Straight off Bourbon Street in New Orleans, my tender bourbon chicken is covered in a slightly sweet sauce with a little kick. It’s a true taste of the South you won’t be able to resist.
Food Court Fears
I had my first taste of bourbon chicken in a mall in Florida. There is no shame in this. I walked around for 20 minutes looking at all the different food court options, not feeling like any of them. I finally gave in to the lady that had tried to hand me a sample of this chicken three times.
Twice already, I had glanced at the giant aluminum pan full of some watery brown liquid and sloshy chicken and thought “nope“. But I was beat down, defeated, and hungry, so I gave in. And it was fucking delicious.
I ordered a giant plate of it (completely ignoring my inner Jiminy Cricket telling me there was no way to know how long that chicken had been sloshing there), and I inhaled said entire plate in record time. It became something I looked forward to every trip to Florida.
Bourbon Chicken Bliss
In the last couple of years we got a chain up here in Canada that sells bourbon chicken. It’s not that common yet though, and the closest mall to me that has it is always a DISASTER to go to – way too damn busy to be enjoyable at all. Yeah, I’m looking at you Vaughan Mills.
Incredibly, it took me this long – like, a solid 5 years – to think “Wait a minute, I can cook. I can just cook this for myself”. Some days the light on upstairs is dim.
If you like Southern Food
If you’re like me, and can’t resist a plate of delicious southern food, you have got to give my chicken friend steak a try. I worked at this recipe for years, trying all different types of breadings and frying techniques, until I finally got every detail perfect.
Two ways to make my Bourbon Chicken: Stove or Slow Cooker!
From start to finish this bourbon chicken is only 50 minutes. 30 minutes of that is completely hands off while it simmers away, building flavour and thickening. If you want it even easier, I’ve included directions to make this in the slow cooker too. Just see the notes section of the recipe! Serve it with some rice, and you’ve got an incredible, easy meal that will top anything you see sloshing around in a food court.
Bourbon Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1" bite size pieces
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- 3/4 cup chicken broth
- 2/3 cup soy sauce (low sodium is best)
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup Jack Daniel's or Southern Comfort
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small onion, minced
- 3/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (more if you like it spicy)
- 1 1/2 tbsp freshly grated ginger
- 1/4 cup apple juice
- 2 tbsp corn starch
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large heavy bottom pot (I use a dutch oven). Add the chicken pieces and brown until lightly golden on all sides. This will take about ten minutes. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm. It will not be fully cooked yet.
- In the now empty pot, add the water, sugar, chicken broth, soy sauce, ketchup, Jack Daniel's, apple cider vinegar, garlic, onion, red pepper flakes, and ginger. Bring to a boil, and use a wooden spoon to scrape all the browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
- Add the chicken pieces back into the pan with the sauce, along with any accumulated juice on the plate. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer for 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through, and the sauce has started to thicken.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the apple juice and corn starch. Stir into the pot with a wooden spoon, then turn up the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly, to thicken up the sauce.
- Serve while hot, and remember, this goes great with rice and corn (and a glass of bourbon).
Notes
Slow Cooker Directions:
Whisk together everything except for the chicken, apple juice, and corn starch. Pour into the bowl of your slow cooker. Add the chicken pieces, toss with a wooden spoon to coat, then cook over low for 6-7 hours, or high for 3 hours. Stir in the apple juice and cornstarch mixture at the very end to thicken up the sauce more if needed.
OttawaHeather
This looks great! Help a fellow Canuck…. which chain sells Bourbon Chicken?
Anonymous
Shanghai
Heather Prudeaux
I tried this last night and my family loved it!
Katrina
I’m so glad you liked it! I just added it to our menu for next week because you reminded me of it ?
Mike Underwood
Hi, I’ve struggled with this recipe because on Pinterest every even numbered step is missing. Can you help?
Katrina
Hey Mike, sorry about that. The blank bullets were a recipe card plugin error that I’m slowly going through and fixing. This homeschool has absolutely eaten all my time up though, and I’m months behind getting the done. Should you see a recipe with blank bullets, there’s nothing missing, it’s just where there used to be a space between steps. I’ve fixed this one this morning for you though. Sorry again!
Anonymous
OMG this recipe is the bomb. I made it last night for dinner and it is the best chicken thigh recipe I have ever had. I only wish the calorie count was included. Lol I’m on a diet and I’m sure it put me over my count…well worth it!
Katrina
I’m glad that you loved it too! After a few too many months (like 5) of eating whatever I wanted without working out, I’m right there with you trying to be smarter with my food heading into fall… but I love this recipe too and I don’t what to know the calories in it either, lol!!
Dorianne Pirrone
Wow this recipe is a winner and will become a staple in our kitchen. My kids loved it too, plates were licked clean
Roxanne G
I tried this recipe last night. It was a huge hit. I will definitely add this to my dinner rotation. I have tried several others and this is the closest to ”mall” bourbon chicken I have found. For sure with a try…
I simmered my sauce down too much and fixed it by adding a little chicken stock.
Katrina
I’m so glad that you liked it Roxanne! Adding a bit of chicken stock to the sauce was a brilliant idea, I’m going to do that next time too!
Anonymous
While delicious. This is not a NOLA/louisiana dish. I have lived in New Orleans for the past 25 years, work in the Hospitality industry and have never seen this served anywhere in the area. I have seen it mall foods courts outside of the state trying to align itself with Bourbon Street..
Katrina
LOL! As someone who has never been to NOLA, but it is 100% on my bucket list, this doesn’t surprise me at all. The food courts lie to us about EVERYTHING, lol. If you happen to see this, and have a link to a favourite NOLA dish/recipe you could share, I would love to try it! New foods and flavours put me in my happy place.
Anonymous
Was at the River Walk Outlet mall not far from the casino is where it’s located. In the food court they sell Bourbon Chicken and it was DELICIOUS. Nothing compares to it in Toronto, Canada 🙁
Anonymous
Was there last August 2024
dawg
Hey it is great but I wonder how could I make this in the slow cooker and add penne pasta instead of using rice?
Katrina
I’ve never tried pasta in the slow cooker before – I’ll have to give that a shot one day!
Anonymous
Can this be frozen upon completion….if not how long will leftovers last in fridge?
Anonymous
this looked just wonderful to me.. I did my oun version of it and it was really good, but I used your steps I did it in the slow cooker and cooked the rice seperately. There were some spices that hubby doesnt like or is allergic to..( peppers) I also used left over chicken.. thanks..gk
Jennifer moore
Golden corral has the BEST Bourbon Street Chicken I have EVER tasted!! I am actually looking for the authentic recipe as fast as possible, the only Golden Corrall around here is bow shut down and I miss it so much!!
Michelle
I agree!! I have also been looking for their recipe on this as all of the golden corrals around my area are closed down as well!
Marryjohn
What a mouthwatering recipe for Bourbon Chicken! Your step-by-step instructions make it so easy to recreate this delectable dish that’s straight from Bourbon Street in New Orleans. The combination of flavors, from the sweetness of brown sugar to the kick of red pepper flakes, promises an irresistible taste of the South.
Rebekah
I just made this for our New Years’s Eve dinner with fresh steamed broccoli and rice. Everyone loved it!
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Anonymous
Can I substitute coconut amino acid for the soy sauce?
Anonymous
This recipe is easy and delicious too!!
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Anonymous
I Love Chicken Drum Sticks.