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Home » The Main Course » Apricot Glazed Turkey Thighs

Apricot Glazed Turkey Thighs

Published on July 21, 2021 by Nicole Last Modified on August 17, 2021 / 14 Comments

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Apricot Glazed Turkey Thighs #ThinkTurkey

These Apricot Glazed Turkey Thighs are perfect for summertime grilling. The marinade is a lovely balance of sweet and savoury and perfectly glazes the turkey. Fire up the bbq and let’s get grilling!

Two turkey thighs on a bed of greens, with apricot halves

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This post is sponsored by Turkey Farmers of Canada. As always, all opinions are my own.

I live for summer. It’s the only season that I absolutely love. You autumn and winter people…. I just don’t get you. In fairness, I can handle a little autumn – the leaves changing is very pretty. But this girl wasn’t built for the cold. I’m a fan of weather that lets me be outside comfortably and allows me to bbq whenever I want. In Saskatchewan, that means we have a four-month window, so you better believe our bbq is going non-stop during that time.

It’s easy to get stuck in a rut when it comes to the food you bbq. Same meat, same sauce, same veggies – we’ve all been there. This recipe for an apricot glaze is perfect for when you want to try something new. It’s a super simple sauce made with just a handful of ingredients, most of which you probably already have in your pantry. The base of this glaze is soy sauce, ginger, garlic and onions. The special ingredient that adds a perfect sweetness are ripe, summertime apricots!

turkey thigh on a plate with corn, green salad and apricot slices

In Season – Apricots

Apricots are in season from May to July here in Canada and are grown in BC and Ontario. They are similar to peaches but are about a quarter of the size. They tend to be both sweet and tart, where peaches tend to be just sweet. When you’re shopping for apricots, look for fruit that has a slight orange hue to the skin and avoid fruit with soft spots for browning.

Apricots are great for both baking and savoury cooking. Apricots give a dish a slight sweetness without being too overpowering and compliment salty and savoury flavours quite well.

Let’s Talk Turkey

It should come as no surprise that we are huge fans of turkey! It’s a lean protein option and great for eating healthy. A major reason we cook with turkey so often, is because it adds variety to our meal plans. Especially for bbq, we crave variety when it comes to our protein options. Turkey fits the bill because it’s also incredibly versatile. It works well with just about every cuisine and flavour profile we like to use. Take this apricot glaze, for example. The turkey thighs were marinated in the sauce and bbq’d to perfection. Not only that, but they taste out-of-this-world.

The Sauce

If you have a toddler, you know how up and down they can be with foods they like and will eat. And sometimes when you try new foods, it takes a couple of different exposures to that food for them to actually eat it. Well, this apricot glaze on the turkey thighs was well received by our two-year-old on it’s first try. The base of this sauce is soy sauce, ginger and garlic – all flavours that are familiar and are widely used in my kitchen. The combination of apricot jam and fresh apricots lend the perfect sweetness to the sauce and helps create that lovely sticky-sweet glaze that everyone loves. Once everything is slowly simmered, the result is a super flavourful sauce, perfect for marinating and grilling.

Next time you’re firing up the grill, switch things up and bbq some apricot glazed turkey thighs. They’re the perfect balance of sweet and savoury and sure to be a new family favourite. You can also find lots of other quick and easy bbq turkey recipes on thinkturkey.ca!

Check out these other recipes:

  • Apricot Stir Fry
  • Honey Dijon Turkey Thighs with Cauliflower
  • Almond Apricot Tart
Two turkey thighs on a bed of greens, with apricot halves

Apricot Glazed Turkey Thighs

Here’s to another day of summertime grilling! These Apricot Glazed Turkey Thighs are made with ripe summer apricots and are incredibly juicy and flavourful!
5 from 13 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Apricot, Turkey Thighs
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 563kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 Bone-in Turkey thighs skin removed, about 2 ½ Lbs
  • 2 tsp canola oil
  • 1/2 cup minced yellow onion
  • 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
  • 1 Tbsp minced garlic
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1 Tbsp rice vinegar
  • 2 apricots pitted and chopped
  • 1/2 cup apricot jam

