This cranberry chicken recipe is baked in the oven for a festive, show-stopping dinner that takes little effort to prepare! Garlic, rosemary, and tangy fresh cranberries bring boldly aromatic and savory-sweet flavor you’ll love.
This cranberry chicken recipe, with its vibrant red cranberries and golden-brown chicken, boasts the wow-factor of holiday roasts like Cornish game hens, leg of lamb and whole roasted chicken. But it comes together in under an hour and requires very little tending to. It’s a beautiful centerpiece for a holiday party, but easy enough to add to your weeknight dinner rotation.
To get the best color and flavor, I quickly sear the chicken on the stove. It may seem like an added step (and you can skip it if you’re short on time) but the crispy skin is worth the extra dish. From there, I layer in a baking dish with carrots, celery, and a bright and savory mix of garlic, lemon, rosemary, and paprika.
Simply throw it in your oven and wait as the chicken bubbles, making a delicious sauce with the chicken’s drippings. The cranberries soak up all the flavor, becoming tender and so juicy. Make sure to spoon plenty of sauce over top, and serve with crusty bread or rosemary focaccia for dipping.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for Cranberry Chicken
This cranberry chicken recipe uses easy to find ingredients and pantry staples for a festive holiday dish that doesn’t cost a fortune. Here’s what you need:
- Cranberries: The star ingredient that lends a festive touch, while also adding brightness. I prefer fresh for the best flavor and texture, but you can use frozen cranberries if you’d like.
- Brown sugar: Candies the cranberries, balancing their harsh tartness.
- White wine vinegar: Adds a burst of acidity for a depth of flavor, both in the marinade and the candied cranberries. You can substitute with Champagne vinegar or apple cider vinegar if that’s what you have on hand.
- Chicken: 6 pieces bone-in skin on chicken (I used 2 chicken breasts and 4 thighs)
- Flavor-makers: Garlic, rosemary and sweet paprika bring a bold amount of sweet, savory, and aromatic flavor to the meat. Salt and black pepper enhance the flavor.
- Olive oil: Enriches the marinade. Use a full bodied, high quality extra virgin variety. Any of the oils from our shop would work well, but I especially love the richness and subtle peppery notes of our Greek Private Reserve with this recipe.
- Lemon: I use the whole fruit, with the juice adding acidity and the rind adding an aromatic, slightly bitter quality.
- Fresh vegetables: Onion and celery make for a nice foundational flavor for the broth and aromatics as teh chicken bakes. It’s the same concept as a classic (or Mediterranean-style) chicken soup.
- Broth: 1/2 cup of liquid in the pan evaporates into steam, tenderizing the chicken as it bakes. Chicken broth (homemade or store bought) will add a fuller flavor, but water works well too.
How to Make This Cranberry Chicken Recipe
Perfectly sweet and tangy cranberries, piney rosemary, and a bold amount of garlic builds loads of flavor without much fuss. Here’s how you make cranberry chicken:
- Make the sugared cranberries. In a small bowl, combine 2 cups of cranberries, 1/3 cup of brown sugar, and 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar. Set aside to soften.
- Season the chicken. Pat the chicken pieces dry, then rub on both sides with 6-8 minced garlic cloves, 1 1/2 tablespoons of chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried), 1 teaspoon paprika, and a good pinch or two of salt and pepper. Lift the skin and push the seasoning underneath the skin.
- Make the marinade. To a large bowl or deep dish, add 1/3 cup olive oil, 3 chopped celery stalks, 1 chopped onion, and 2 tablespoons of the white wine vinegar. Slice a lemon in half and squeeze in the juice, then add both of the juiced lemon halves.
- Marinate the chicken. Add the chicken and use your hands to work everything together. Set aside to marinate just for 15 minutes or so.
- Get ready to cook. While your chicken marinates, preheat your oven to 425°F. Lightly oil a baking dish large enough to hold the chicken.
