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Lemon Chicken and Sides

A delicious and easy recipe for lemon chicken, green beans and rice that’s overflowing with flavor.
Course Main Course, Side Dish
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Passive time 2 hours 40 minutes
Servings 4 people

Ingredients

  • 1.5 lbs of chicken breast
  • ½ C lemon juice
  • 2 large cloves of garlic
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2 carrots
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • Sprigs of fresh thyme

Sauteed Green Beans

  • ¾ lb of green beans
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • Ice
  • 1 small shallot sliced

Side of Rice

  • 1.5 cups white rice
  • 2 small chicken bouillon cubes or 1 large one

Instructions

Chicken and Rice

  1. Take a medium sized casserole dish and place your chicken breasts inside. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with salt, pepper, and lemon zest. Take one of your garlic cloves, peel it, and push it through a garlic press (or chop it very small). Disperse the minced garlic evenly over the chicken. Liberally pour your lemon juice over the top of the chicken. If your chicken breasts are very large, cut them in half so that more surface area is exposed to the marinade and it cooks more evenly. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge to marinate for 2-3 hours.
  2. Take your chicken out of the fridge about 10 minutes before cooking time. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
  3. Take your rice and put it in a medium-large pot along with 5.25 cups of hot water. Add your two chicken bullion cubes and place over medium heat with the lid mostly covering the top for about 30 minutes. Stir the rice periodically to ensure the bouillon cubes are fully dissolved. When there is very little water remaining in the pot, turn off the heat, and cover the pot with a lid completely.
  4. Wash (but don’t peel!) and chop your carrot and onion into medium chunks. Lift up your chicken breasts and cover the bottom of the casserole dish with the vegetables, placing the chicken on top.
  5. Take half of your chicken stock, heat it up for a minute in the microwave or on the stove, and pour it into the casserole dish over your vegetables.
  6. Bake, uncovered, for 35-40 minutes.
  7. Halfway through cooking time, take a heat safe spoon and baste the top of your chicken.
  8. Remove the pan from the oven, and carefully remove the chicken breasts from the pan, setting them aside to rest. If you are unsure whether they are cooked through, slice the fattest part of the chicken breast open and check for any pinkness.
  9. Take the remainder of your chicken broth, heat it up, and add it to the liquid in the casserole dish. Take a heat-safe spatula and carefully splash the liquid around the edges of the pan where bits of brown concentrated flavor are stuck to the pan. Use the liquid to dissolve the brown bits and mix them into the liquid. Taste it and adjust seasoning as needed.

Sauteed Green Beans

  1. This recipe is a variation on the recipe listed in my gluten-free holiday feast for two guide. I recommend starting the green beans once your chicken is in the oven, pre-chopping your garlic and shallots, and then beginning to melt your butter about 10 minutes before your chicken is due to come out of the oven.
  2. Top and tail your green beans. Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a boil. Salt the water and add the green beans. Boil for 2 minutes.
  3. Fill a large bowl with ice and cold water. Once the green beans are done, drain them, and plop them into the ice water. Make sure they are fully submerged. The green beans can stay in the ice water until it’s time to cook them.
  4. In a large frying pan, melt the 2 tbsp of butter. Add your shallot and your other clove of garlic, both chopped small. Caramelize them in the butter for a few minutes.
  5. When the green beans are cold all the way through, pull them out of the ice water and place them in the frying pan. Toss them in the butter, shallots, and garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste. The green beans are done when they are heated all the way through.