Texas Grapefruit Cranberry Chicken

Did you know the grapefruit was created by accident?

The grapefruit, was an “accidental cross” between an orange and a pomelo in Barbados. Though the grapefruit first landed on U.S. soil in the Sunshine State in 1823, the accidental fruit eventually found its way to Texas. Floridians grow a few more grapefruits per year, but it’s actually Texans who claim the red grapefruit as their official state fruit.

The red grapefruit variety was first discovered by Texas citrus growers in 1929 and is “renowned for its sweetness and rich, red interior.” It’s also got all these great health perks too– it contains no fat, lowers high levels of blood cholesterol, boosts iron absorption, is low in calories, and is rich in vitamin C. Besides those mega health benefits, the red grapefruit also boosts the Texas economy, generating more revenue than any other tree fruit produced within the state’s borders, according to the Texas legislature.

I can think of a number of ways to consume these gems of a fruit, but here’s a much more unique recipe for you to give a whirl. This Texas Grapefruit Cranberry Chicken is sweet and delicious (adapted from here). The sauce is a tart mixture of red grapefruit juice mixed with a little cranberry sauce to sweeten it up a bit and topped with grapefruit segments. And you’d better hustle, because the fresh grapefruit season typically runs from September through June. Time to get busy making this delicious chicken dish!

 

INGREDIENTS

For the Grapefruit Sauce

• 1 14-ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce
• ¼ cup honey
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup Ruby Red 100% pure grapefruit juice, unsweetened
• 1 tablespoon grapefruit zest
• 2 pink grapefruits, peeled and flesh removed from pulp

For the Chicken

• 3-4 pounds cut up bone-in and skin-on chicken (breast, thighs, drum sticks and wings)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a medium pot, place all sauce ingredients except grapefruit sections. Bring to a boil and simmer for ten minutes then remove from heat.
3. Pat chicken dry then salt and pepper both sides.
4. In a large skillet or fry pan, heat oil over medium heat. When the oil starts to sizzle, place half the chicken pieces skin side down and cook four minutes. Flip and cook four more minutes. Move seared chicken to a 9X13 baking dish skin up. Cook second half of chicken the same way and place in casserole dish with the first half.
5. Pour the sauce over the chicken and cover the pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and discard foil and cover the tops with the grapefruit sections and bake for 15 more minutes.
7. Serve chicken pieces with hot grapefruit sections and sauce over top.