Honey Mustard and Rosemary Chicken Thighs

Great, a family of 8 for $32 . Thanks Food Network Gods. But if anyone was going to make it happen it was going to be Cao and I. And being someone who isn't remotely familiar with Instagram stories, I was grateful to have a partner like Cao. I am not familiar with shopping on a budget either. I mean, were not rich. But we allocate a decent amount of money to food. Cao and I made a plan, stuck to it, and not only shopped for a family of 8 on a a restrictive budget. But we also cooked 8 dishes in the same amount of time other teams had to cook 2. Talk about a challenge. And that was only half of the challenge!

I have cooked honey mustard chicken thighs before. In fact, I am recycling this blog post. Of course I made a few additions and adjustments. But this was super duper yummy. Like really, really good. And it’s actually very easy; minimal ingredients and minimal technique. If it was good enough for Bobby Flay, it is good enough for you! FYI. The honey mustard sauce was sweet and creamy but had the delicious tang of the mustard and the slight bite of the rosemary. The chicken thighs were tender and crisp. It was an all around crowd pleaser. I was even a little surprised at the taste... since it was so easy! (I like to cook with a lot of spices. My husband complimented this dish for its lack of spice; telling me that I did an amazing job coaxing out the more mellow flavors without having a complicated palate. Um, thanks!)

Ingredients:

8 chicken thighs (bone in, skin on)

3/4 cup honey

3/4 cup stone ground or smooth Dijon mustard

2 tbsp chicken stock

5-6 garlic cloves

3 sprigs rosemary, bruised

1 tbsp olive oil (for cooking)

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Cut the excess skin off of the chicken. You want to leave a layer on top; it has great flavor and texture. But any extra dangly bits probably aren’t necessary. Salt and pepper to taste (both sides) and set aside.

2. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the honey, the mustard and chicken stock until smooth and set aside.

3. In a large pan or skillet, put a tbsp of olive oil and allow it to heat up. Add your winced garlic. Place the chicken, skin side down into the cast iron skillet and sere until it begins to brown. (Roughly 4 min) Flip and repeat the process.

4. Turn the chicken thighs so that they are skin side up again.

5. With a flat knife, bruise your rosemary (in video) and add it to the pan.

6. Pour the honey mustard sauce over the chicken and the rosemary.

7. Put your chicken into the oven for roughly 20 minutes at 350 degrees, or until the internal temperature reaches 165. 8. Remove the chicken and spoon in some of the sauce as well.

Goes great with Shaved Dijon Brussels

Seriously... enjoy!