Weeknight Lemon Chicken Breasts
by Chungah
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Say goodbye to dry, boring chicken! These weeknight chicken breasts are so juicy and tender with the dreamiest garlicky lemon sauce! 30 min.
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Why you’ll love these weeknight lemon chicken breasts
- Weeknight-friendly. This is just one of those dinners you can easily whip up on those super busy weeknights when dinner just feels utterly impossible. So thaw those chicken breasts and let’s get to it! This comes together fast – lightening fast in just 30 minutes.
- No more dry, bland chicken. Say hello to juicy, moist, melt-in-your-mouth chicken breasts! With a few simple tips and tricks, you’ll never have dry chicken ever again.
- The pan drippings. You can melt some butter in those pan drippings alongside some garlic, fresh rosemary, and lemon juice for all that saucy saucy goodness, perfect to sop up with some of this crusty bread.
How to make weeknight lemon chicken breasts
- Prep the chicken. Pat the chicken dry of any surface moisture and season generously with salt and pepper.
- Sear the chicken. Sear the chicken breasts for 4-5 minutes over medium heat, undisturbed, until a golden brown crust forms.
- Cover and cook. Reduce the heat to medium low. Flip the chicken and cover the skillet, cooking until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Set the chicken aside and keep warm, letting it rest.
- Make the sauce. Melt the butter, then add in the garlic, shallot, and rosemary until fragrant. Stir in the flour until browned, then deglaze the skillet with the chicken stock, scraping up the browned bits (fond). Let it simmer until reduced and thickened, about 4-5 minutes, then stir in the lemon juice and remaining butter.
- Serve. Serve the chicken warm, generously spooning or drizzling the warm sauce over the meat.
Pro tip
Pound the chicken breasts for even thickness.
If the chicken breasts are thick on one end and thin on the other, pound the thicker end with a meat mallet, rolling pin, or the bottom of a heavy skillet (such as a cast iron skillet) to a uniform thickness to guarantee even cooking.
substitutions and variations
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs or tenderloins
- Canola oil: neutral oil such as avocado or vegetable oil
- Shallot: finely minced yellow or white onion
- Rosemary: thyme
what to serve with chicken breasts
Tools For This Recipe
Weeknight Lemon Chicken Breasts: Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! This recipe will work with boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs (and even tenderloins), but please be mindful of cooking time. Thighs and tenderloins will require less time to cook through.
You don’t necessarily have to but if the chicken breasts are especially thick, then yes, it is highly recommended to flatten the meat to an even thickness so the chicken cooks through at the same rate.
Yes, but because dried herbs are often more potent and concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. For example, 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary = 1 teaspoon dried rosemary.
This will lock in moisture, allowing gentle, even cooking to ensure that the chicken breasts cook through to an internal temperature of 165°F.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days, reheating in the oven at 350°F, covered in aluminum foil, until warmed through.
Weeknight Lemon Chicken Breasts
Video
Ingredients
- 4 small boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 1 1/2 pounds
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 ½ tablespoons canola oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ medium shallot, diced
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
- Using paper towels, pat both sides of the chicken dry; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Heat canola oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, add chicken to the skillet in a single layer and cook until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes.
- Reduce heat to medium low. Using tongs, flip and cook, covered, until cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, an additional 8 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet over medium low heat. Add garlic, shallot and rosemary, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken stock, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced and thickened, about 4-5 minutes.
- Stir in lemon juice and remaining 1 tablespoon butter; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Return chicken to the skillet.
- Serve immediately.
Equipment
Notes
- Pat the chicken dry. Before seasoning the chicken, pat the chicken breasts completely dry with paper towels to remove any surface moisture.
- Use a cast iron skillet. Cast iron skillets retain heat much better than a nonstick skillet, allowing for even cooking and a better sear on the chicken.
- Cook in batches. An overcrowded pan can lead to uneven cooking and poor browning. Work in batches to maintain high heat for a good sear and a golden brown crust on each chicken breast, yielding juicier, tender meat.
