, and I enjoy both of you tremendously. As Linda N. said so well, keep calm and blog on.
I of course love this idea!
Growing up one of the very few things my Mom would randomly cook was catalina chicken. However, she would lightly bread drumettes (these are hard to find anymore for some reason, but it’s just little legs and wings together in pack), fry them, and then coat them in just straight catalina dressing. Soooooooooo good.
More recipes like this please!!! I don’t care what the foodies think, I love things that taste good and come together quickly and easily. Food like this makes it so I still get a good home cooked meal while being insanely busy with a newborn and getting our house together for apprasial.
Ditto! I LOVE your recipes and this blog. Please don’t change a thing about the way you write your posts-that is what keeps it so entertaining. I may not always agree with your opinion, but I would never take offense and have always appreciated people/friends who understand it’s really okay if we don’t all agree. I feel sorry for anyone who is so easily offended.
I love your blog. I love your recipes and tips and I love your fun and cheerful personalities…your little comments on here are one of the main reasons I keep coming back; it’s what makes your blog different and full of life! Thanks for making food and reading recipes so much fun!
I love this site, never a dull moment! Haha. I have a link saved on my favorites bar and click on it everyday to read through your blog. I appreciate that we all have different backgrounds and different beliefs, that’s what makes things interesting! With that said, I chuckled with your election comment and even Kate’s all about white rice post. My point is, please don’t feel the need to change how you write your post because you don’t want to offend. You can’t please everyone. Keep calm and blog on. 🙂
I totally forgot to mention…I love this recipe! So easy and tasty. Thank you!
This looks great! New chicken recipes are always a biggie with me! My husband is a dedicated red-meat eater and complains every time I make chicken, no matter how it is made – to him “is still chicken”. The sauce looks so good I can almost taste it! I am going to fix this for supper this weekend. Thank you for your idea about Apple Cider vinegar, I like it in many dishes too. MANY years ago, a friend of mine from France told me that her mom taught her to drink one tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar in an 8-oz glass of water every night before bed. She said it helps keep your skin purified and smooth. She was beautiful and have amazing skin. I tried it, at first you kinda have to build up to the tablespoon a little at a time. I finally got to where I could handle it and did it for several years. My skin didn’t have any problems for a long time, but I wasn’t sure which contributed more, the vinegar or because I was working for national cosmetic company and using their skin care products. LOL!! I also love the pictures! Thank you for sharing this great recipe!!
Mary Francis, when you make a chicken dish, you should try using the dark meat/pieces. It is richer, moister, and more flavorful (and cheaper too). Your meat loving husband may like it a little better. White chicken CAN sometimes be dry and tasteless (of course, I’ve never made it that way! LOL). Hope that helps…
I love reality recipes!! Especially because it makes it easier for my DH to feel like Emeril in the kitchen. When he feels proud of the results, he’s more than likely to get involved with the cooking. Will add this to the books. I am in love with Apricot jam! We use it when we bake our ham and it is the perfect amount of sweetness! Have a good wknd.. and skip over the negative sensitive folk. I love this blog even though we may be on different teams 🙂
Never left a comment on your site, but I’ve use your recipes countless times (some of them are printed, splattered and have been made dozens of times each).
I just wanted to say, ‘keep up the good work’. I’m sorry that reading rude comments has to come with the territory of writing a blog.
Also, I thought your opening comment on this post was funny, as it was probably meant to be. Anyone who doesn’t have enough of a sense of humor to understand that is a little too easily offended, hmmmm?
Just made this recipe for hubby–it turned out delicious. I guess sometimes less is more.
I gave a fun shout out to OBB on my blog. If you get a minute I’d be happy to share it with you.
http://cgharris.blogspot.com/2012/11/sticky-apricot-chicken.html
Thanks again ladies I can’t begin to tell you how much I love and adore you. TOFW was just delightful. I went in not wanting to hear another conference talk (bad me). I came out of your class smiling with a renewed desire to love my little grandkids more, to spend as much time as needed chatting with my kids on the phone and to happily take my 84 year old mother ‘to town’ as often as she needed or wanted to go. I have since spent fun time with my brothers and some dear friends.
I guess you gave the most important talk of all for me.
And this is why we love you. Thank you, THANK YOU for not being “true” foodies, (whatever that means), and posting things that I can actually make for my family. Instead of for those fancy dinner parties that I have all the time. 😉 It’s your range of recipes that keeps me coming back every week.
PLEASE, please post some more recipes like this. I just had a new baby and need recipes that I can always have on hand without having to go buy a bunch of fresh produce. I begging you…help!
I like to make this in the crockpot.
Wow! You guys really DO have to watch everything that you say around here! What a hard thing to have everyone scrutinize every comment that you make! I have never just read through the comments before, but I’m on partial bed rest now, so I had time to laugh at how some people turn a simple comment into quite a big deal! Keeps ya on your toes, drives ya nuts and stresses ya out sometimes I bet! Silly people! Anyways… The recipe sounds unique, I’ll give it a shot! You mentioned kale, maybe one day you could do something with kale for those of us that don’t even know where to buy it or how to work with it. I’ve heard great things about the health benefits!
@ Seraphina, it’s because the writers of this blog are Mormon.
I can not wait to try this! I love easy recipes. I’m actually trying it tonight. Thank you!
Sara, thanks so much for posting a “realist recipe.” I love to pour over OBB’s foodie recipes from time to time and make them after the laundry has been cleaned, folded and put away; the house has been de-cluttered, vacuumed, and dusted; and my sweet angel children are sitting quietly at the table sharing their educational toys with each other. However, since this scene takes place about once a season in my home, I welcome the easy-peasy recipes every other day of the year! 🙂
this looks amazing! and so perfect for the weekdays!
Lisa, Lisa, Lisa….can’t we all just get along? These ladies are not political. They are wonderful women who enlighten our lives with their wonderful recipes with a dollop of their families mixed in every once and a while. Nobody is making you read their blog and if you don’t enjoy it GO SOMEWHERE ELSE. I’ll climb back off my soapbox now. Peace. Love. Cookies.
“Also, my Mom taught me that if you don’t have anything nice to say, you shouldn’t say anything at all. So then, let’s leave it at that!”
Well, I hate to break it to you, that was not nice.
This is the last time I visit this blog.
Your loss.
Seriously, you aren’t revisiting the blog because of that? I wonder how so people manage to survive on a daily basis being so sensitive to everything. Do they live in a bubble full of lollipops and rainbows where everyone agrees with them and everything always goes their way?
This is my husband’s favorite dish. I usually make it in the crockpot, but I’ve done it both ways. I’ve never tried browning the chicken though, I’m trying that next time. My friend who originally gave me this recipe serves it over couscous, for those who may want to try that option. Love your blog!