Lemon Garlic Chicken Breast
Lemon Garlic Chicken with step-by-step photos and a video recipe. This flavorful and juicy lemon garlic chicken breast is a quick and easy one pan dinner, ready in 30 minutes on stovetop with fewer ingredients, easily available in your pantry. Serve over your favorite pasta or rice with your favorite salad.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 230kcal
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 egg beaten
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce (low sodium)
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- salt to taste
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour or cornstarch
For the sauce
- ¼ cup low sodium chicken broth (increase the quantity to ½ cup, if you prefer more sauce. Also adjust the seasoning accordingly)
- 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- ½ teaspoon cornstarch (or cornflour)
To make lemon garlic chicken
- 1 teaspoon oil + 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic (or minced)
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 2 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped (coriander leaves) or substitute with parsley
Instructions
Marinate the chicken
- Lay the chicken breast over a cling wrap. Cover it with another layer. Flatten the chicken breast by patting it gently with a rolling pin or a meat mallet for even thickness. Or you can slice the chicken breast into half with a knife.
- Marinate it with egg, soy sauce, ground black pepper & salt. Set it aside for an hour in the refrigerator.
- Prepare the sauce - In a mixing bowl, combine the sauce ingredients and keep it aside.
- Finely chop ginger, garlic and cilantro. Keep it aside. Keep red pepper flakes handy.
Pan-sear the chicken
- Take out the marinated chicken breast from the refrigerator. Keep it aside for 20 minutes so that it comes to room temperature before you cook.
- Lightly dust the chicken breast with all-purpose flour. Shake off the excess flour. Keep it aside on a plate.
- Heat a pan over medium-high heat and add 1 teaspoon oil + 1 tablespoon butter.
- Pan-sear the chicken until golden & crisp on both sides. Set it aside. It may take 4-5 minutes on each side or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. You can bake it in an oven too. Remove it to a plate. Partially cover it.
For making lemon garlic chicken
- In the same pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil & 1 teaspoon butter over medium heat.
- Sauté garlic, ginger & red pepper flakes for a minute. Be careful not to burn them.
- Give the prepared lemon garlic sauce a quick mix. Add the sauce to the pan & cook until the sauce thickens. Taste and if required add salt. Stir it continuously.
- When the sauce thickens, sprinkle some finely chopped cilantro (coriander leaves)/parsley.
- Add the pan-fried chicken breast & let it cook in the sauce on low heat for 5 minutes. Pour the sauce on top of the chicken at regular intervals. Remove from heat. Garnish with some lemon slices & serve.
Video
Notes
- Pound the chicken breast or slice it in half. It will help to cook the chicken breast evenly.
- Marinate the chicken breast for at least 30 minutes to 2 hours in the refrigerator. The longer it marinates the better it tastes.
- Take out the marinated chicken breast from the refrigerator for at least 20-30 minutes before you pan-fry it. The chicken breasts should be at room temperature when you pan-sear them.
- Make sure the pan is hot enough before you start to cook the chicken. When you place the chicken on the heated pan, you must hear a sizzling sound. This will seal the exterior part of the chicken making it golden and crisp outside. Also, it traps the juices of the chicken inside which keeps the chicken nice and moist.
- Do not skip the addition of eggs in the recipe. It keeps the chicken soft and moist when you are pan-frying it.
- If you want to skip eggs in the recipe then brine the chicken in buttermilk and salt for at least 2 hours. Cover and keep it in the refrigerator.
- Use fresh lemon juice. Also, add some lemon zest to the sauce for more lemony flavors.
- For perfectly cooked chicken, the thickest part should reach an internal temperature of 165°F (74°C). To ensure the chicken is cooked through, cut into the thickest part. It should be opaque white with no pink remaining.
- Storage:
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- Store it within 2 hours of cooking.
- Let it come to room temperature. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container. Keep it in the refrigerator. Stays safe to eat for 2 days. For longer shelf life - freeze it. It can be stored for a month.
- To reheat - add some extra chicken broth and the seasoning. Heat it until piping hot and serve.
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Nutrition
Calories: 230kcal