One-pot easy harvest chicken skillet with sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts is a beautiful and delicious recipe that’s perfect for a fall dinner!
Happy Thanksgiving week!
Today I'm bringing you a bountiful beauty of a skillet with ALL my favorites packed in there! It's simply loaded with goodness and veggies and color.
So let’s celebrate all the gorgeous autumn flavors and colors with this beautiful, one-pot easy harvest chicken skillet.
We’ve got bacon and chicken and sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts and apples and walnuts and dried cranberries and some warm spices.
Cause, ALL THE THINGS!
I mean, why not right?
I guess it’s a trend with me.
My harvest rice salad is a similar combo of my favorites, as is my quinoa bowl with butternut squash and Brussels sprouts.
We’ve got some similar flavors in this recipe but it’s made more hearty with the chicken as a main meal. And the bacon of course!
I am so in love with this combo - I’ve made it for dinner three times already this month! Super tasty!
Definitely one of those meals where you are gonna want to have a little bit of everything on your fork for each bite. It's seriously so good.
So let's get cooking!
Now, I’ve got some notes, tips and substitutions coming up below on how to make one pot harvest chicken skillet. Just tryin’ to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Ingredient Notes:
- Chicken: I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this recipe but you could also substitute boneless, skinless chicken thighs if you prefer.
- Cooked chicken: Or you could use leftover rotisserie chicken or leftover Thanksgiving turkey for this recipe. You'll want to add it at the end to get it warmed through and well mixed with the rest of the flavors. It would make this meal even faster!
- Bacon: If you don’t use bacon (gasp!), you can substitute 2 teaspoons of extra-virgin olive oil to sauté the onion and remaining ingredients.
- Nuts: You can substitute pecans for the walnuts - or use your favorite nut.
- Thyme: I always use fresh thyme but you could substitute dried thyme. I’d add it with the cinnamon and nutmeg and you’ll only need 1 teaspoon.
- Rosemary: You could also try this with some fresh or dried rosemary in place of the thyme for another great fall flavor!
Tip: Be sure to cut your sweet potatoes in even pieces and to halve or quarter your Brussels sprouts. Having the veggies in smaller pieces helps them cook evenly and more quickly.
As for serving, this is a meal all on its own and doesn't need a thing. That's a very welcome thing at this busy time of year. You've got your whole dinner - protein, carbs, veggies - in just one dish.
Plus, it makes clean-up a breeze! I know I don't need any more dishes to wash.
Though it does go great with some red wine. Just sayin... 😉
Last thing, let's talk about what to do with any leftovers.
This harvest chicken skillet is definitely best served immediately when all the flavors are at their max and the bacon is crisp and the veggies are tender.
However, you can absolutely reheat the leftovers for lunch later in the week. It's gonna make you very happy.
Store leftovers, once cooled, in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. Reheat over medium low heat in a skillet on the stove or reheat in a microwave-safe container in the microwave until warmed through and hot.
This recipe is absolutely a must-try and I hope it goes on your fall menu very soon.
I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving this week if you’re in the U.S.
Happy cooking and enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
One-Pot Easy Harvest Chicken Skillet
Ingredients
- 3-4 slices bacon (I use thick-cut bacon)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into ½-inch pieces
- 2 small sweet potatoes, cut into ¼-inch pieces
- 1 lb. Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved (quartered if they are large)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon black pepper, divided
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 small red apple (I use Fuji or Gala), diced
- ¼ - ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth (see notes)
- ½ cup walnuts, roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup dried cranberries
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme (see notes)
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until cooked through, flipping as needed, about 10 minutes. (While the bacon is cooking, I prep the rest of the ingredients.) Remove, leaving the bacon grease in the pan. Crumble and reserve the cooked bacon for later.
- Add the onion to the pan with the bacon grease and sauté until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Add garlic to the pan and cook for an additional 30 seconds.