- Sear the chicken. When your oven is hot and the chicken has marinated for at least 15 minutes, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the chicken, skin side down, and cook until the skin releases from the pan and turns golden brown, about 7 minutes. Flip and brown on the other side, about 5 minutes more. Do this in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding the pan, adding the seared chicken to the prepared baking dish as you go.
- Layer. To the baking dish with the chicken, add the onions, celery, lemon halves and any liquid from the marinade. Pour in the chicken broth or water, then top with the sugared cranberries.
- Bake and enjoy. Bake until the chicken is cooked through, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve hot.
What to Serve With Cranberry Chicken
If you’re using this cranberry chicken as the centerpiece for a special dinner, kick off the party with blood orange cocktails with vodka and rosemary.
From there, try classic holiday sides with a fun Mediterranean Dish-twist! I would stick to savory dishes to complement the sweet and tart notes of the chicken. Shaved brussels sprouts salad, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, and stuffed onions with fragrant rice and pine nuts all come to mind.
And, whether you’re outfitting a weeknight dinner or holiday party, you’ll want some crusty bread, rice, or rosemary focaccia to take advantage of the delicious pan sauce.
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Baked Cranberry Chicken with Rosemary
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh cranberries
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar, divided
- 6 bone-in skin on chicken pieces (I used 2 chicken breasts and 4 thighs, about 2 1/4 pounds in total)
- 6-8 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried rosemary), plus rosemary sprigs for garnish
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for searing the chicken
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup chicken broth or water
Instructions
- Make the sugared cranberries. In a small bowl, combine the cranberries, brown sugar, and 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar. Set aside to soften while you prepare the chicken.
- Season the chicken. Pat the chicken pieces dry, then rub on both sides with the garlic, rosemary, paprika, and a good pinch or two of salt and pepper. Make sure to lift the skin and push the seasoning underneath the skin.
- Marinate the chicken. To a baking dish large enough to hold the chicken, add the olive oil, celery, onions, and remaining 2 tablespoons of the white wine vinegar. Slice the lemon in half and squeeze in the juice, then add both of the juiced lemon halves. Add the chicken and use your hands to work everything together. Set aside to marinate just for 15 minutes or so.
- Get ready to cook. While your chicken marinates, preheat your oven to 425°F.
- Sear the chicken. When your oven is hot and the chicken has marinated for at least 15 minutes, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the chicken, skin side down, and cook until the skin releases from the pan and turns golden brown, about 5 minutes. Flip and brown on the other side, about 3 minutes more. Do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan, adding the seared chicken to the baking dish as you go.
- Bake. Top the chicken with the sugared cranberries and any accumulated juices, then pour in the broth or water. Bake until the chicken is cooked through, 35 to 40 minutes.
- Serve. Garnish with a few rosemary sprigs, if you’d like, to dress it up a little before serving. Serve hot, spooning the juices and vegetables over top.
Video
Notes
- To use boneless, skinless chicken: I recommend chicken thighs. Begin by browning them for a couple minutes on each side. Adjust baking time; boneless thighs will take about 25 minutes to bake in the oven
- Frozen cranberries option: I love the flavor of fresh cranberries, but feel free to use frozen if you have them on hand.
- Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients including olive oils, honey, jams, and spices.
Nutrition
* This post first appeared on The Mediterranean Dish in 2019, and has been recently updated with new information for readers’ benefit.
This recipe is a definite go-to for any kinds of occasion and a favourite for a gathering or just a weekday dinner. I’ve passed it along to friends and family and they love it too.
That’s wonderful to hear. Thank you, Carolan.
I made this for my mother’s special 90th Birthday dinner and it was wonderful! Enjoyed by all. It takes time to put this all together, so you have to allow for that chopping, mincing, and marinate I gave myself 45 minutes t(30 minutes to marinate) to prepare before putting into the oven and that was enough time for me.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Deborah! And, happy birthday to your mom!!!!!
This looks delectable!! Can you please advise on making this with a whole turkey? Would absolutely LOVE to do this for Thanksgiving!!
