A meal that’s both easy and impressive, thanks to juicy autumn grapes and a few spoonfuls of mustard
Grapes are most popular as a snack food, perhaps as part of a charcuterie spread or something fed to children alongside string cheese and a juice box. But if you’re not cooking this fruit, you’re missing out. Applying heat turns grapes soft and juicy, but rather than melting into a sauce or disintegrating into bits like softer fruits, they remain plump and substantial. Last year, I shared my recipe for an olive oil grape cake, but this time around, I’m here with a chicken recipe that features autumn’s own berry (yes, grapes are technically berries) in a savory spin: tangy roasted chicken legs loosely inspired by the famous chicken Marbella. It’s an easy meal with an ideal effort-to-flavor ratio, and it might just be my new go-to chicken recipe.
The marinade is designed to offset grapes’ natural sweetness with a short list of punchy ingredients: whole grain mustard, red wine vinegar, garlic, and just a touch of brown sugar. The mustard doesn’t come through strongly in the finished product, but it still contributes tons of flavor—tang, salt, and a bit of heat. It also lends body to the marinade, helping the sauce adhere better to the chicken and therefore allowing more flavor to penetrate the meat. I used a milder, whole grain mustard here, but Dijon can be used in its place for a bolder mustard taste.
When it’s time to cook the chicken, simply throw it in a pan along with a couple bunches of grapes and bake it for about 45 minutes. The grapes can be cooked on or off the stem; it’s a bit easier to eat de-stemmed grapes, but leaving the bunches whole makes for a striking presentation. As the grapes cook, their juices mingle with the rendering chicken fat and salty marinade, creating a syrupy sauce that’s sweet, savory, and begging to be spooned over rice or couscous or mopped up by a crusty piece of bread. It’s an impressive dish for a dinner party with minimal hands-on cooking time, allowing you to spend more with your guests. But it’s also simple enough to add into a weekly dinner rotation, especially as the temperature drops.