- Add chicken pieces to the pan and season with half of the salt and pepper.
- Cook chicken until browned on both sides and cooked through, about 8 minutes. Remove to a plate, cover and keep warm.
- If the pan is dry, add an additional tablespoon olive oil. Add sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, cinnamon, nutmeg and remaining salt and pepper. Stir to combine and cook for 3-4 minutes to allow the vegetables to brown.
- Add apples and chicken broth then cover and cook for 10-15 minutes. (Check and add more broth as needed to prevent any burning or sticking)
- Once the vegetables are tender, stir in cooked chicken, walnuts, dried cranberries and thyme and mix for 2-3 minutes, until everything is warmed through.
- Season to taste with additional salt and pepper and serve with reserved, crumbled bacon.
Luci's Morsels
Love the simplicity of this nutritious and hearty dish! The flavors sound perfect for the holiday season and the skillet looks delicious!
Kathryn
Thanks Luci! It really is perfect for the season and oh so tasty! 😊
Adina
Such invinting colors! A beautiful recipe, I am sure I would love it, only ingredients I like. Have a nice Thanksgiving with your family!
Kathryn
It's some of my very favorites in here! I hope you try it Adina!
Molly Bollier
Kathryn, I made this for dinner tonight and it was soooo good! Thumbs up all around. My son particularly liked the bacon, my daughter liked the cranberries and I loved all the veggies. Thanks!
Kathryn Doherty
Yay, I'm so glad it was a hit for your family Molly! Thanks for sharing! 😊
Bianca
Just made this and WOW! Yum! My family loved it!! I left out the garlic because my family aren’t fans of garlic but the dish was still very flavorful and tender! Perfect for fall!!
Kathryn Doherty
Oh yay! I'm so happy to hear you and your family loved it Bianca! Thanks so much for sharing! 😊
Sonya
I made this for my family last night and everyone loved it! I was anticipating a large amount of leftovers, as there are only 3 people in my family, but we ate all of it. I can’t wait to make this again. It is definitely a new family favorite. Thank you!
Kathryn Doherty
Oh yay, I'm so happy to hear you all loved it Sonya! Thank you so much for sharing!
Tricia
Thank you ~ this recipe was wonderful ~ even with my needed adjustments!
I pre-made my chicken in the Instant Pot, substituted shredded butternut squash for the sweet potato, and did not include bacon. This dish is absolutely delicious hot and quite delicious cold the following day for lunch! Thank you, Kathryn, for a delightfully delicious recipe! One question: Do you think it would freeze successfully?
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you loved it Tricia! And thanks for sharing those subs - very helpful! I'm on team "you can freeze almost anything," especially because I hate wasting food. So I'd say give it a try! The veggies might soften - instead of being crisp - and the shredded butternut squash might give off some extra liquid but you could reheat it in a pan and probably have it be delicious. Hope that helps!
Jen
If I'm not a fan of Brussels sprouts, what else would you recommend?
Kathryn Doherty
Hi Jen, you could just leave them out. Or if you want a green vegetable, you could try broccoli. (It just won't need to cook quite as long so maybe add it later.) Or you could wilt in some spinach at the end. Hope that helps!
Dawn Glass
Made this recipe tonight for dinner and WOW!
This was so delicious! LOVED the sweetness of the cranberries and apples, the crunch of the walnuts… and the warmth of the spices:)
My husband even said this is needs to be added to the rotation of dinners!
Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe!!
Kathryn Doherty
Oh that's great to hear, I'm so happy you loved it! Thank you for sharing!
Lauren
This sounds delish! Just curious if I could use frozen sweet potatoes? If so, would I put them in at the same time?
Kathryn Doherty
Hi Lauren! I think you could certainly try that. I haven't used frozen sweet potatoes before in a recipe like this so I'm not sure whether they would take additional time to heat and cook through or if they'd need to be thawed first to help them cook in time. Would love to hear if you try it!