Making a whole turkey is quite a different recipe, Melinda. But if you’re asking regading the use of the herbs and spices, you sure can double the amount and use on a whole turkey.
Thank you so much for responding! I understand it would be a different recipe, but your flavors just sound amazing! Do you think it would be ok without browning the skin first?
You can try it without browning the skin first. I just like to make sure and get some good color on the skin
Made it again but forgot to keep the lemon halves for the marinating. So sliced a preserved lemon into the mix before baking. It worked really well – very tasty.
I shall check for more recipes that you have with preserved lemon in them – I think i’ve got a bit addicted!!
Yum! Thank you
So glad you enoyed the recipe!
Hi I made this (with a few differences) and loved it. I used skinless boneless breast fillets and as indicated by Chris above in Suzy’s comments, baking time was about 25 mins and i just basted them a couple of times with the pan juices. Where i live in Australia frozen cranberries don’t seem to be a thing, so i used dried cranberries and just soaked them for about 20 minutes before putting them with the chicken to bake. It all worked well and was a lovely meal enjoyed by all. We had rice and lots of veggies and salads alongside – one being Suzy’s FASOLAKIA which is also SO good.
Thank you for these recipes
Thanks for sharing your adaptations! So glad you enjoyed this!
Made this last night. Looked just like the picture. Tasted amazing. I only had four large chicken thighs so there were no leftovers, so sad. I only had one bag of cranberries, so I will have to wait until the fall to make again. Does anyone have a suggestion for a replacement for the cranberries.
Marie, thanks so much for giving this a try! So glad you enjoyed it. I’d say you can try our other rosemary chicken recipe when you don’t have cranberries. Here it is: https://www.themediterraneandish.com/rosemary-roasted-chicken-recipe-with-vegetables/
I plan on making this this weekend to use up some leftover cranberries. I do have a question, do you drain the cranberries after they have been macerated or do you include the marinade? Thanks in advance.
Enjoy, Odette! No, you do not need to drain the cranberries.
I made this tonight for dinner and it was AMAZING!
I made it with 3 boneless, skinless chicken breast through, adjusting the cookie time per the recipe note at the bottom and it was perfect. I roasted red potatoes in the dish along side the chicken and cranberries and it was fantastic. We have just enough left over for 1 lunch tomorrow. Thanks so much for this recipe! I’ll definitely be making this again!
So glad! Thanks for sharing.
I’m making this for my family tonight, I have all the ingredients, but only have boneless, skinless thighs on hand…how would you adjust cooking time?
Hi there. You should start checking the chicken at 25-30 minutes or so…use an instant read thermometer inserted in the thickest part to determine when it is done; it should read 165 degrees F minimum.
I just made this for Christmas Eve 2019, I didn’t have time to brown the chicken first, and it still came out Amazjng!!
I used veggie broth instead of chicken broth since has so much more flavor, can’t wait to make it again and actually brown the chicken…. YUM!
So glad to hear it, Laura! thank you so much for giving it a try
Excellent recipe, delicious! Quick and easy!
So glad!
Only 2 changes i made was not browning the chicken and i used skin on boneless chicken breast, otherwise i followed recipe exactly. The flavor was good, i may have gone too light on the salt. I do agree with another commenter that 1/2 cup of liquid is too much. When i do make next time, will use a mix of breast thigh, brown the chicken and only add chicken broth if i feel its needed. Otherwise it does make a pretty presentation.
Hi Maria. I do wish you browned the chicken because that does make all the difference 🙂 And bone in chicken is preferred for this recipe, that’s why we use 1/2 cup broth here.
I have to make this – it looks so good. We need to go to church before dinner. Is it okay to have the chicken marinate longer (like an hour) and the cranberries set for that long as well?
That should work, Sheri! Enjoy
Can you freeze any leftovers?
I believe that will work, Sara! Thaw in fridge overnight and reheat in medium-heated oven with a little liquid.
So much flavor! This is going to be on dinner repeat!
Yay! That’s so good to hear
this recipe sounds amazing! thank you for sharing!
A holiday favorite!