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Cooked on the grill and finished with the broiler. Simple, fast and delicious. A keeper!
Sara
Well, That Was Unexpected.
If you described this meal to me, I’d raise my eyebrows at you. Chicken on a sheet pan, with a few basic sauce elements poured right over the top? Like, really?
But every time I’ve made this apricot chicken, both Bjork and I and our friends have literally said outloud – Wow. Why is this so good? It’s humble, it’s low-key, but it has absolutely incredible flavor.
Sesame oil, soy sauce, with a bit of sweetness (our buddy apricot jam! 😍) are an excellent flavor base – but the thing that deserves most of the flavor credit here is that tangle of charred scallions. They give a nice oniony flavor, but also a roasty depth feels like you spent a few hours on this instead of just 15 minutes.
The chicken stays tender and juicy thanks to a short bake time, the scallions are fun and pretty, and if you can scrape up any browned bits or juices from the pan to spoon over your rice bowl, you’re in for a treat. It’s so good.
Of all our SOS recipes this season, I think this might be the easiest.
I hope you love it! And for more of our most popular easy dinner recipes, click here!
How To Make This Apricot Chicken (Video)
Sesame Apricot Chicken with Charred Scallions
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
This apricot chicken, made on a sheet pan, is so easy and SO GOOD! Just a few simple ingredients, minimal cleanup, and a major flavor boost from the roasty charred scallions on top.
Ingredients
Sesame Apricot Chicken with Charred Scallions
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt + 10 cracks of freshly ground pepper
- 1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
- 1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 10 scallions, sliced in half lengthwise
- 1/4 cup apricot preserves
- a few tablespoons of chili crisp
For serving:
- Rice
- Any other vegetables – I like cucumbers
Instructions
- Preheat: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place an oven rack in top 1/3 of oven.
- Prep Scallions: Cut the scallions in half lengthwise.
- Prep Chicken: Cut the chicken into thinner pieces horizontally. Place chicken on a sheet pan; season with salt and pepper. Drizzle sesame oil and soy sauce directly over the chicken.
- Add Scallions: Toss the scallions in some of the oil.
- Bake: Place the scallions on top of the chicken. Bake for 6 minutes on the rack that is in the top 1/3 of the oven.
- Broil: Turn the broiler on; broil for 1-2 minutes – the goal is to get the chicken cooked through (165 degrees) a small amount of charring on the scallions. There is tons of yummy flavor in those charred bits! Immediately spoon apricot jam and chili crisp over the top of each piece so it kind of melts in.
- Serve: Serve chicken and a tangle of the charred scallions with rice, spooning extra pan juices over the top (or just drizzling with extra sesame oil and soy sauce). Humble method, max flavor!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: apricot chicken, sheet pan chicken, chicken dinner recipe
Frequently Asked Questions For This Recipe
I didn’t try it with thighs, but I think it would work – I would just leave them whole, and you’d just need to bake it a bit longer since they are thicker.
Yes, and maybe just use sesame oil and soy sauce to marinate the chicken or brush it as it’s grilling.
Orange would work great, or a drizzle of honey could be used in a pinch too!
I love this with the fresh cucumber pictured, but you could also add some air-fried broccoli or green beans.
Thinly sliced shallots would be delicious here!
Yes! Use this sesame apricot tofu recipe. Same flavors and also very very delicious!
This is great! I accidentally misread the recipe the first time and bought dried apricots. I chopped them and threw them in with the chicken before baking and it still turned out really good. Some got a little charred but charred apricots is actually really tasty.
This meal was super easy and super delicious! I served it with basmati rice. The whole family raved about it, thank you so much.
This meal was super easy and super delicious! I served it with basmati rice. The whole family raved about it, thank you so much.
So quick and easy! I will definitely be making it again. I did use apricot preserves, but I might even try guava preserves next time.
Going to give this recipe a go! Also, can you tell me where your gold/champagne utensils are from in step 7 picture? They are just what I have been searching for! Thanks!!
I made this tonight and we loved it! Super easy and great for a quick weeknight dinner!
Such a quick and easy dinner that the whole family really loved. Trying it with tofu next for a vegetarian in the group!
Made this tonight and it was a hit! It’s earned a spot in the rotation – which is no easy feat. I cut the chicken into small strips before cooking so the sauce got all around each piece and required no cutting at the table. It’s definitely a make again. I had dinner on the table in <30 minutes, and clean up was very quick!
So so good! Always looking for new chicken breast recipes, it can get boring to me. But this hit the spot. Something new and I knew I could count on the POY team for a well tested recipe. Wanted to leave a comment since I noticed some reviews had tweaks to the recipe, but I followed as is and was delicious. Chicken was juicy and I used a meat thermometer to make sure it came to 165 at the end. Since my chicken was still thick after cutting in half (why are they so big these days??), I left them in for 9 mins before broiling. Perfect!
Followed there recipe exactly as written and it was fantastic! My husband also enjoyed it. This will be going in our regular rotation.
only bake 6 minutes?
Correct! The chicken is cut very thin.
This was SO good and couldn’t be easier to execute!! Love this recipe, def a keeper!
My girlfriend made this for me the other night. It was absolutely delicious..
This turned out great! I was heavy handed on the preserves- yum!
So very good! I was unable to get the chicken cooked through in the time listed, even though the chicken breast I used was thin. Probably cooked at least an additional 20-25 minutes. We didn’t have chili crisp, but used a gifted homemade pepper chili sauce that was perfect. I was surprised that we all like the scallions 🙂 As an addition, I thinly sliced carrots and added to the pan to roast alongside the chicken and served over rice. Super yummy! Adding to the rotation!!
ooh this looks delicious and saw your comment about getting chili crisp at TJ’s and I’m going there this week so definitely putting this on the menu for next week!
so good and easy. Added sweet potato cubes to the sheet pan. Thanks!
Sesame oil is hard to find here. What can I use instead?
This was insanely good! Definitely will be on repeat. You must try!!!
10 out of 10– delicious and easy!! The chicken was so juicy! I can’t wait for my leftovers!
Awesome, thanks for making the recipe!
We liked this one! I amped up the chicken marinade with fresh ginger, rice vinegar, garlic, and miso paste. Marinated the chicken for about 30 mins. I only had thin sliced breasts which I left whole. I didn’t have chili crisp but I did have chili garlic sauce which was amazing mixed with the apricot jam. I also applied the jam mixture just before broiling. Really good! Reminded me of a healthier take on sweet and sour chicken and similar Chinese dishes.
Sounds so great, Megan! Thanks for making the recipe.
Made this last night and it was delicious. The kids even liked it (without the chili crisp). I served it with couscous and roasted cauliflower which was perfect.
That sounds like a great meal! Thanks for making the recipe.
This was a HUGE hit for my whole family! My husband I loved the spicy addition of the chili crisp and my 2 year old had a 3rd serving! “Jelly chicken” (as my 5 year old called it) is officially part of our quick and easy dinner rotation!
Love that, Sarah! Glad the whole family enjoyed the dinner.
We felt this was especially enjoyable and we would definitely make it again. Our only change was using Trader Joe’s Thai Ginger Sauce in place of the chili, mixed with the apricot jam. We served it with Costco’s lime cilantro rice.
Oh that’s such a good idea for the swap!
My partner and I loved it! Super easy and flavor packed! Perfect for an easy weeknight dinner. We wanted to cut the green onions a bit so they weren’t so stringy and difficult to cut post-char, but overall will be making this again!