Lemon and Rosemary Roast Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 medium-size chicken
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons freshly grounded black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
- 2 teaspoons fresh or use 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, finely chopped rosemary
- 1/2 kg potatoes
- 1 lemon
Instructions
- Grate zest of the lemon in a bowl. Add salt, pepper, mixed herbs, rosemary and mix well. Set aside.
- Wash, clean and pat the chicken dry (very drwith paper towels all over, including the cavity. Rub the seasoning mixture over the chicken and inside the cavity. With fingertips, gently separate the skin from the meat of the chicken breast and push some seasoning mixture under the skin. Leave the chicken to marinate for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.
- Remove chicken from fridge and let it rest in room temperature for at least 30 mins so that it will cook evenly. Brush melted butter (or olive oiall over the chicken.
- Peel and cut the potatoes into halves or quarters. Put them into a pot of water with a pinch of salt together with the whole lemon. Bring to a boil and continue to cook for about 10 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for 1 minute. Return the potatoes to the same pot. Toss the potatoes with some salt, freshly grounded black pepper and a little olive oil. Do this while the potatoes are still hot so their outsides get chuffed up and fluffy.
- While the lemon is still hot, carefully pierce it with the tip of a sharp knife about 10 times. Stuff the lemon inside the cavity of the chicken.
- Put the potatoes in a roasting pan. Tuck the wings underneath the chicken and place it breast side up, on the potatoes. Cook in preheated oven at 200º C for around 40 – 45 minutes or until the skin is nicely browned. Turn the chicken over and roast for a further 30 minutes or until the skin is browned. Turn the chicken breast side up again and roast for another 10 – 15 mins until the chicken is done and the potatoes are nice and golden. To test whether the chicken is done, pierce the tip of a knife near the joint between the drumstick and the thigh. The juices should run clear (not pink), if it is still pink, cook the chicken a little longer. Carefully remove the lemon from the cavity. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before serving. This allows the juices to settle and the chicken will be much more succulent.
Notes
October 2009
Melt-in-your-mouth Mayo/Parm Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 boneless chicken breast halves
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1½ tsp seasoning salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
Instructions
- Mix mayonnaise, cheese, and seasonings
- Spread mixture over chicken breast and place in baking dish
- Bake at 375º for 45 minutes
Notes
October 2015
Chicken Mushroom
Ingredients
- 6 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup butter
- 3 cups fresh sliced mushrooms
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C).
- Place the olive oil in an 8×8 glass baking dish. Place the chicken breasts in the dish, coating each side with oil. Squeeze the juice of 1/2 lemon over all. Slice the rest of the lemon and place a lemon slice on top of each chicken piece. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes until brown.
- In a large skillet, melt the 1/4 cup butter or margarine. Add the sliced mushrooms. Cook and stir until the mushrooms are brown and have exuded their juices, about 6 minutes. Sprinkle with the flour and blend. Add the chicken broth, stirring to make a medium thick sauce. Allow to reduce, adjusting with a little more broth to make a creamy sauce. Add fresh parsley at the last minute.
Best Chicken Parmesan
Traditional chicken Parmesan is a minefield of potential problems: dry meat, soggy crust, and a chewy blanket of mozzarella. To keep the meat moist, we salted the cutlets for 20 minutes, and to keep the exterior crunchy, we replaced more than half of the starchy (and consequently sog-prone) bread crumbs with grated Parmesan cheese. To keep the cheese topping tender, we mixed the usual shredded mozzarella with creamy fontina, and we placed the mixture directly on the fried cutlet so that it formed a waterproof layer between the crust and the sauce. Our preferred brands of crushed tomatoes are Tuttorosso and Muir Glen. This recipe makes enough sauce to top the cutlets as well as four servings of pasta. Serve with pasta and a simple green salad.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- Kosher salt and pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil
Chicken
- 2 (6- to 8-ounce) boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed, halved horizontally, and pounded 1/2 inch thick
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 ounces whole-milk mozzarella cheese 1/2 cup, shredded
- 2 ounces fontina cheese 1/2 cup, shredded
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 ounces Parmesan cheese 3/4 cup, grated
- 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup torn fresh basil
Instructions
- FOR THE SAUCE: Heat 1 tablespoon oil in medium saucepan over medium heat until just shimmering. Add garlic, ¾ teaspoon salt, oregano, and pepper flakes; cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and sugar; increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes. Off heat, stir in basil and remaining 1 tablespoon oil; season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and keep warm.
