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 This Mall Bourbon Chicken will be your new favorite weeknight dinner.  

We love getting bourbon chicken from the mall but I wanted to make it at home and created this recipe for Mall Bourbon Chicken.  Now don’t be fooled this chicken doesn’t actually have any bourbon in it!  Tender chicken thighs are glazed in a sweet sauce of apple juice, brown sugar, garlic, ketchup, soy sauce and vinegar.  This is one of our favorite, quick weeknight dinners.  It is always a crowd pleaser!

There is nothing I love more an easy copycat takeout dinner that comes together quickly and everyone will love and this chicken fits the bill.

Everytime we go to the mall my sister and I have to get the Mall Bourbon Chicken.  It is our favorite! They are always handing out the best bourbon chicken free samples and it is too delicious to pass up!  It is our favorite dish from the mall!

Of course we want it all the time because it is one of our favorite things so I had to figure out the actual ingredients and how to make it at home. 

I love that this homemade version comes together so fast, just quickly sauté some the chicken thighs and then whip up that delicious sauce with that sweetness of the applesauce and brown sugar. Just a few ingredients and you will have a delicious, flavorful dinner that tastes better than takeout.  Whenever I find a dinner that everyone in my house eats I get excited!  This one is definitely a crowd-pleaser!  This copycat recipe is tasty and quick!

Everything cooks up in one pan making this an easy recipe which is the best part.

This chicken is perfectly tender and the sauce is amazingly thick, rich and delicious. This cooks up in a flavorful sweet, savory sauce of ketchup, garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar and apple juice.  I add a little sesame seeds at the end just for color.  I love the sweet, sticky sauce, it is perfect over rice!

I love that you can customize this to your family’s taste, make it spicy or sweeter, add your favorite veggies, you can totally make this tender bourbon chicken your own.  The sauce ingredients can be doubled if you want it saucier. 

Can we also take a minute to talk about how budget-friendly this dinner is?  Everyone is feeling the pinch with the grocery bill right now and you can’t get much cheaper than a little chicken over rice. This is so much more affordable than picking up the phone and ordering out again.  So this is a fabulous dinner when you are trying to save a few pennies.

Next time you want a copycat takeout dinner even the pickiest kids will love throw these ingredients together and in no time you will have an amazing dinner the whole family will love.  

I promise your entire family will love this Mall Bourbon Chicken recipe. 

You will want to make this dinner again and again! We do!

You will love this recipe because it is

• Easy and fast.
• Family-friendly.
• Budget-friendly.
• Full of flavor.
• Flavorful chicken dish.
• Easy weeknight meal.
• Great copycat.
• Wonderful recipe.
• Takeout favorite.
• Easy chicken recipe.
• Family favorite.

Gather your ingredients.

Stir fry the chicken pieces.

Add the sauce ingredients to the pan.

Cook until the sauce is nice and glazy.

Serve!

Can I substitute the meat?

Yes!  At the mall you can get this as pork, shrimp or beef.  Just follow the same directions and adjust the cooking time for the meat you use. 

What should I serve this with?

This is really good over rice, white rice, brown rice or fried rice would be great with this.  Steamed veggies or some roasted broccoli or steamed broccoli or garlic green beans would be great along side this.  At the mall it is served with sauteed veggies like broccoli and cabbage.

Can I make this spicier?

You can add red pepper flakes or sriracha to give this a little kick.  You could also add a pinch of ground ginger for extra flavor.

Can I add veggies?

Yes!  Broccoli, sugar snap peas, cabbage or carrots would all be great in this. 

 

Ingredients used

• Skinless chicken thighs –  Boneless chicken thighs is what they use at the mall to get super tender bites of chicken but you can use tenderloins or chicken breast if you prefer.
• Apple juice –  This is the secret to the sauce, now you could use bourbon but we prefer the taste of the apple juice as opposed to the alcohol.
• Brown sugar –  This gives sweetness to the sauce and helps makes it glazy.  I use light brown sugar but you could use dark brown sugar.
• Onion powder –  Just a bit for flavor, you could use dried minced onion as well.
• Garlic powder –  This is in addition to the chopped garlic, it adds a little bit of a different garlic flavor.
• Apple cider vinegar –  This adds a bit of acid that this dish needs to balance out the sweetness.  You can also use rice vinegar.
• Garlic cloves –  You can use fresh chopped or jarred, I like to use jarred for convenience. 
• Low-sodium soy sauce –  I always use lite soy sauce, it has lower sodium and helps your dish not be too salty and gives it the savory glaze.
• Ketchup –  I know it sounds weird but trust me ketchup makes the perfect base for this sauce.

How to make this Mall Bourbon Chicken 

1. FULL RECIPE BELOW
2. In a large skillet over medium high heat add your chicken.
3. Cook over medium heat until the chicken is cooked through and the liquid from the chicken has mostly evaporated. 
4. To the pan add your apple juice, brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, vinegar, garlic, soy sauce and ketchup. 
5. Stir everything to combine and continue cooking over medium high heat until the sauce gets nice and thick and coats all the chicken. 
6. Garnish with scallions and sesame seeds.
7. Serve over white or fried rice with broccoli.

Want more Chicken Recipes? Check these out!

• Best ever orange chicken
• Honey sesame chicken
• Chicken Fajita Quesadillas
• Slow Cooker Kung Pao Chicken
• Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken

 

Mall Bourbon Chicken

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

We love getting bourbon chicken from the mall but I wanted to make it at home and created this recipe for Mall Bourbon Chicken.  Now don’t be fooled this chicken doesn’t actually have any bourbon in it!  Tender chicken thighs are glazed in a sweet sauce of apple juice, brown sugar, garlic, ketchup, soy sauce and vinegar.  This is one of our favorite, quick weeknight dinners.  It is always a crowd pleaser!

Print

Ingredients

• 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, sliced thin
• 1 cup apple juice
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• ⅔ cup ketchup
• Scallions and sesame seeds for garnish
• White rice and broccoli for serving

Instructions

1. In a large skillet over medium high heat add your chicken.
2. Cook until the chicken is cooked through and the liquid from the chicken has mostly evaporated. 
3. To the pan add your apple juice, brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, vinegar, garlic, soy sauce and ketchup. 
4. Stir everything to combine and continue cooking over medium high heat until the sauce gets nice and thick and coats all the chicken. 
5. Garnish with scallions and sesame seeds.
6. Serve over white or fried rice with broccoli.

Notes

You can use chicken breasts or tenderloins if you prefer. 

If you want to use bourbon use ½ cup of bourbon and ½ cup apple juice. 

Cooking this until the sauce thickens is crucial, the apple juice and brown sugar will help with the sauce thickening and getting caramelized. 

Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 629Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 208mgSodium: 1123mgCarbohydrates: 78gFiber: 2gSugar: 59gProtein: 45g