Lemon and Garlic Herb Chicken

I am the chef in our house, mainly as it gets me out of doing the dishes but also because I quite enjoy it. You can guarantee I’ll take the “there’s nothing on TV” moment and turn it into an excuse to watch the excess of cooking channels, even though I will have seen them before once or twice. A particular favourite is Barefoot Contessa and not just because of Ina Garten’s recipes but also because we love her husband Jeffrey and like to imagine ourselves being invited to one of the many dinner parties at her stunning Hamptons home.

I was whiling away a couple of hours one evening watching Ina and she showed a variation on this recipe (her original recipe is for a whole chicken, which is nice for a single or a pair if you only want to eat chicken for a week). I happened to have the ingredients in the cupboard and made it that evening. Ideally you should start the marinating process the night before but if you forget you can leave it for just an hour but of course you don’t get as much of the flavour coming through.

Lemon and Garlic Herb Chicken

Ingredients

Serves 2

2 x Chicken Breast Fillets

½ a large lemon or a whole small one

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

Olive oil

Dried rosemary - you can use fresh like Ina if you like but I tend to use the dried stuff as I don’t have the patience to grow my own, or if I buy it I only use a little before it goes off!

Salt and pepper

You’ll also need to have your chosen vegetables on the go whilst you’re cooking the chicken. We went for mashed potatoes, cherry tomatoes and green beans.

1. Place the chicken breast fillets into a cereal bowl and pour over enough olive oil to come half way up the sides of the chicken.

2. Squeeze over the lemon, add the crushed garlic and sprinkle over however much dried rosemary you like for your taste.

3. Cover the bowl and put it into the fridge for ideally 24 hours before cooking.

4. Once you’re ready to cook, uncover the chicken and season with salt and pepper.

5. Tip half of the marinade into a frying pan and heat on a medium heat. Once hot, add the chicken breasts and cook gently for about 20 minutes or until thoroughly cooked. Turning occasionally.

6. Serve with your chosen accompaniments and enjoy.

And here’s a picture…