Instructions

  • In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add oil and yellow onion and sauté until soft and translucent.
  • Add in ginger and garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  • Add in the soy sauce, rice vinegar, chopped apricot and apricot jam. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer.
  • Let the sauce simmer on medium low heat until thickened, about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Remove from the heat and let the sauce cool slightly.
  • Transfer to a blender or small food processor, and blend until smooth.
  • Allow to cool completely.
  • Place the turkey thighs into a zip top bag or sealable container. Pour the cooled sauce over the turkey, reserving about ¼ cup of the sauce for use later. Allow to marinade overnight or for at least 4 hours.
  • Preheat the bbq to medium heat. Remove the turkey thighs from the marinade and place on the grill.
  • Grill for about 40-50 minutes, turning occasionally, and basting with the reserved sauce in the last 10 minutes.
  • Grill until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
  • Remove from the grill and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Nutrition

Serving: 4g | Calories: 563kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 56g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 176mg | Sodium: 2063mg | Potassium: 821mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 398IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 42mg | Iron: 5mg

Nutritional calculation was provided by WP Recipe Maker and is an estimation only. For special diets or medical issues please use your preferred calculator

Notes

If you like a little heat to your sauces, add 1/8 tsp (or more, depending on your taste) of crushed red chili flakes to the sauce at the same time you add the garlic and ginger.
This sauce can be made in advance and stored in the fridge for 3-4 days before use.
Did you make this recipe?Mention @culinarycool or tag #culinarycool!
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Filed Under: The Main Course Tagged With: Apricot, BBQ, Turkey Thighs

Previous Post: « Blackened Saskatchewan Beer Can Turkey Breast
Next Post: Chipotle Mango Turkey Skewers »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. veenaazmanov

    July 21, 2021 at 7:21 pm

    5 stars
    This is such a unique and lovely recipe. Chicken definitely looks yummy.

    Reply
  2. Shobelyn Dayrit

    July 22, 2021 at 1:44 pm

    5 stars
    Believe it or not, I have not tried apricot at all, Maybe this is the best time to take a second look at it.

    Reply
  3. Heather

    July 22, 2021 at 1:49 pm

    5 stars
    I’m always looking for fun turkey recipes that aren’t just for Thanksgiving, and this sounds a real winner! Cannot wait to try that marinade, too!

    Reply
  4. Kathryn

    July 22, 2021 at 4:33 pm

    5 stars
    This apricot glaze sounds so delicious and easy to make. I can’t wait to try this as a healthy and light summer meal, thanks!

    Reply
  5. Leslie

    July 23, 2021 at 11:18 am

    5 stars
    I’m so glad this is toddler-approved! Ha, seriously though. This is a great recipe, especially for summer! Love the flavors!

    Reply
  6. Tristin

    July 23, 2021 at 11:16 pm

    5 stars
    Girl, you are a my spirit animal! I am all about the heat and don’t understand people who LOVE the winter. We are big on apricots over here, so I cannot wait to grill up this recipe!

    Reply
  7. Amy Liu Dong

    July 25, 2021 at 8:16 am

    5 stars
    Sounds like a perfect dish to prepare my loved ones today. It looks delicious and easy.

    Reply
  8. Amanda Dixon

    July 25, 2021 at 2:08 pm

    5 stars
    These turkey thighs were fabulous! I just love the flavor of the apricot and ginger together. Such a perfect summer meal.

    Reply
  9. Jamie

    July 25, 2021 at 7:34 pm

    5 stars
    I love the idea of using apricot jam to glaze turkey! The flavor was so incredible and my whole family loved it. Thank you so much!

    Reply
  10. Loreto and Nicoletta

    July 25, 2021 at 10:41 pm

    To tellbyou the truth, I would have never imagined using apracots to glaze turket. However by the looks of the surface, it tells me texture, flavor! We are with you on loving dummer. We try to spend most of our time outside, sunny skies, warm temps, and you apricot glazed turkey. Hmmmmm saound like a Normand Rockwelloment!
    Thanks for sharing!👍👌❤😍

    Reply
  11. Bernice

    July 27, 2021 at 6:27 pm

    5 stars
    This turkey looks so delicious, I’d love to dig right in. It’s funny, I don’t use apricot as a savoury dish ingredient too often but it’s always delicious when I do.

    Reply
  12. Vanessa

    July 27, 2021 at 6:45 pm

    5 stars
    What a fantastic way to serve turkey in the summer! Such a unique and delicious flavour combo!

    Reply
  13. Colleen

    July 28, 2021 at 9:31 am

    5 stars
    I never think about turkey in the summer, but this is a great idea! it looks yummy, thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply
  14. Terri

    August 2, 2021 at 9:30 pm

    5 stars
    I would have never thought to BBQ turkey thighs— I love this recipe!

    Reply

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I'm Nicole, a cookbook addict, cooking school instructor, travel junkie, and lover of all things sweet.

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