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Southwest Mango Chicken

By Kevin

published May 11, 2020, updated Oct 12, 2021

5 from 23 votes

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Southwest mango chicken features baked boneless chicken breasts with bbq sauce and fresh mango chunks. Make this recipe for dinner tonight!

This mango chicken dinner is so easy to put together. Everything goes in one pan, then straight into the oven.

Baking instead of grilling guarantees tender, juicy chicken, but you’ll still get all the flavors of grilling out by adding tangy, smoky bbq sauce. Mangoes add sweetness and the jalapeño pepper gives the dish a little extra heat.

With a little bit of prep and 40 minutes of bake time, you’ll have a delicious meal ready in well under an hour.

Mango chicken ingredient notes

• Boneless chicken breasts – I prefer chicken breasts, but boneless thighs would work as well.
  
• BBQ sauce – This recipe is super simple because you can make it using your favorite barbecue sauce. If you don’t already have a favorite, I have several bbq sauce recipes to choose from. My preference for this dish is a smoky Kansas City style bbq sauce, but another great option is North Carolina bbq sauce.
• Mango – Fresh or frozen will be fine. Obviously, fresh will be easier to work with – no thawing required.

That’s really it! You’ll need a jalapeno, some honey, plus salt and pepper. Easy!

Recipe video

Want to see the process of baking chicken breasts from start to finish? Just watch the video located in the recipe card at the bottom of this post!

How to cut a mango

There are two easy ways to peel and cut a mango. Whichever method you choose just depends on your knife skills.

Option 1: Slice and dice

1. Stand the mango upright and cut off the sides of the mango around the seed in the middle. There will be four total pieces.
2. Peel the skin off of the fruit pieces, then use a knife to cut the yellow flesh into chunks on a cutting board.

Option 2: Cut into cubes

1. Cut off the sides of the mango as described above, but leave the skin on the fruit.
2. Make long, evenly-spaced slits in the flesh without cutting through the skin.
3. Repeat in the opposite direction to make cubes, still not cutting through the skin.
4. Hold a piece in your hand and use a spoon to carefully scoop out the chunks, scraping as close to the skin as possible.
5. You can also turn each piece inside out and slice off the chunks with a small knife.

How to make baked boneless chicken breasts

1. Preheat your oven and spray a baking dish with cooking spray.
   
2. Season the chicken breasts and lay them in the baking dish. Brush with some of the barbecue sauce.
   
3. Add the mango chunks and diced jalapeño, then drizzle everything with honey.
   
4. Remove the chicken from the pan when the mango chicken is done baking. You’ll know the chicken is ready when the internal temperature reaches 163 degrees F. (It will continue to cook as it rests, reaching the food-safe temperature of 165 degrees.) Place the chicken on a plate to rest, and tent it with aluminum foil to keep it warm.
   
5. Add the rest of the barbecue sauce to the pan and mix with the other ingredients to thicken. Then spoon everything over the chicken breasts.

Serve your BBQ baked chicken breasts over rice or with some garden salad or veggies, and some cilantro lime rice or wild rice pilaf.

Mango chicken recipe notes

• Chicken too thick? Boneless, skinless chicken breasts work best with this recipe. If the ones you’re using are especially thick, you may want to slice them in half to create two thinner breasts instead. This will reduce bake time and ensure they cook all the way through.

• Use caution working with chiles! To prevent burning your skin or eyes, wear gloves when seeding and dicing the jalapeño. Or, wash your hands thoroughly before touching anything else, especially your face.
  
• Fresh or frozen mango – Mango chunks can be fresh or frozen. If using frozen, let them thaw completely first.

Other baked chicken recipes

• Baked Chicken Cubano – a baked chicken recipe with the flavors of a Cuban sandwich
• Barbecue Pineapple Chicken – another delicious baked barbecue chicken recipe

This post, first published on Kevin is Cooking on April 9, 2018, was last updated with new content on Oct. 12, 2021.

Southwest Mango Chicken + Video

5 from 23 votes

Southwest mango chicken features baked boneless chicken breast with bbq sauce and fresh mango chunks. Make this recipe for dinner tonight!

Servings: 6 servings

Prep: 5 minutes mins

Cook: 40 minutes mins

Total: 45 minutes mins

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 lbs chicken breasts boneless, skinless (See Note 1)
• ▢ 1/2 tsp salt
• ▢ 1/2 tsp black pepper
• ▢ 1 cup barbecue sauce separated
• ▢ 12 oz mango chunks fresh or frozen (thawed)
• ▢ 1 jalapeño seeded and diced
• ▢ 2 tbsp honey

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.
• Seed and dice the jalapeño.
• Season the chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Arrange chicken in baking dish and brush on 2/3 cup of the barbecue sauce. Top with mango chunks and diced jalapeño. Drizzle honey over all and bake uncovered for 40 minutes, or until internal temperature reads 165°F.
• Remove chicken to serving platter and add remaining barbecue sauce to cooking juices, mangoes and chiles, mixing to thicken, and spoon over chicken.

Video

Notes

1. Chicken breasts can vary in size from 5 ounces to 10 ounces, meaning that the cooking time varies. I use boneless and skinless chicken breast meat. To ensure that the chicken breasts cook evenly, you may want to use the flat side of a meat mallet to lightly pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness. Place the chicken between two sheets of plastic wrap or parchment paper to prevent it from sliding around or slice in half horizontally and pound between sheets of plastic wrap for even thickness. 

Nutrition

Calories: 310kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 96mg | Sodium: 859mg | Potassium: 765mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 790IU | Vitamin C: 25.5mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 1mg

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Course: Dinners

Cuisine: American, Southwest

Author: Kevin Is Cooking

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