Name: Chicken Marbella
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts; 1/4 cup red wine vinegar; 1/4 cup olive oil; 1 Tablespoon dried oregano; 2 garlic cloves (minced); 2 Tablespoons capers; 1/4 cup white wine; 4 teaspoons brown sugar; 1/2 cup dried plums (pits removed (I slice the the plums into strips.)); 8-12 green olives

Sweet meets savory in Chicken Marbella made famous by the Silver Palate restaurant. Tangy marinated boneless chicken is sprinkled with brown sugar, topped with olives and prunes and baked to perfection.

Sometimes it pays to step out of your comfort zone. When you do, you are rewarded with exciting new flavor combinations that you never in a million years would dream up.

That’s exactly what happened to me when I worked up recipes for our make ahead meal assembly store.

I was always on the hunt for popular restaurant recipes that could be made at home, like Alice Springs Chicken and Monterey Chicken.

I’d read about The Silver Palate’s popular Chicken Marbella and gave it a try. It was an instant hit…and not just at the store, but with our family too.

Chicken Marbella Marinade

The original method of preparing this recipe calls for marinating the chicken overnight. We suggest at least 4 hours if you don’t have that much time. However, there’s another option.

If menu planning a day in advance is hit or miss, then add the marinade ingredients to a plastic bag with boneless chicken breasts and FREEZE IT!

Chicken Marbella marinade has:

Red wine vinegar
Olive oil
Garlic
Oregano
Capers

The marinade seeps in while it’s freezing and has a chance to work some more while the chicken is defrosting.

We used boneless chicken breasts. However, any type of chicken will work in this recipe.

How to Cook Chicken Marbella

Once the chicken is marinated, it’s easy to assemble and bake this dish, which makes it perfect for entertaining.

Place chicken in a baking dish,
Pour white wine around the chicken
Sprinkle brown sugar on the chicken
Place prunes and olives on top of the chicken

Bake, uncovered for about 30 minutes! Use a meat thermometer to ensure it’s not over or under cooked.

This recipe is based upon Prune and Olive Chicken over at All Recipes. If you are not a fan of prunes, raisins or apricots will work too.

And, if your guests might not take to “prunes” then trying calling the fruit “dried plums.” It works every time! 🙂

What to serve with Chicken Marbella

Our favorite way to round out this meal is to make 5 minute couscous and stir in some of the sauce and goodies (i.e. prunes and olives.) A few halved grape tomatoes liven up the color even more! Rice, quinoa, farro or any other grain will work.

Tip: Always reserve the juices to serve on the side and liven up whatever else is on the plate.

Serve Chicken Marbella hot or cold! Yep. Cool the chicken to room temperature. Warm the juices and drizzle over the top. Serve it with a nice, cool salad.

Depending upon what’s in season, vegetables that pair with Chicken Marbella include:

Green beans
Asparagus
Wilted spinach (Drizzle olive oil in a pan, add minced garlic and baby spinach leaves and stir and cook for several minutes until the spinach leaves are wilted.)

If you’re entertaining, finish it off with Flourless Chocolate Cake with Ganache or our naturally Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes!

It’s fancy enough for company but easiest enough for a busy weeknight dinner!

Please rate this recipe and tag @DinnerMom or #DinnerMom on social media. We love to see what you are cooking up!

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5 from 3 votes