Quick Summary: Chicken thighs baked in a sweet-smoky raspberry chipotle sauce. The fruity heat of chipotle peppers complements the dusky sweetness of raspberries. Works for weeknight dinners or holiday entertaining. The sauce also makes a great appetizer spooned over cream cheese. Prep: 20 min | Cook: 30-45 min | Serves: 4
Jump to: RECIPE | Ingredients | How to Make It? | Cooking Tips | FAQ
At HeathGlen Organic Farm, I grow both raspberries and chile peppers, so I’m always experimenting with recipes that highlight either of them. This recipe brings them together.
The fruity undertones of smoked jalapeños (chipotle peppers) complement the sweet, dusky flavor of raspberries surprisingly well. This sauce works on baked chicken, game birds, or turkey, and it doubles as a holiday appetizer spooned over cream cheese with crackers.
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Ingredients:
The following photo shows you all the ingredients you will need for this recipe. For details on measurements, see the recipe below.
How to Make Raspberry Chipotle Baked Chicken
The full instructions are in the recipe card below. In short: Puree raspberries with chipotle peppers and adobo sauce. Simmer with lemon juice, pectin, sugar, butter, and baking soda to make a loose jam consistency. Sear chicken thighs for color and texture, coat with the sauce, and bake at 375°F for 30-45 minutes.
Tips for Best Flavor and Texture
There are several different sauces made with raspberries and chipotles. Some are strained to get the seeds out, some are more savory and some are more sweet.
I have tested all of the variations on homemade raspberry chipotle sauce, and the recipe below is my favorite. It is also the easiest, by the way.
The only ingredient that might seem unusual is the pectin. Packets of pectin are readily available in most grocery stores, and they are very inexpensive. It gives the sauce more texture and keeps it from being thin and runny.
Here are some cooking tips that will help with the success of this recipe:
- Many recipes say to cook this dish 15-20 minutes. That is far too short of a time, even if you set your oven at 400 F. It will take anywhere from 30-45 minutes for the chicken to cook through.
- Reserve some of the raspberry sauce to serve in a separate bowl for those who want more sauce.
- Searing the chicken before adding the sauce will give you a nicer color and a crispier texture. It is not mandatory if you are in a hurry, but it takes the dish up a level in terms of presentation and flavor.
- You can substitute in raspberry jam blended with the chipotle but it will be sweeter and not as fresh tasting.
- If you want fewer seeds but don’t want to strain through a cheesecloth (fussy), blend the ingredients in a blender until smooth
Here is what the recipe looks like fresh out of the oven?
FAQ
Yes, but the sauce will be sweeter and less fresh-tasting. Blend the jam with the chipotle and reduce the added sugar.
Moderately spicy. Two chipotles give noticeable heat balanced by the sweetness. Reduce to one pepper for milder sauce, or add more for extra heat.
Yes. The sauce keeps refrigerated for up to one month. Reheat gently before using.
Pork tenderloin, grilled salmon, roasted turkey, or as a glaze for meatballs. It also works as a dipping sauce or spooned over cream cheese as an appetizer.
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Raspberry Chipotle Baked Chicken
Equipment
- baking dish 9 x 13
- Blender or a food processor
- deep saucepan to accommodate splatters
Ingredients
- 3 cups raspberries fresh or frozen (thawed with juice)
- 2 chipotle peppers plus 1-2 teaspoons of the adobo sauce
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons powdered pectin
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1-2 teaspoons unsalted butter
- ¾ teaspoons baking soda
- 8 chicken thighs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375℉In a blender or food processor, puree raspberries, peppers and adobo sauce until smooth. Using a blender will make a smoother puree with fewer seeds.3 cups raspberries, 2 chipotle peppers
- Pour the raspberry puree into a deep saucepan (deep so the mixture won't splatter onto you and the stove), and add the lemon juice and the dry pectin. Mix thoroughly.Heat the sauce mixture over fairly high heat until it comes to a rolling boil (it will bubble up quite a bit so stir constantly).2 Tablespoons lemon juice, 2 Tablespoons powdered pectin
- When mixture is at a rolling boil, stir in the sugar and then bring it back to a rolling boil.Stir in the butter and the baking soda. This may produce foam but keep stirring it and it will subside.3/4 cup sugar, 1-2 teaspoons unsalted butter, 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
- This sauce is essentially a loose jam and can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
- Salt and pepper the chicken. Quickly sear the chicken thighs (oil the pan if you are using skinless thighs) over high heat. Reserve some of the raspberry sauce (I kept out 3/4 cup) and pour the remaining sauce over the thighs.Bake at 375 for 30-45 minutes. Check occasionally to make sure sauce is not burning.8 chicken thighs
Love this. Very different from my usual chicken rotation. Definitely a keeper.
So glad you liked it Deborah! And raspberry season is so long this year (for us anyway)