- Cover the skillet. This will trap steam and heat, allowing the chicken breasts to cook through completely without drying out the exterior.
- Use an instant-read thermometer for the most accurate results. The internal temperature should reach 165°F.
- Let your meat rest. Let your chicken rest for at least 5 minutes prior to serving, allowing the juices to redistribute – this will allow for maximum flavor and juiciness.
- Deglaze the pan. Deglaze the skillet with chicken stock, lifting up all the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet to capture maximum flavor and to build a rich pan sauce for the chicken.
- Use freshly squeezed lemon juice. While bottled lemon juice can work in a pinch, freshly squeezed is ideal here for its vibrant, stronger flavors.
- Reheat in the oven. Leftover chicken can be rubbery when reheated. For best results with leftovers, reheat in the oven at 350°F, covered in aluminum foil, until warmed through.
Did you make this recipe?
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This was delicious and quick. I followed the recipe but did double the sauce as others suggested because it was good, but also to use the whole can of broth. The fresh rosemary was a strong flavor. Perhaps I will try fresh thyme. Served it with brown rice and roasted cauliflower. Damn Delicious never disappoints.
As always a perfectly delicious recipe. Thank you!
Another delicious meal for my husband and me. Easy, and thankfully I had all the ingredients on hand! Served with roasted broccoli and red onions, and crusty rolls because of course, I made extra sauce. Thank you for great recipes!
Excellent recipe… my girls were shouting out all of the different ways we could have this sauce. Made the whole family happy.
Really enjoyed this! Quick and flavorful. We reduced the lemon a bit and it was actually still a little more lemony that I’d prefer. Even so, it was delicious.
These were DELISH!! I used avacado oil instead of canola, and more butter than the recipe called for. Everybody loved it!
Wow this was good. One question. Why do so many recipes call for unsalted butter? It did say salt to taste, after all.
Yes, definitely double the sauce and squeeze an extra lemon.
With unsalted butter, you can control how much salt goes into your recipe! With salted butter, you run the risk of adding too much or too little salt.
Made this tonight. Mercy…it was good! Double the sauce, it is delicious. This recipe is a keeper.
I love your recipes. I know you recommend a cast iron skillet many times but they are not recommended with my ceramic cooktop on an electric stove. You may have covered this in other posts but can a stainless steel pan be substituted? Thanks.
Michele, I also have a ceramic cooktop. I use a ceramic coated cast iron skillet.
Michele- you actually can use cast iron on a glass/ceramic top stove! You just have to be careful to not slide the pan from burner to burner and be mindful to gently set the pan on the cooktop.
If you use a large pot to make soup or boil water, you can use a cast iron skillet. The weight of the stock pot full of liquid and ingredients probably weighs more than most standard cast iron skillets. I’ve used one on my glass cooktop for years with no issues 🙂
To answer your question though, yes, I’m certain this recipe would work with any type of pan.
Yum- that gravy was sooo good! I doubled the gtavy as suggested in a prior post (glad I did!)
Made couscous on the side (gravy over it, of course!) What I like about this is the short amount of time it takes to fix. Thank you for this recipe!
I, too, doubled the sauce. Very tasty. I served with a sprinkle of cilantro, which added a green, fresh flavor.
Excellent recipe but I definitely agree with others to double the sauce!
This has become a weeknight favorite with rice or pasta and a salad. So easy.
very easy and super delicious! I always double the sauce (2 tbls. flour, 2 cups chix stock and a lot of squeezed lemon!) and serve it with angel hair pasta to get every drop of that sauce!
So yum!
It was easy and delish!!!
Made as directed except 1.5x the sauce, delicious! Served with new potatoes and broccoli, the sauce went over everything, so good!
Delish!! Super easy and very tasty.
So so good!
Cleaning out the freezer and had chicken cutlets. Looked thru a bunch of other recipe sites and remembered D Delicious.
Make it, you won’t be disappointed!
Absolutely amazing. This dish was outstanding, can’t wait to make it over and over again.