Easy Baked Chicken Recipe With a Cheddar Crust & Apple Compote

If you’re looking for an easy baked chicken recipe, this is it.

Fall means a few things to me: colorful leaves, cozy sweaters, Halloween, and apples…a lot of apples. I typically go apple picking with my family every year. If you need proof of our seriousness, there was that one time we picked 90 pounds of apples during our Walla Walla wine trip.

This year we didn’t actually end up going apple picking, but that’s because I joined a fruit CSA and have been literally swimming in apples since July. I mean…who knew apples even grew in July?!

I still have a bunch on my dining room table. All of this is to say I’ve been getting creative with how I cook with apples, since there’s only so many raw apples you can eat.

This baked chicken recipe was inspired by an apple pie I made a few Thanksgivings ago. It takes the best part of fried chicken (the crunch), but healths it up a bit by avoiding the, you know, frying part. Read on to learn how you can get this on your table in under 30 minutes.

Easy Baked Chicken Recipe With a Cheddar Crust & Apple Compote

You might be thinking, “What?! Cheddar?!” If you step back and think of classic fondue pairings, you’ll know cheddar and apples isn’t that odd. And I live life by this theory that most ingredients good separately go well together. So when I saw a recipe in Bon Appetit for a cheddar crust for an apple pie a few Thanksgivings ago, I had to make it.

It was yummy, but I was disappointed that you couldn’t really taste the cheddar. So I had in the back of my mind that I needed to think of a way to combine apples and cheddar again in a way that highlights both ingredients. That’s where this baked chicken recipe with a cheddar crust comes in.

I like putting a panko crust on any protein. It’s my easy go-to weeknight meal: roll meat in a wet base of some sort, add panko, bake. For example, my rosemary jam crusted steak recipe and sage crusted pork tenderloin with squash mash.

So when I got all these apples, I decided to combine one of my lazy weeknight hacks (panko) with my idea of combining cheddar and apples. The result is this easy cheddar-crusted baked chicken recipe with the most delicious apple compote.

What does this easy baked chicken recipe taste like?

Picture Cheez-Its. Now picture you smashed a bunch up and put them on chicken. That’s kinda what this baked chicken recipe tastes like.

It has a subtle cheddar cheese flavor with that sweet, nutty flavor you get when you bake it. You also taste the mustard and the herbaceous thyme. There aren’t that many ingredients in this chicken, but you can taste all of them.

And the best part? The crunch. I love how crisp the panko gets. You feel the crust snap when you take a bite. But then you immediately feel the caramelized apples with their acidic, sugar-y taste. It’s exactly the sweet counterbalance this savory baked chicken recipe needs.

Optional substitutions

The best thing about this easy baked apple chicken recipe with cheddar crust is the flexibility. Here are some options for customizing the recipe below:

Baked apples are just as yummy as caramelized. Feel free to bake sliced apples and shallots instead.
Don’t have shallot? Apples and onion work too!
Have some extra apple cider? Deglaze the pan with the apples to punch up the apple flavor.

The Baked Chicken Recipe with Cheddar Crust

Serves 4 | Active time: 15 mins | Total time: 30 mins

Ingredients

3/4 C grated cheddar cheese
3/4 C panko breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp dried thyme, chopped
1.5 tsp. salt
pepper
2 Tbsp mustard
1-1.25 lb. skinless, boneless chicken thighs
cooking spray
1 Tbsp butter
1 medium shallot, sliced into thin rings and separated
3 small apples, peeled and cut into 1/4” wedges
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp. sugar

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Add parchment paper or aluminum foil to a cookie sheet or baking dish and set aside.
Mix cheddar cheese, panko, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl add mustard and thyme.
Season the chicken with 3/4 teaspoon salt and pepper from a pepper mill (3 grinds should do it).
With all the bowls lined up close together in a row, prepare the chicken. Dredge chicken in the mustard mixture, then dip it in the panko-cheddar mixture and fully encrust. Add the chicken to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat until all the chicken is complete.
Spray the top of the chicken with cooking spray. Bake for 15-20 minutes. The crust should be golden and the chicken cooked through to 165°F.
Meanwhile, heat butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add shallot and cook until deeply golden, 5-7 minutes.
Add 1/4 teaspoon salt and 3 grinds from a pepper mill and add the apples. Cook until apples are soft and golden brown, 10-15 minutes. Add lemon juice and sugar.
Remove from heat and set aside.
Add chicken to each plate and top with apple mixture. Serve and enjoy! This easy baked apple chicken recipe goes great with cut sweet potatoes roasted in a few tablespoons of olive oil and garnished with thyme sprigs or rosemary.

Nutritional Information Per Serving:

Nutritional Facts Disclaimer: I am not a registered nutritionist and therefore these numbers are approximate. I researched the serving sizes and facts for each ingredient in this recipe (mostly using the manufacturer labels and this site), but slight variations in things like seasoning, garnishes, and substitutions can change the nutritional information. Use this information only as a general indication of your nutritional intake.