Wow! This balsamic chicken recipe yields the most tender and juicy breasts glazed with a sweet and acidic sauce. All you need are 7 ingredients, 2 hours to marinate and 15 minutes to cook. It’s absolutely scrumptious! Thank you Nakano Natural and Seasoned Rice Vinegar  for sponsoring this post!

Balsamic Chicken

“I don’t eat meat or chicken very often but when I do it has to be spectacular.”

I don’t know if you remember but I wrote this statement a while ago in one of my posts and that’s because I consider myself to be a flexitarian. I prefer a diet that is plant based most of the time but will allow myself 2-3 times a month to eat something a bit more substantial. I listen to my body and when it tells me “I need chicken right now!”, I know it’s time to make something amazing. I created this balsamic chicken recipe because I wanted something easy and tasty. To me, there’s nothing easier and better than leaving meat to marinate for a few hours – the flavors come out assertive and evenly distributed. This balsamic chicken is Oh My Yum spectacular and worth making because it’s also healthy and something your entire family will love!

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Instead of using classic balsamic vinegar, I chose Nakano’s Rice Vinegar Balsamic Blend. I fell in love with it as soon as I tasted it. It’s sweet but not overly sweet and has a fruity fragrance mixed with traditional rice vinegar flavors. It tastes more acidic than balsamic vinegar which I love because it means you can mix it with honey and have a marinade that’s well balanced.

I’ve been using Nakano Rice Vinegar for years, way before we started collaborating together on recipes, because I’ve always trusted their brand. I may sound biased but when it comes to rice vinegar I stick to a Japanese brand because that’s what my mother always used. Nakano Rice Vinegars are gluten free, contain no artificial preservatives, no high-fructose corn syrup and no artificial ingredients. Those are things I look for when shopping for condiments (even yogurt) because I do care about what’s in my food. My way of choosing food is simple; the shorter the list of ingredients, the better and healthier for me. Plus, I have a few friends who suffer from gluten intolerance so it’s good to know I don’t have to worry about using Nakano’s products into my food.

I served these balsamic chicken breasts atop a quick rice salad I made with tomatoes, lemon and fresh basil. The flavors blended beautifully with the sweet and tangy chicken and was filling enough to be served as a main to a hungry man like my Ben. It also looks pretty impressive! You could easily serve this for a fancy or romantic dinner with a chilled bottle of dry white wine or sparkling wine. The dryness of the wine will pair perfectly and make this already very tasty balsamic chicken pop even more!

Other easy and delicious recipes using Nakano Rice Vinegar:

• Mushrooms and zucchini uramaki rolls
• Japanese chilled tomato and tuna spaghetti
• Cold ramen zoodles
• Japanese caprese salad
• Spicy pickled vegetables

Did you like this Balsamic Chicken Recipe? Are there changes you made that you would like to share?

Balsamic Chicken

Moist and tender balsamic chicken with sweet and tangy flavors. Perfect over rice!

• Author: Caroline Phelps
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 135 minutes
• Yield: 2 people
• Category: Main
• Method: Pan frying
• Cuisine: American

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

For the marinade

• 1/4 cup Nakano Rice Vinegar Balsamic Blend
• 1 1/2 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

For the marinade

1. Whisk ingredients for the marinade into a bowl and set aside.

1. Lightly pound chicken between two sheets of parchment paper.
2. Place chicken in a Ziploc bag or tupperware container and pour marinade over.
3. Seal and gently massage chicken to spread the marinade evenly. Marinate for at least 2 hours.
4. In a pan over medium heat, add olive oil and when the oil is hot, add chicken. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Flip chicken over and cook for another 5 minutes this time uncovered.
5. Season with salt and pepper and serve over salad or rice.

Keywords: recipe, dinner, easy