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Try this lemon basil chicken if you want a quick and tasty dinner.
Quick And Easy Lemon Basil Chicken
Looking for a dinner that’s on the table quickly and tastes just great? Then this chicken in a delicious lemon basil cream sauce may be just what you’re looking for.
Chicken breasts are frequently on sale so this dinner is pretty economical. And who doesn’t want to save money these days?
I usually stock up when they’re on sale then vacuum seal chicken breast in portions I use. For me that’s doing singles since I’m a widow with an empty nest.
Have You Tried Lemon Basil?
I never did until I grew it this summer.
Truth is, I’m not that much of a basil fan–at least the most popular variety of the herb. I took a chance and ordered some more unusual seed pods for my hydroponic setup and lemon basil was one of the varieties I chose because I wanted to grow something that was different.
The first time I pruned it and smelled it I was in heaven. I just had to use this herb in something and my first thought was chicken. As lemon flavor is a great companion for chicken, how could I go wrong. It’s delicate flavor complements chicken so well.
I’m not entirely sure if you can find lemon basil in your market, so if you can’t then substitute the same amount of regular basil that’s called for in the recipe but add 1-2 teaspoons of lemon zest. It won’t be the same but very close.
Wine Makes It Mellow
The funny thing is, I rarely drink wine but I love cooking with it.
I’m a big fan of white vermouth for cooking. Maybe just a personal preference but I picked that because I always saw Julia Child use it. White wine works well too. In fact Julia Child often said either vermouth or white wine and who was more of an expert but her?
The Recipe
Lemon Basil Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1 tsp finely minced garlic
- 1/2 cup rich chicken stock
- 1/4 cup white wine or vermouth
- 2 tbs chopped lemon basil
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Pound chicken breast between 2 sheets of plastic wrap with a meat mallet to 1/4-inch/6 mm thickness. Mix salt and pepper and sprinkle over the chicken.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the breasts on both sides. Remove from pan and keep warm.
- Deglaze pan with the wine, scraping up all the brown bits. Add the stock, garlic and lemon basil. Let the liquid reduce by about half.
- Add the cream and heat through. Add the chicken back to the pan to heat through.
