Baked Barbecue Chicken Recipe With Cranberry Sauce

This is a wonderfully savory baked barbecue chicken recipe that makes use of whole cranberry sauce for a sweet and tart casserole that is just as pretty to look at as it is delicious to eat.

Celery, onion and garlic sauteed in butter add balance to the sweetness, and a finishing cup of barbecue sauce rounds out the flavorful components.

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Try this preparation with pork chops or other cuts of chicken - both are naturals with cranberry sauce.

Cranberry Baked Barbecue Chicken Recipe

Ingredients

1 whole chicken, 2 to 3 pounds, cut up
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 cup whole cranberry sauce
1 cup barbecue sauce
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Kosher salt and ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Heat a large skillet and melt the butter.

Season the chicken pieces with the kosher salt and black pepper, then brown them in the melted butter.

Remove the chicken from the skillet and place them, skin side up in a 9 x 13 baking dish.

In the same skillet, saute the onion, celery and garlic until softened. Distribute the cooked vegetables over the chicken pieces.

Whisk together the whole cranberry sauce with the barbecue sauce. Pour this mixture over the chicken and tightly cover the dish with aluminum foil.

Bake the chicken in the preheated oven for 1 hour.

Remove the foil after that time, and bake for another 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and is no longer pink in the center of the largest pieces near the bone.

Good To Know - This is a very flexible recipe, able to absorb many modifications.

One of the easiest adaptions is basically throw everything in a crockpot.

To be a little more precise, put the thighs in the bottom of a large crockpot or slow cooker, layer with the chopped onions, celery and garlic, season with the kosher salt and black pepper, pour in the can of whole cranberry sauce and cover it with the barbecue sauce.

Cover the pot and cook on low for 8 hours. Done!

Food For Thought - If you find whole cranberry sauce available, chances are so will turkey!

Try this recipe with a small, 4 to 5 pound turkey breast.

Split the breast so it will not take too long to cook - the breast is done when the internal temperature reaches 180F.

If you're serving this for Thanksgiving, brown the breast, skin side down until it is evenly colored.

Follow the directions in the recipe as above and serve it with mashed potatoes, gravy and hot rolls. You might be starting a new tradition!

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