Tangy-Sweet Lemon Chicken
There are countless varieties of recipes named Lemon Chicken and about the only similarity between the recipes is the use of chicken and lemons. Although often associated with Chinese cuisine, lemons and limes are rarely used in regional Chinese cuisines. There are Italian and Spanish versions. Some recipes utilize breaded chicken in a lemon inspired sauce. Others use sauteed or roasted chicken, both in pieces or roasted whole. This recipe raises the bar by adding oranges, wine, sweet dates or prunes, and a hint of cinnamon to lend an exotic middle-eastern overtone.
Ingredients
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsps Kosher salt divided
- 6 bone-in chicken breast
- 3 tbsps olive oil
- 1/4 cups white granulated sugar
- 3 lemon halved
- 1 orange quartered
- 1 cups pitted prunes
- 3 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 yellow onion large, chopped
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3/4 cups white wine
- 3 bay leaf
- 6 thyme
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 tbsps salted butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 F (162 C). Sprinkle pepper and 1 1/2 tsp. salt evenly over chicken. Cook 3 chicken breasts, skin side down, in 1 1/2 Tbsp. hot oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat 4 minutes or until skin is golden brown and crisp. Remove chicken from Dutch oven; wipe Dutch oven clean with paper towels. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 Tbsp. oil and 3 chicken breasts; reserve 2 Tbsp. drippings in Dutch oven.
- Sprinkle sugar over cut sides of lemon halves and orange quarters. Cook fruit, cut sides down, in hot drippings in Dutch oven over medium-high heat about 5 minutes or until fruit browns and sugar melts and begins to bubble. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook 3 more minutes. Add dates and next 3 ingredients; sauté 3 minutes.
- Increase heat to high, and stir in wine. Bring mixture to a simmer, stirring to loosen browned bits from bottom of Dutch oven. Cook 3 to 5 minutes or until almost all liquid has evaporated. Stir in bay leaves and next 2 ingredients. Nestle chicken in date mixture. Place a piece of parchment paper directly on chicken, and cover Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid.
- Bake at 325 F (162 C) for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until chicken is tender. Let chicken stand, covered, in Dutch oven at room temperature 30 minutes. Discard parchment paper. Transfer chicken to a platter; cover to keep warm.
- Skim any fat from surface of cooking liquid. Pour cooking liquid through a fine wire-mesh strainer into a saucepan. Reserve lemons and oranges; discard remaining solids. Bring sauce to a simmer over medium-high heat. Remove from heat; add butter and whisk until sauce is smooth. Garnish chicken with reserved lemons and oranges, and serve with sauce.
Notes
We tested with Swanson Unsalted Chicken Cooking Stock.
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