Easy Balsamic Chicken with Caramelized Onions & Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Let's talk about the proverbial question. What's for dinner? 

You know the feeling well, I presume. It's a week night, maybe a Wednesday. You don't have any leftovers nor do you have a meal planned for the odd array of food left in your pantry and fridge. You're hungry and the person you're cooking for is hungry too. What's for dinner? 

This recipe was born from one of those nights, but it was so good that it has become a standby recipe that we make every couple weeks. 

I've only shared two other chicken dishes on this site, and the reason is that I'm never particularly excited about how I cook chicken.  I like it in small amounts, but honestly, I probably wouldn't cook it without a  hungry husband who likes meat. 

However, this chicken recipe is a keeper. It's relatively quick, easy, and made with items you probably have laying around in your freezer and pantry.  Oh, and it's DELICIOUS. 

Step 1: Throw two chicken breasts in a bag with some olive oil, balsamic vinegar and garlic. Let them hang out and marinade while you do the rest of the food prep.  (Depending on how carefully you've planned, you can do this in the morning or several hours before.)

Step 2: Chop up a large sweet vidalia onion and cook it in some butter and olive oil over low heat for 15-20 minutes.  (You can make some simple sides to go with the chicken while the onions cook, but stir them every couple minutes or so.)

Step 3: When the onions are almost completely brown, turn the heat up to high and, push the onions to the outer rim of the pan, and add the chicken breasts. Cook them only for 1-2 minutes, or until one side is golden brown.

Step 4: Add chicken broth and sun dried tomatoes, then turn the heat down to low, cover, and let simmer for 10-15 minutes.

That's it! We've found that this method keeps the chicken moist and tender. (Maybe my chicken-cooking-phobia stems from too many dry chicken failures???)  Anyway, I love how each bite of chicken is accompanied by sweet caramelized onions and flavorful sun-dried tomatoes. Major yum.

For quick side-dishes, we do a lot of simple spinach salads, grilled veggies, or frozen broccoli.  On this particular day we also paired it with a farro dish with feta, cherry tomatoes, red onions, and fresh basil.

Sometimes life can be full of disappointments and worries, and lots of things we can't control, but I find a great sense of comfort in putting together a healthy dinner to share with people I love. I hope you do too.

Easy Balsamic Chicken with Caramelized Onions & Sun-Dried Tomatoes 

Ingredients:
2 large chicken breasts
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
salt & pepper
1 large Vidalia onion, sliced
1 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes (I like this Trader Joe's kind that is not packed in oil.)
1/2 cup chicken broth, vegetable broth, or white wine

Directions:
Thirty minutes, or up unto 8 hours before, marinate the chicken. In a large ziplock bag, combine chicken breasts, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, and salt and pepper. Refrigerate.

In a large sauce pan, heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil over low heat. Add sliced onions. Cook over low heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When onions are translucent and brown in color, turn heat to high, move onions to the outer rim of the pan, and add the chicken. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until one side is golden brown. Add broth or wine and sun-dried tomatoes. Flip over chicken and reduce heat to low. Cover and let simmer for 10 minutes or so, or until chicken no longer pink.