How to Cook Chicken Breasts
Chicken breasts are a staple in most kitchens, including ours. Read below for our tips for making sure they are juicy and flavorful. Marinate Them – Even the simplest marinade can make a huge difference — marinated chicken becomes moist, juicy and flavorful. Just 20 minutes in a marinade will make a difference. You could leave it for longer, but there is no need to go past 2 hours for chicken breasts (a whole chicken can marinate overnight). A resealable plastic bag or small rimmed dish makes marinating easy, too. For this recipe, we went with a simple marinade of lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, fresh dill, salt, and pepper. The lemon and dill work nicely with the light cucumber feta salad shared in our recipe, but you could switch lemon for lime or dill for other herbs if you wanted. This lemon and garlic chicken marinade is also one of our favorites. Sear Until Golden – After 20 to 30 minutes of marinating, remove the chicken from the marinade and pat it dry — this helps with getting that golden sear when we cook. Whenever you sear meat, especially chicken, it’s critical that you pat everything dry. If the chicken were still wet from the marinade, the chicken breasts would steam, not sear. Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat and add some olive oil (or other fat like vegetable oil, coconut oil or a combination of butter and oil). As soon as the oil is shimmering, add the chicken and cook 2 to 3 minutes until golden. Cover, Turn Heat to Low – Once your chicken breasts are golden on one side, flip the and turn down the heat to low. Then cover and walk away — you want to let it cook 10 to 15 minutes. During this time, there is no need to open the lid or flip the chicken. The chicken breasts become moist, juicy, and plump. While the chicken cooks, you can make the cucumber feta salad. We use this method when making this chicken breasts recipe and these juicy pork chops! Let the Chicken Rest – Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover loosely with foil and let the chicken rest for 5 minutes. As the chicken rests, the juices redistribute. This way, when you cut into the chicken, all the juices stay in the meat instead of running out on the plate or cutting board.
Our Five Minute Cucumber Feta Salad
Once the chicken has rested, slice it up however you like. We especially love this quick and simple salad. To make it, whisk lemon juice, olive oil, mustard, honey, and dill in a medium bowl then toss in chopped tomatoes, cucumber, and feta cheese. As the salad sits, the cucumbers and tomatoes release some juices into the dressing, so don’t forget to spoon extra dressing from the bottom of the salad bowl on top of you chicken — that’s gold! A dollop of creamy tzatziki sauce would also be excellent (which turns this into more of a Greek-inspired meal). Recipe updated, originally posted June 2013. Since posting this in 2013, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear. – Adam and Joanne 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice 1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for cooking 3 garlic cloves, minced 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or other fresh herbs 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of pure honey, depending on how sour lemon is 1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill or other fresh herbs 2 medium tomatoes, chopped Half of a hothouse or seedless cucumber, chopped 2 ounces feta cheese, cubed Salt and fresh ground black pepper 2Brush extra garlic from chicken and pat dry. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a medium frying pan (with lid) over medium-high heat. As soon as the oil is hot and looks shimmery, add the chicken. Cook 2 to 3 minutes until golden. Flip, reduce heat to low then cover with lid. Cook 10 to 15 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer reads 165 degrees F when inserted into the thickest part of the breast. 3Transfer chicken to a plate then cover loosely with aluminum foil. Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes, slice, and then serve with salad.
