Five ingredients make meal a snap

I often have trouble trying to reinvent chicken. It’s particularly difficult with limited time and a 5-year-old with a picky palate. So one day I reached into my cupboard, grabbed several liquid items, threw them together in a bowl to marinate some chicken thighs – and, to my delight, it made a heck of a dinner.

I’ve only tried it with chicken and find it tastes just as good with the breast as it does with dark meat. Seems the thighs hold the marinade a bit better, however. If you’re doing just breasts, it helps to pound them out just before marinating. If time is limited, you can skip it. We’re talking quick and simple, just five ingredients.

Cheers, and here’s to those accidents that work out for the best.

Tips: I’ve prepped this in the morning before work and let the chicken sit refrigerated in the sauce all day. Other times, I let it soak just a few minutes. Either way gives a nice result.

I usually cook a rice side dish while the chicken simmers. The honey and balsamic in the marinade create a sticky paste that I like to blend with my rice or sop up with a baguette.

Accidental Chicken

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce

2 tablespoons honey

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs or 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

Mix oil, vinegar, tamari and honey together in a bowl. Add chicken; allow to marinate at least 5 minutes. Heat a skillet over medium heat; add the chicken and all the marinade at once. Cover; simmer 8 minutes per side. Serve with steamed rice and some of the cooked marinade as a sauce.

Note: Ingredients can be doubled depending on the number of servings. Add 1 or 2 more tablespoons honey if you like a sweeter sauce. Serve with a steamed green vegetable.

Serves 2.

Nutrition information per serving: 315 calories, 18 grams fat, 4 grams saturated fat, 98 milligrams cholesterol, 10 grams carbohydrates, 27 grams protein, 344 milligrams sodium, 0 grams fiber.