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French Apple Cider Chicken

French apple cider chicken with a silky cream-Dijon sauce made from hard apple cider plus apple cider vinegar. The chicken is seared skin-side down until deeply golden, then simmered until tender and coated for a rich, slightly tangy finish.
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Prep Time 50 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: French
Calories: 490
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Chicken thighs
  • 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs Use bone-in, skin-on for best browning and juiciness.
Butter and aromatics
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 large shallot, minced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
Apples
  • 2 medium apples (Granny Smith), sliced
Cider and vinegar
  • 1.5 cup hard apple cider
  • 0.25 cup apple cider vinegar Adds sharper, more complex acidity to balance the sauce.
Sauce
  • 0.5 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 fresh thyme Use fresh thyme sprigs for best flavor.
  • 0.5 tsp salt and pepper Season to taste; keep both flavors balanced.
Optional garnish
  • 1 tbsp caramelized apple butter (optional garnish) Serve a spoonful alongside for sweet-sour contrast.

Equipment

  • 1 cast iron skillet

Method
 

Season and sear chicken
  1. Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Sear skin-side down in butter in a cast iron skillet for 7-8 min until deeply golden, then flip and cook 3 min.
  2. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set aside while you build the sauce.
Sauté aromatics and add apples
  1. Sauté the shallot in the skillet for 2 min. Add the garlic and sliced apples and cook for 3 min.
Build the cider sauce
  1. Add the hard apple cider and apple cider vinegar, scraping up any browned bits from the pan. Add fresh thyme and return the chicken to the skillet skin-side up.
Simmer to tender
  1. Cover the skillet and simmer for 20 min. Remove the chicken when it is cooked through and tender.
Finish with cream and Dijon
  1. Stir the heavy cream and Dijon mustard into the sauce and simmer for 3-5 min until silky. Return the chicken to the skillet and coat it in the sauce.
Serve
  1. Serve the chicken with a small spoonful of caramelized apple butter alongside.

Notes

Pro tip: the vinegar is meant to cut through the cream, so don’t skip it—taste the sauce after simmering and adjust salt if needed. Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container for up to 3 days; reheat gently in a skillet until warmed through. Freezing is not recommended due to cream separation. Dietary swap: for a lighter sauce, use half-and-half instead of heavy cream and simmer 1-2 minutes less to avoid thinning.