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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Damn delicious!! Almost like a gravy. Very quick and simple. All 4 kids (9,7,6,4) and husband loved it. Is great with everything. Broccoli. baked or mashed potatoes. pasta.
Yet another winner!!! Thank you so much for sharing your culinary gifts with those of us who just “chef on the side”! My boys loved it and my husband who normally is not eager to share spoke up and said, “this is delicious.” Everyone cleared their plates! I doubled the sauce (because I doubled the amount of chicken since my boys eat like they won’t ever get another meal!) and used chicken thighs because that’s what I had on hand. I paired it with angel hair pasta and crispy broccoli (had to carbo load for all the sports tomorrow!) I have already shared this with at least 4 people…so that should say something about this recipe! Again…thank you for sharing! This family is grateful (and full to boot!)
I meant to leave 5 stars!!!
I am generally not a huge chicken fan but this recipe was really delicious and made boneless, skinless breasts not dull. The sauce was also great on my broccoli, which again, ain’t one of my favorite veggies.
This is ridiculously good. I did it with larger chicken breasts and just finished them off in the oven while the sauce cooked so they didn’t get too brown on the outside. I will make this again and again!
I have actually made this multiple times, without modification and always with good results. Tonight I followed another review’s comments and used half white wine and half chicken broth. I don’t know if I tasted a different but it was good. Another reviewer suggested serving with Angel Hair Pasta (SCORE!) so I did that as well, but I doubled the amount of sauce which was a good call. The other modification I made tonight was using fresh basil instead of rosemary because I was too lazy to go out in the rain to clip some rosemary :-). It was good. The basil provided just a hint of flavor along side the lemon.
Question for Chungah: my basil-flour mixture never browned. Is that because basil doesn’t brown like rosemary?
Easy to make and so yummy and tasty!! The lemon rounds out the flavors. I will definitely make this again!! Thank you for this recipe. 🙂
Yet again, we have another recipe from Damn Delicious on our rotation! So delicious and quick. Served just as you suggested with a light salad and some crusty bread, and dipping that bread in the delicious sauce was just.. well damn delicious. Thanks for another favorite!
This was fantastic. I doubled the sauce and served the whole thing over angel hair pasta with some chopped spinach mixed in. The fresh lemon flavor was so nice and the sauce was light and bright. Thank you so much for creating this.
This was just fantastic! Followed recipe exactly as written and it made a delicious Valentine’s day dinner.
This was a new hit in our house tonight! Even my picky eater 10 year old was scraping up every bit of the sauce from his plate. Delicious! Thank you!!
Loved this recipe! Am dairy-free and gluten-free so used vegan ghee for the butter and tapioca flour for the flour and it was a hit with the whole fam!
I made a gluten free version of this recipe and my husband loved it. It’s so easy yet very delicious! Thanks for sharing! I always enjoy your recipes.
Just made this tonight and doubled the sauce, because you can never have too much sauce! It’s so good. Serving with brown rice and veg for lunches this week. How decadent, right? This is on par with the teriyaki meatball recipe.
Made these for dinner and they were wonderful! So easy and delicious!!
I made this and was worried because I used gluten free flour but it turned out great. my husband is not a fan of chicken and he said “it’s ok” right as he was taking a second serving. LOL. I will be making this dish again!
Delish!!! Such an amazing, quick weeknight option that everyone loved. I made this with garlic sticks (which ended up being dipped in the sauce because it’s so awesome!) and a romaine salad with cucumbers and Italian dressing. Definitely will be a new addition to the weeknight recipe rotation!
Girl, I’m currently making this right now. My kitchen smells SO good. I was using a recipe similar to this. But THIS honey tops that other recipe. I’m using the rest of the gravy on some mashed potatoes. So excited to take my first bite! You’re the reason I know how to whip in the kitchen!!
This was amazing. Emphasis on using freshly squeezed lemon juice and I would double the lemon sauce next time because YUM!
Finally found the perfect recipe for this! Thank you so much! My family loved it!!
Sooo good! I meal prepped this for my lunch today at work and I wish I had more. I made with green beans, next time, I will add mashed potatoes.