Chicken and succotash make a healthy weeknight meal
Whenever I cook boneless, skinless chicken breast a friend of
mine is shocked that it can come out moist and flavorful. I guess
his experience with the meat has always been a dried out piece that
is not very tasty. But I’ve found a lot of recipes that work fine
with boneless, skinless chicken breast as well as a lot of recipes
that call for thighs or other dark meat where I’ve substituted with
chicken breast.
Chicken and succotash make a healthy weeknight meal
Whenever I cook boneless, skinless chicken breast a friend of mine is shocked that it can come out moist and flavorful. I guess his experience with the meat has always been a dried out piece that is not very tasty. But I’ve found a lot of recipes that work fine with boneless, skinless chicken breast as well as a lot of recipes that call for thighs or other dark meat where I’ve substituted with chicken breast.
The key I’ve found is to properly season the chicken as a little bit of salt seems to help the meat draw in some of the liquid from the cooking process. This is especially true of chicken that is cooked in a sauce, such as a recipe I’ve made before that uses cider vinegar and chicken broth, as well as apples and onions (see the recipe online at www.pinnaclenews.com/life.) The mixture works almost the same as a brine, drawing in the liquid and flavor so that the meat stays tender. The same technique is what keeps the lemon chicken recipe below tasty, and I swapped the skinless chicken breast for boneless, skinless, scaling back just slightly on the cooking time.
The other key is not to overcook the chicken because that can make it come out dry. Whenever I cook on an indoor or outdoor grill, I have a hard time estimating how long the chicken should cook. I had this issue recently when I cooked the pepper-jack chicken recipe on an indoor grill. It is a simple meal to prepare and the hardest part of it was just cutting the thin chicken breast we had at home to fill it with cheese and arugula. The cooking time on the recipe referred to the time for a charcoal grill or a grill pan. But I was using one of those indoor grills with two heated plates so both sides of the chicken cook at the same time. With the filling in the middle, I wasn’t sure how long the cook time would be. The result was chicken that was a little on the dry side, but still flavorful.
When I make the recipe again, I will be sure to go back to my tried and true method for checking to see if the chicken is cooked – I take the thickest chicken breast and cut through the thickest part of it to see if the inside looks cooked. If it’s still a little pink, I cook it longer. If not, I pull it off the heat. And no one in my family minds getting a serving that already has a slice through it.
Pepper-jack chicken with succotash
Recipe courtesy of Food Network Magazine
4 ounces pepper-jack cheese, shredded
2 c. baby arugula, roughly chopped
2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts (12 ounces each)
1 tbsp. olive oil, plus more for brushing
Kosher salt
1 1/2 to 2 tbsp. Cajun spice blend
Vegetable oil, for the grill
1 c. frozen lima beans, thawed
1 medium yellow summer squash, diced
2 c. corn kernels
1 c. grape tomatoes, halved
Juice of 1 lime
Combine the cheese and arugula in a bowl. Cut a deep 2-inch-wide pocket in the thickest part of each chicken breast with a paring knife. Stuff with the arugula mixture. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and the Cajun spice blend.
Preheat a grill to high and brush the grates with vegetable oil. Grill the chicken until blackened and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 155 degrees F, 8 to 10 minutes per side. Transfer to a cutting board.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over high heat. Add the lima beans, squash and corn, season with salt and cook until the squash is just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook 2 more minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lime juice. Slice the chicken and serve with the succotash.
Per serving: Calories 462; Fat 16 g (Saturated 6 g); Cholesterol 120 mg; Sodium 1,018 mg; Carbohydrate 30 g; Fiber 7 g; Protein 48 g
Lemon chicken breasts
Recipe courtesy of Barefoot Contessa
1/4 c. good olive oil
3 tbsp. minced garlic (9 cloves)
1/3 c. dry white wine
1 tbsp. grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. minced fresh thyme leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 boneless chicken breasts, skin on (6 to 8 ounces each)
1 lemon
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Warm the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, add the garlic, and cook for just 1 minute but don’t allow the garlic to turn brown. Off the heat, add the white wine, lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, thyme, and 1 teaspoon salt and pour into a 9- by 12-inch baking dish.
Pat the chicken breasts dry and place them skin side up over the sauce. Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle them liberally with salt and pepper. Cut the lemon in 8 wedges and tuck it among the pieces of chicken.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken breasts, until the chicken is done and the skin is lightly browned. If the chicken isn’t browned enough, put it under the broiler for 2 minutes. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and serve hot with the pan juices.
