One-Pan Honey Mustard Chicken And Veggie Bake Recipe

These days, we're busy. There's barely enough time to go to work, spend time with family, and maybe even sneak in a workout or a walk. Making home cooked meals is pretty low on many of our priority lists, not because we don't want to, but because other things just have to come first. That's why I'm so passionate about one-pan dinners. Preparation and cooking is so fast and convenient, and cleanup is as easy and throwing the used aluminum foil away. Less time and more flavor means happy families.

In this one-pan meal, the rich, earthy flavors of chicken, sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and bacon combine with a sweet and light honey mustard glaze to bring you a perfectly well-rounded dinner. The vegetables are soft on the inside and crisp on the outside. You could even double the batch and have friends over for a comforting night with a glass of wine. Look at you! You just went from eating fast food every night to hosting dinner parties. And its all thanks to this recipe!

Another great part about one-pan meals is that they're simple. There are just a few ingredients, and they don't need a lot of extra flavor. Pick out two medium sweet potatoes, but if you are a big fan, feel free to choose two large ones instead. The more sweet potato, the better! 

If the chicken breast is cut into uneven sizes, even them out so they cook at the same time, and set aside. Have a bottle of olive oil handy and make sure to measure out the ingredients for the honey mustard glaze, to make things much more convenient once you start. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and line a large baking pan with aluminum foil. Spray the aluminum foil with an olive oil spray and set aside.

A full list of ingredients and step-by-step instructions can be found at the end of this article. 

I recently took a knife skills class, and the chef leading it completely changed the way I now cut potatoes. He did it so quickly and masterfully, and now I'll share those secrets with you. Start with your potato resting on its side. I like to keep the skins on, because that's where many of the nutrients are. It's also a lot easier, so feel free to skip the peeling. 

Cut off the small ends of the sweet potato, then cut it in half crosswise and stand it up on its cut half. Cut the half into thirds both cross and lengthwise (pictured here). If you were making steak fries, we would stop here, but we want the potatoes diced so they cook longer, so we'll be taking one more step.

Now rest the cut sweet potato on its side and cut the fries in half or in thirds, depending how big your potatoes are. The important thing is that all of the diced pieces are about the same size, so they cook evenly. Repeat with the other sweet potato.

Next, place the diced sweet potato pieces onto the foil-lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle the kosher salt over the top and toss with your hands, making sure each piece is covered. Place the baking sheet into the preheated oven and roast for about 10 minutes. Once the 10 minutes is up, remove the pan from the hot oven.

I am all about keeping recipes efficient, so while the sweet potatoes are roasting for 10 minutes, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Cut the ends off of the Brussels sprouts and then cut them in half. You could leave them whole, but then they would take longer to cook, and halves are easier to eat anyway. Once all of the Brussels sprouts are prepared, set them aside until the sweet potatoes come out of the oven.

The golden rule of cooking is that everything tastes better with bacon, and this one-pan stunner is no exception. For this recipe I used turkey bacon to keep it light, but feel free to use your favorite type and brand of bacon. Layer the four strips on top of each other and thinly slice with a sharp knife. You'll be sprinkling the bacon pieces over the vegetables for flavor, so the smaller the better. 

Finally it's time to make the honey mustard glaze. This sweet sauce is so easy, and tastes way better than you'd think for such a fast recipe. Start by placing the olive oil, dijon mustard, honey, and apple cider vinegar into a small bowl. Sprinkle in the oregano, garlic powder, and cumin, and whisk to combine.

This glaze can settle pretty quickly, so make sure to give it a good whisk before brushing it over the chicken. Set is aside for now. You could also double the batch for dipping or to save for sandwiches and salads throughout the week.

Whew! That was a lot to prep in 10 minutes, but you did it! Once the sweet potatoes come out of the oven, add the chopped Brussel sprouts to the pan. Using a large spoon, toss the vegetables together so that the Brussel sprouts are also coated with olive oil. Feel free to add another drizzle to make sure every piece is covered. It's better to use more, so you're not left with dry veggies at dinnertime. 

Once the sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts are ready, use that large spoon to start spreading them out to the outside of the baking sheet. Sprinkle with the uncooked bacon. You could always just move them to one side, but I think they cook more evenly when they're all on the outside of the pan. This also leaves the perfect spot to place and coat the chicken.

Place your uncooked chicken breast pieces in the center of the pan. Make sure they're about the same size. If they're especially thick, you may want to cut them in half to ensure even cooking. Once the chicken breasts are arranged on the pan, drizzle the honey mustard glaze over them and brush it on with a spoon or vegetable brush. If you have any extra glaze, feel free to drizzle it over the veggies. 

If you made extra glaze for dipping with dinner, make sure to not contaminate it as you're brushing the chicken. Keep them in separate bowls to be safe.

Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes. After 25 minutes, cut into the chicken to make sure the inside is cooked and no longer pink. If you're unsure, allow it to cook for another couple minutes. The vegetables should be softened, but still crisp on the outside, and the bacon will have crisped up as well. Once the meal is ready, place the veggies and bacon slices on a plate and top with a piece of chicken. Look at you! It's Monday night, and you're actually eating real food! Let's do this!