Spicy, Lemony Chicken Breasts With Croutons and Greens

Name: Spicy, Lemony Chicken Breasts With Croutons and Greens
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 4 slices crusty bread (about 3/4-inch thick); 6 tablespoons olive oil; Kosher salt and black pepper; 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest plus 1/4 cup lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons); 1 garlic clove, grated or finely chopped; 1 teaspoon dried oregano or thyme (or 1 tablespoon fresh); 1/2 to 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes, to taste; 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1 1/2 to 2 pounds); 2 small heads Little Gem lettuce or 1 romaine heart, leaves separated and torn into bite-size pieces

By Dawn Perry

Total Time: 30 minutes
Rating: 4(746)
Notes: Read community notes

A post-marinade is exactly what it sounds like: a flavorful mixture you sink meat or fish into after it cooks. Often used with grilled meats, the technique works great with seared proteins as well, especially boneless, skinless chicken breasts, which don’t have a lot of flavor on their own. These breasts are cooked using a combination sear-steam method that builds flavor and keeps lean breasts juicy. Finish with a tangy-spicy combination of lemon, garlic and red-pepper flakes and you’ll reap all the benefits of a traditional marinade without having to plan ahead. If you have thinner breasts or cutlets, this is a particularly wonderful use for them, since they don’t have a lot of time to pick up color and flavor before they cook through.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

4slices crusty bread (about ¾-inch thick)
6tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper
1teaspoon fresh lemon zest plus ¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)
1garlic clove, grated or finely chopped
1teaspoon dried oregano or thyme (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
½ to 1teaspoon red-pepper flakes, to taste
4boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1½ to 2 pounds)
2small heads Little Gem lettuce or 1 romaine heart, leaves separated and torn into bite-size pieces

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange the bread on a rimmed baking sheet; drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil and season with ¼ teaspoon salt. Bake, turning once, until lightly golden and toasted, 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 2
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons oil with the lemon zest and juice, garlic, oregano, red-pepper flakes and ½ teaspoon salt; set aside.
Step 3
In a 10-inch skillet, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high. Season chicken with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and add to skillet. Cook, turning once, until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Add ¼ cup water to skillet, cover, and continue to cook until chicken is cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Uncover, remove from heat and add lemon juice mixture; turn chicken to coat.
Step 4
Tear each piece of bread in half and toss with lettuce; divide among plates. Top with chicken, and drizzle with the lemony pan juices.

Ratings

4 out of 5

746 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

Amy4 years ago

I used a buttery olive oil from Crete and a baguette for the croutons, plus a home blended red pepper mix (mostly ghost peppers, habaneros to tone it down). This is a deliciously bright keeper for a cold and windy day. The boneless breasts I get are also free range and today’s are fairly large. Lettuce was red Romaine.

Tom, SFBA4 years ago

It all depends on the salt used. Fine table salt is much heavier per unit volume than kosher salt, which is preferred by most food professionals. Let’s look at the specifics for one frequently recommended brand. Sodium in 1/4 tsp of Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt: 280 mg. 5 such measures are called for here, which equals 1400 mg. That is for 4 servings, so 350 mg per serving. Not so bad for a healthy person. Important to taste as you go when cooking, tho. Weight measure of salt would be nice.

Gail4 years ago

I made the recipe as shown except I skipped the croutons and the garlic. Then, after coating the chicken with the sauce, I removed the chicken and stirred in some cooked pasta and a little chopped parsley. You could serve the pasta as a side, or under the chicken. The meal was exquisite!

Perignon4 years ago

I used French bread I baked 36 hours earlier, Little Gems were not to be had so I used Romaine hearts, and I subbed a couple of crushed, tiny Thai bird chiles for the red pepper flakes (seeds removed). I served it with a baked hash brown casserole and got the best compliment of all: Zero leftovers!

KM2 years ago

I was desperately looking for a good, quick method for elevating chicken breasts that is very adaptable...I like the simplicity and ease of baked chicken, and my husband does not! I used 2 garlic cloves and would use a bit less water next time to yield a thicker sauce. Served it with brussels, broccoli, and cubed steamed potato, but I could taste how good the lemon mixture will be on little gems!

rk4 years ago

Little bland, would try adding anchovies as others stated, use thinner cut of breast ( or cut in 1/2) and marinate in advance. And it would then not be this recipe.

Rachel1 year ago

Cooked per the recipe. Sauce was plenty flavorful. Next time I might reduce the sauce more then whisk in some EVOO, and toss with greens before plating. Otherwise very good and easy.

Mary Ann1 year ago

Had fresh asparagus so I added spears to pan and cooked them with covered chicken last 4 minutes of cooking. Added lemon juice mixture to chicken/asparagus to coat before serving. Asparagus was a nice addition to the salad.

JLJ1 year ago

Super flexible recipe and very forgiving. Will definitely make the week night rotation.

leah1 year ago

Followed the ingredients list but added a bit of soy sauce for some umami. I seared the chicken, set it aside, cooked the garlic in the pan at low temperature and slowly. Added the lemon and soy sauce. Reduced that a bit, added the zest and fresh oregano then added back the chicken to absorb the flavors another 5 minutes. Pretty good week night meal

Amy Bernstein2 years ago

I added more red pepper flakes because we like things spicy. Otherwise, I wouldn't change a thing.

CScott2 years ago

I cook for two so we had leftovers. The next night I diced up the chicken, ground the toasted bread into breadcrumbs, made a little more of the sauce, and boiled pasta. I tossed the rewarmed chicken and sauce with the cooked pasta, and topped each serving with the breadcrumbs. Delicious!

AC2 years ago

Overcooked at these times. Let sit in marinade 25 mins.

Terry2 years ago

This was quick, easy and delish!! My favorite trifecta after a busy day at work. I didn't change a thing. That being said, personally, I would cut down just a tiny bit on the red pepper next time.

Katrina2 years ago

We use Misfit Foods for our primary groceries and there are two of us. We used a left over half a sourdough "take and bake" loaf, two chicken breasts, and Caesar Salad bag (sans the dressing), and added more grated Parmesan. It was lovely! A keeper for sure!

Mike2 years ago

This was a great, easy recipe for a quick dinner. Splitting the thick breasts into thinner filets sped up cooking time and enhanced flavor absorption (a little drier meat, though). Upped the garlic and added a touch of chicken broth instead of water for flavor boost. Had some mixed mushrooms on hand that I sautéed first and set aside. They were a nice flavor and texture boost over the greens with some fresh avocado slices and the pan sauce. Great chicken flavor.

John in Chicago2 years ago

We made this tonight and thought it was fantastic. I couldn't disagree more with comments about too little flavor. The spicy lemon sauce is very flavorful and brings the dish together. The one minor change we made was slicing the chicken breasts in half before cooking them which allowed for absorbing more sauce.

Margaret2 years ago

Forget this as a salad topping- the chicken and lemony sauce were great over spaghetti!

Liz2 years ago

Good but not a home run. It's way too salty. I would skip the salt in the marinade because it doesn't get spread out evenly through the dish so you get really intensely salty bites. Then the chicken breast was still too dry for me. I'm not a white meat fan but I was hoping that this cooking method would change that. I might try it again but not poach as long. Or maybe skip the sear? Cantonese poached chicken is so wonderful. Must learn how to do that! I sliced the chicken so it's easier to eat.

KM2 years ago

Really nice flavor…doubled the garlic. Great for weeknight, though I did not pair with greens, paired with warm salad of Brussels, broccoli & cubed potato…we needed flavourful, easy, & light….

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