Honey Dijon Mustard Chicken

We do eat a lot of chicken in this house, but since fish is so often tainted with mercury and red meat isn't something we want to have very often, we end up eating lots of fowl, and a bit of pork. This recipe could be adapted easily for any fowl, but there's just something about honey mustard chicken that works. This is a really simple recipe, prepped in a flash, and done in an hour with little effort.

A note about mustard! You will notice that most store bought dijon mustard - even the organic stuff - has an ingredient list something along the lines of: "Mustard seed, vinegar, water, salt, spices." The problem with "spices" is you don't know what they are. Are they garlic? Are they turmeric? Are they onions? So, please be careful and make sure you get a brand that doesn't say "spices", but that says what the spices specifically are. For example Annie's makes a great brand of organic dijon mustard. Note the regular Annie's mustard *does* contain cumin. The dijon, however, does not. It's important to notice stuff like "spices" on an ingredient list and to find something that is more specific, so you're not giving yourself an unwarranted load of coriander or turmeric. Deli brands like this one are a bit more expensive, but also tend to be much purer and specify ingredients.

Preheat oven to 400 F for dark meat, 350 F for white meat.

3 lbs boneless chicken pieces
1/2 Cup dijon mustard (see above note)
1/4 Cup organic raw honey
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar (or white wine vinegar will work if you tolerate it)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt

Lightly oil a 9x13" glass baking pan. Place chicken pieces (we use thighs a lot because dark meat supports the sulfur pathways) in the prepared dish and set aside to prepare sauce. Whisk together dijon mustard, honey, vinegar and salt until well mixed. Slowly drizzle in the olive while whisking quickly to emulsify the oil into the sauce. Then pour the sauce over the chicken and turn the chicken over to coat both sides. Cover the dish with foil and place it in the oven for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the foil and again turn the chicken over. Allow the chicken to cook for another 40 minutes, or until done. Let it sit for 5 minutes out of the oven before serving.

This dish is wonderful with baked sweet potatoes, which you can place in the same oven as the meat about 20 minutes in (unless you have really big potatoes, then start them at the same time as the chicken) and cook until done. Make sure you poke holes in the skins of your potatoes before you cook them. Serve on a thick bed of romaine lettuce, and the mustard sauce will make a lovely dressing.

Cheers!
~Miriam

© 2012, Miriam Mason