What type of pears to use to cook with chicken?

You can actually use any pears you find available to you. The Spruce has a great article on what the best pears are for baking are and my favorite variety that I use in the recipe are on the list, the Bartlett (also known as the Williams Pear)! I like Bartlett pears because they are commonly found in grocery stores AND they are one of the sweetest, if not the sweetest, types of pear. The sweetness form the pear blends effortlessly with the other flavors of this one-pot skillet dish!

Should I peel the pears to cook them with chicken?

If you have access to organic pears, keep the peel on. Keeping the skin will allow the pear slices to be firmer and hold together when cooked. When peeled you have a higher chance for the pears to turn to puree when cooking, especially if they are very ripe.

Chicken Pear Skillet With Pecan (Whole30, Paleo)

Description

This chicken and pear skillet with pecan roasts juicy chicken breasts in a sweet and savory thyme sauce, topped to perfection with roasted pears and chopped pecans. This is one easy weeknight recipe you can’t pass up!

Ingredients

Units Scale

3 large chicken breasts, sliced half ("hotdog" style so you now have thin slices of each breast)
1/2 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoon butter
3 tablespoon fresh thyme, divided, or 2 tablespoon dried chopped thyme
1 pear, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped pecans
salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of coconut sugar (optional)

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Instructions

Preheat your oven to 375*F.
In a large oven-safe skillet add the ghee over medium heat until melted. Add in the thin-cut chicken breasts and onion and saute for 3-4 minutes on each side.
Sprinkle the chicken with half of the thyme and place the oven-safe skillet in the oven to roast for 10 minutes.
While the chicken is roasting, make the pecan glaze: in a small mixing bowl combine the pecans, coconut sugar (optional) the second half of the thyme, and salt and pepper to taste.
Remove from the oven and place pear slices over chicken breasts. Sprinkle with the pecan glaze and a pinch of coconut sugar if desired (we don’t feel like ours needs the sugar) and roast for another 10 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving the chicken and pears with the cooking juices drizzled over top.

Equipment

Cast Iron Skillet

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Notes

If you have access to organic pears, keep the peel on. Keeping the skin will allow the pear slices to be firmer and hold together when cooked. When peeled you have a higher chance for the pears to turn to puree when cooking, especially if they are very ripe.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Method: Baking
Cuisine: American

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1
Calories: 366
Sugar: 6.5 g
Sodium: 74 mg
Fat: 21.6 g
Saturated Fat: 7.7 g
Carbohydrates: 13 g
Fiber: 4 g
Protein: 30.8 g
Cholesterol: 103 mg