Fresh, vibrant, and flavorful Peach Salsa Chicken with glazed and grilled chicken breasts and a simple grilled-peach salsa to top it off!
Make the most of peaches this summer with this easy Peach Salsa Chicken, peach lemonade, and this peach pie for dessert!
I’m all about pairing fruit with grilled chicken; it’s been a theme the past few summers with this mango chicken, pineapple chicken, cilantro lime chicken, and citrus chicken. And today I’m using one of my favorite summer fruits — peaches– to make a peach salsa and top grilled chicken with it!
However, if you aren’t able to find good ripe peaches, don’t click away just yet — the chicken glaze doesn’t require only fresh peaches! The glaze is made with peach preserves and a handful of other ingredients. It ensures flavorful chicken, so you don’t have to make the peach salsa topping if peaches aren’t available or you’re short on time. Of course, we love it best with the salsa, but it’s great either way!
How to make Peach Salsa Chicken
- Prep chicken: Pound chicken breasts to an even thickness so they’ll cook evenly later on. This is best accomplished by a meat mallet. Drizzle the breasts with olive oil and generously season with salt and pepper
- Prep glaze: This glaze is simple! Stir together peach preserves, Dijon mustard, soy sauce, olive oil garlic and jalapeño. This glaze will baste the chicken as it cooks and also gets brushed on the finished and cooked chicken.
- Cook: Grill, bake, or sauté the chicken until it reaches 165 degrees F. (I like to take the guesswork out by using a digital meat thermometer)
- Cooking times will vary depending on several factors, so I always recommend using a thermometer to test your chicken as it cooks. Aim to hit exactly 165 degrees Fahrenheit. (undercooked = unsafe; overcooked = dry chicken)
- Baste: As you cook the chicken, brush it occasionally with the glaze.
- Peach salsa: While the chicken is cooking, it’s the perfect time to whip together the salsa. Grill the peaches alongside the chicken and prep all the other ingredients (dicing the cilantro, red onion, pepper, and jalapeño) while it’s cooking.
- Finish it off: Top chicken with a bit more glaze and spoon hefty amounts of the salsa right on top.
Recipe tips
- Make sure to slice the chicken breasts in half, or pound them into an even thickness before cooking. This allows the chicken to cook evenly. Remember, you don’t want to pound the chicken to be thin, you want to pound it to be EVEN.
- If grilling, generously oil your grill grates. I do this by rolling up a few paper towels, drenching them in vegetable or canola oil, and using tongs to rub the drenched paper towels along the grill grates. Doing this will contribute to a beautiful sear and ensure the chicken doesn’t stick to the grates.
- For a delicious smoky-flavored salsa, grill the peaches. While this is optional, grilling the peaches brings out the best flavor; it makes the peaches more juicy, flavorful, and sweet. It’s also easy to do since you’re already grilling the chicken (More on grilling peaches below).
How to grill peaches
- Preheat the grill to about 400 degrees and clean the grates with a grill brush. Oil the grates to ensure the peaches don’t stick to them.
- Prepare the peaches by halving them and removing the bit. Brush the cut sides with olive oil.
- Grill the peaches cutside down for 2-4 minutes. I leave them undisturbed for 2 minutes, and then rotate (to get cross-grill marks) and leave peaches (cut side down) for another 2 minutes. Then flip the peaches and cook for another 1-3 minutes or until skins are lightly charred and peaches are soft. Cook time will vary depending on the size of the peaches, actual heat of the grill, ripeness of peaches, etc.
- Remove the grilled peaches and let stand until cool enough to cut.
When grilling peaches for the salsa, I do like them to be a little firmer, so they’ll chop easily and remain intact in the salsa. I typically grill them for about 4 minutes total (at 400-450 degrees F) for this salsa.
Peach salsa
The salsa is loaded with those gorgeous grilled peaches, freshly chopped cilantro, diced red onion, diced red pepper, and a diced jalapeño.
- Make sure to season the salsa to taste with salt and pepper (the salt enhances flavors and balances the sweetness).
- I also like to add a little chili powder for flavor and heat. If you’re sensitive to heat, reduce the amount of jalapeño or chili powder, or omit both entirely.
- If you’re sensitive to red onion you can omit it or soak the diced red onion in cold water for about 10 minutes and then thoroughly drain. This will take away the “bite” of the onion.
Quick Tip
If you’re sensitive to spicy foods, be careful when preparing jalapeño peppers. The capsaicin in hot peppers can burn, so use care when cutting. Don’t touch your face or eyes while working with them, and you may even want to wear gloves to be safe. The heat is in the seeds and membranes and those oils can also transfer to the knife and cutting surface. Wash hands, cutting board and utensils with soap and water after working with jalapeños!
Alternate cooking methods
Cooking times will vary, depending on several factors, so I always recommend using a thermometer to test your chicken as it cooks. Aim to hit exactly 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit (carryover heat will take the chicken from 160 to 165). (undercooked = unsafe; overcooked = dry chicken)
- Baked Peach Chicken: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place chicken on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for approximately 18 minutes, flipping the chicken and glazing halfway. Remove from the oven, and loosely cover the sheet pan with foil. Let the chicken rest for 5-10 minutes. Add remaining peach glaze over top the chicken and a generous spoonful of peach salsa!
