Grandma's Baked Catalina Cranberry Chicken Recipe - Bowl Me Over (2024)

Catalina Cranberry Chicken is tender chicken thighs baked in a sweet and savory sauce with a touch of heat. This is a super simple recipe, so it's perfect for busy weeknights!

Why you'll love this recipe

✔️ You only need simple ingredients and most of them are pantry staples so you don't have to worry about spending a lot of money at the grocery store.

✔️ The oven does most of the work making it one of the easiest recipes that you will ever make.

✔️ The cranberry glaze makes this chicken the perfect combination of sweet and savory, your whole family will love it.

If it's the holidays and you have some leftover homemade cranberry sauce, this is an easy dinner recipe!

Ingredients

Please refer to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for the exact measurements.

• Catalina salad dressing
• dry onion soup mix
• whole berry cranberry sauce
• salt
• black pepper
• red pepper flakes
• boneless skinless chicken thighs

Instructions

This is an overview of the instructions. For complete directions, scroll down to the bottom.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9x13 casserole dish with non stick cooking spray, set aside.
2. Trim any excess far from chicken thighs or breasts.
3. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. And, then place chicken breasts or thighs in the prepared baking dish in a single layer.
4. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the salad dressing, cranberry sauce, red pepper flakes and onion soup mix. And, whisk together until combined.
5. Pour sauce over chicken in the casserole dish, turning to coat.
6. Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour. Chicken is done when it has an internal temperature of 165°F.
7. Delicious over mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, or rice. Serve and enjoy!

Equipment

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• 9x13 baking dish - great set and terrific value!
• medium bowl
• Kraft Catalina dressing is my favorite bottled dressing to use for this Catalina chicken recipe.

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FAQ's

Test kitchen tips

• Don't forget to spray your casserole dish well with nonstick cooking spray or grease it with butter. This sauce will get sticky, and the spray will make clean up a snap.
• Make sure that you layer the thighs in an even layer so that they cook at the same rate.
• If you have leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving dinner, feel free to use it.
• Use an instant-read meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the chicken before you serve it, it should reach 165 degrees.

Variations

• Don't have chicken thighs on hand? You can use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead. Cooking time will be 40-50 minutes depending on the size of the breasts. Remember chicken is done when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
• If you don't have Catalina dressing in your kitchen, you can swap it out for French dressing instead.
• Don't like spice in your meal? Leave out the red pepper flakes. Or, double it for more heat.

Storage

Refrigerate - Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.

Freezer - Place chicken in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months.

Reheat - Reheat the chicken in a skillet over medium heat until warm, or you can microwave individual portions on 50% power for 1-2 minutes.

• ThisMarry Me Chickenis another easy chicken recipe, that makes for a quick weeknight dinner even the picky eaters will love it.
• Are you looking for another delicious dinner idea? Then, thisCrock Pot Chicken and Gravyis one of the easiest chicken recipes that you can make.
• Crockpot Teriyaki Chickenis another easy dinner option when you are craving takeout but don't want to spend the extra money.

Serve with

• TheseRoasted Green Beans and Carrotsare one of my go-to side dishes to serve with a simple make like this cranberry chicken recipe.
• However, if you are looking for a different healthy, and simple side dish, serve it with a green salad like thisOutback Wedge Salad recipe.
• Indulging in a slice of thisChocolate Hershey Pieis the perfect way to end this great meal.

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