- FOR THE CHICKEN: Sprinkle each side of each cutlet with 1/8 teaspoon salt and let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes. Combine mozzarella and fontina in bowl; set aside.
- Adjust oven rack 4 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Whisk egg and flour together in shallow dish or pie plate until smooth. Combine Parmesan, panko, garlic powder, oregano, and pepper in second shallow dish or pie plate. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Working with 1 cutlet at a time, dredge cutlet in egg mixture, allowing excess to drip off. Coat all sides in Parmesan mixture, pressing gently so crumbs adhere. Transfer cutlet to large plate and repeat with remaining cutlets.
- Heat oil in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Carefully place 2 cutlets in skillet and cook without moving them until bottoms are crispy and deep golden brown, 1½ to 2 minutes. Using tongs, carefully flip cutlets and cook on second side until deep golden brown, 1½ to 2 minutes. Transfer cutlets to paper towel–lined plate and repeat with remaining cutlets.
- Place cutlets on rimmed baking sheet and sprinkle cheese mixture evenly over cutlets, covering as much surface area as possible. Broil until cheese is melted and beginning to brown, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer chicken to serving platter and top each cutlet with 2 tablespoons sauce. Sprinkle with basil and serve immediately, passing remaining sauce separately.
Notes
CREATING THIN, EVEN CUTLETS
While most recipes call for pounding breasts thin, we prefer to slice them horizontally (freeze them first for 15 minutes to help with slicing), pounding only the fat ends to achieve an even thickness.
WHEN PARM GOES WRONG
Look familiar? Just about every chicken Parmesan recipe we tried suffered from at least one of these common flaws.
PROBLEM: Soggy crust
SOLUTION: Reduce the sauce to make it less watery and replace some of the moisture-absorbing bread crumbs in the crust with grated Parmesan.
PROBLEM: Chewy cheese
SOLUTION: Supplement chewy mozzarella (a must for flavor) with creamy, tender fontina.
PROBLEM: Dry, chewy chicken
SOLUTION: Turn thick breasts into tender cutlets and briefly salt them, which seasons them and helps them retain moisture.
Tuscan Garlic Chicken
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- ¾ cup flour , plus 1 tablespoon flour (divided)
- ½ tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning
- 3 pounds boneless , skinless chicken breast halves, trimmed or butterflied as needed to create pieces of even thickness
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil (divided)
- 1 pound penne pasta or curly noodles
- 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
- 1 red bell pepper , cored and julienne cut
- ½ cup white wine
- ½ pound whole-leaf spinach , stemmed
- 1½ cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese plus extra for topping servings
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In shallow dish, combine ¾ cup flour, the salt, black pepper and Italian herb seasoning. Dredge chicken in mixture, shaking off any excess.
- In large, non-stick, ovenproof skillet (or two medium-sized skillets), using enough oil to coat bottom of pan, saute chicken. Cook over medium-high heat 4 to 5 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and crisp.
- Meanwhile, bring pot of water to boil to cook pasta.
- When chicken is all browned, transfer skillet to preheated oven and bake 15 minutes or until cooked through and internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. (If you do not have an ovenproof skillet, chicken also can be transferred to a shallow baking dish.).
- While chicken bakes, cook pasta. When pasta is done, drain and set aside, keeping warm.
- While pasta cooks, prepare sauce: Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a saucepan. Add garlic and red pepper and cook over medium heat about 2 minutes. Slowly add remaining 1 tablespoon of flour and stir to combine.
- Add wine and bring to a boil for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add spinach and cream and bring to a boil. Sauce is done cooking when spinach becomes wilted. Stir in Parmesan cheese, heating through to melt and incorporate cheese.
- To serve: Partly coat pasta with sauce, transfer to large bowl or divide between individual dishes. Top with chicken, remaining sauce and extra Parmesan cheese.