- Sauteed Peach Chicken: Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken breast and cook for 4-6 minutes per side, until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear. As you sauté the chicken, brush it generously with the reserved glaze. Transfer the chicken to a clean plate, loosely cover with foil and let the chicken rest for 5-10 minutes. Add remaining peach glaze over top the chicken and a generous spoonful of peach salsa!
Recipe variations
- With grains: Serve Peach Salsa Chicken over quinoa, brown rice, or another similar whole grain.
- Spicy chicken: If you’re looking to amp up the spice; add some cayenne pepper (1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon) to the glaze. You can also add some red pepper flakes to the finished dish.
- Use chicken thighs: Switch out boneless skinless thighs for breasts in this recipe (adjust cooking times as needed).
Peach Salsa Chicken side dish ideas
Serve this peach chicken over
More great grilled recipes
Avocado Grilled Chicken because you can never have enough avocado in your life.
Grilled Flank Steak with chimichurri sauce!
Peach Salsa Chicken
Ingredients
Peach Salsa
- 1 and 1/2 cups diced fresh peaches (~1 large peach or 2 small/medium peaches)
- 1/2 cup red pepper diced
- 1 tablespoon jalapeño pepper finely diced (seeds/ribs discarded)
- 1/3 cup red onion diced
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1/3 cup cilantro leaves coarsely chopped
- Optional: 1/8 teaspoon chili powder
- Salt and pepper (1/4 tsp each)
Chicken (and Glaze)
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Olive oil, salt, and pepper
- 1 cup peach preserves
- 1 and 1/2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for brushing
- 1 tablespoon lite soy sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
- 1 and 1/2 tablespoons finely diced jalapeño pepper
Instructions
- PEACH SALSA: Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium-high heat (about 400-450 degrees F.) Generously oil the grill--don't skip this step. (See Note 1) Halve the peaches and remove the pits. Lightly brush the sides and the skins with oil. Grill peaches until tender and lightly charred, but still firm enough to chop, about 4-5 minutes total, flipping halfway through. Chop the peaches into small, even pieces and add to a medium-sized bowl. Add in the diced red pepper, diced jalapeño, diced red onion, lime juice and coarsely chopped cilantro. Add in the chili powder, salt and pepper to taste (I add in 1/4 teaspoon of each, but add to your preference). Gently toss and taste. Adjust to personal preference (more salt/chili powder/lime juice). Refrigerate until ready to eat. Toss again right before adding to plates.
- GLAZE: In a large bowl, combine the peach preserves, olive oil, soy sauce, mustard, garlic and jalapeño. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I add 1/4 teaspoon of each). Set aside 1/3 cup of this glaze for the end of the recipe.
- CHICKEN: Halve the chicken breast(s) horizontally and pound the pieces to even thickness (don't want the chicken super-flat, just even so it will cook evenly). Drizzle each side with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Flip pieces and repeat -- oil, salt, pepper, seasoning. Place the prepared chicken on the grill. Grill for 8-10 minutes, flipping once in between halfway, and brushing generously with the peach glaze (not the 1/3 cup that you set aside), or until chicken juices run clear and internal temperature is at 160 to 165 degrees F. (carryover heat will take the chicken to 165 degrees F). Tent chicken with foil and let stand for 5-10 minutes.
- SERVE: Brush the remaining 1/3 cup of the peach glaze over the cooked chicken and top with peach salsa (taste again before adding on top of the chicken and add any additional salt/pepper). Enjoy while hot.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was good, but I will make some slight changes for next time! The glaze needed more soy sauce & mustard, in my opinion, as well as needing cilantro & lime juice. Great starter recipe, but just needs a bit more. Again, just my opinion, but I always make a recipe from what a poster says & I know whether or not to use it again.
Sounds delish! So glad you enjoyed! 🙂
I made this recipe and it was delicious! I took the easy way out and bought jarred peach salsa, but then I added extra red onion, cilantro and fresh peaches to doctor it up.
I also don’t have a grill so I used the oven at 350°. It turned out great! A family fave
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thanks Crystal! 🙂
I just ran across this recipe and it looks amazing! I do have a question. Are the nutrition facts for the whole recipe or per serving? I am calorie counting and am trying to figure it out. Thanks!
Hey Lynn, I’m so glad this recipe caught your eye, it’s a good one! The calories are per serving for each recipe on my site! 🙂
I’m looking forward to making this for a supper club this week. In the salsa, is the red pepper a red bell pepper or another kind?
It’s a red bell pepper! Hope you enjoy! 🙂
My husband was craving this recipe but peaches aren’t in season yet so we made the salsa with frozen peaches. It turned out perfectly. Now we can have this year round!
I am so thrilled you were able to make this work! Thanks Lisa! 🙂
Thanks for the delicious recipe. It was a big hit. We’ll definitely be adding it to our main menu.
Yay! Thrilled to hear that! 🙂
Amazing chicken! I did add a splash of soy sauce to the salsa but other than that I followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect. I made it for 10 people so I made it x5 and the serving size was great. This is definitely a keeper.
Yay! Glad to hear this was enjoyed 🙂
That peach salsa looks to die for! I know summer is over but still… I could eat these kind of meals year round! Excited to try this recipe!
Thanks so much Feta! 🙂