Lemon Chicken Breast with Butter & Herb Rice

One of the "100 Rules of Etiquette" (which I will find and get permission to feature here) is to have a signature dish that you have perfected and serve when you have guests for dinner. This is mine.

Follow the Tips for Easier Cooking on this one, too, Belles! So get out your aprons, preheat your ovens to 425 degrees F, and let's get cooking!

Recipe yields 2-4 chicken breasts (1-3 servings) 

Tools you will need for tonight's meal:

Pot w/fitting lid for the rice

Stirring spoon (I use wooden, if you haven't caught on to that trend yet)

Frying Pan (for chicken breasts

Tongs (easier to flip chicken and transfer chicken)

Brownie pan (large enough to hold all the chicken breasts, 2 breasts- 9x9, more 8x13 or multiple pans)

Cutting board

Boning Knife

Meat Tenderizer (I use my fist hehe)

Knife to chop Asparagus (yes we're using fresh tonight, even if it's from the steam in bag, take it out)

Microwave Safe Bowl for the Asparagus

Butter knife

Plate for flour

Oven Mitts

Ingredients for the Chicken:

Enough Chicken Breasts for each diner (usually 1 a guest)

Salt (I use Sea Salt, another trend, enough to lightly cover each breast)

Flour 1-2 c. (start with 1 and add as you go)

EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil, enough to coat the entire bottom of the frying pan)

Ingredients for Sauce (for 1-3 Breasts, 150% of each- double for more):

Capers (as few or many as you want)

1/4 c. White Wine (I suggest Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, or Muscat; whichever you prefer to drink as you will not need much and it will be a nice drink to go with the meal)

1/4 c. Lemon Juice

2 tbsp Unsalted Butter

Ingredients for the Rice (2-4 Servings):

2 c. low sodium Beef Broth

1 c. White Rice

2 tsp Dried Minced Onion

1/2 tsp Thyme

1/2 tsp Marjoram (I generally don't put this one in, but definitely try it first)

1/2 tsp Oregano

1/4 tsp Rosemary

2 tbsp Unsalted Butter

Ingredients for Asparagus:

Asparagus

3 tbsp Unsalted Butter

1/8 c. of the Wine from the sauce

A spritz of the Lemon Juice

Now that we're all settled, let's begin! Hopefully you haven't been idly heating your oven to 425 all this time, but if you have, well... that's not going to effect much. If not, this is when you'd start the preheat.

As with all my recipes, read in it's entirety so that you can time manage and aren't surprised by all of my random ending wrap-up to-dos! 

 

The rice takes about 25 minutes to make so generally I prep it without turning on the burner, start the chicken, then time manage to get everything done without too much of a fuss.

To prep the rice, mix all the ingredients into the saucepan and cover for now. Leave it and forget about it until I tell you to remember it again.

If you ever took Home Ec., you should remember the golden rule of cutting boards, cut the veggies before the meat as to not contaminate them. So chop the asparagus into 1-1 1/2' sticks and place them in the bowl and set it out of the way.

Now, fill a plate with 1c. flour and have your salt at the ready.  Take your (defrosted) chicken breasts one at a time onto the cutting board to trim off the fat.  After that is finished, either with a meat tenderizer or your fist, pound the chicken until it is as close to a 1/4-1/2" thick as humanly possible all over (this helps ensure it will cook all the way through). While we're trimming the fat and prepping the chicken, heat the olive oil in the frying pan (coat the bottom of the pan entirely) at this point we aren't cooking so let's keep it at medium (5) until all the chicken is ready and on the pan. After trimming the fat and pounding it to size, lightly cover the breast in salt then place in flour. Cover entirely, pack around so everything is covered then give a light shake so the excess flour falls back to the plate. Place the chicken into the pan and repeat (When half the chicken are done, turn the rice burner to high or just below, remove the lid, and bring to a boil) until all the breasts are in the pan then turn up the heat to medium-high (7)

Sorry for that multitask there. It's kind of necessary. If it begins to boil before you are done with the chicken, simply reduce the heat to medium- low (3) and cover. Stir on occasion, if you feel the broth is absorbing too quickly and the rice isn't getting tender enough, add up to a 1/4th cup hot tap water or 1/8 c. milk and stir in. The rice should simmer for 15-20 minutes before reaching prime tenderness.

Obviously you won't be focusing on the rice this whole time, you'll be watching the chicken as well. frequently check the chicken for brownness. If half the bottom is brown, then turn the chicken but don't flip and leave it for a few minutes then check again.  When it looks golden brown and fairly even all over, flip the breast (Obviously do this for all of them.)  When the other side is ALMOST done browning, add the wine, lemon juice, and capers. When it is fully done, reduce the heat to medium (5) and flip the the other side for about 2 minutes to allow it to absorb the juices. After this, transfer the breasts to the brownie pan (or casserole or whatever you're using) and put it in the oven for 5 minutes, this ensures doneness.) Add the butter to the frying pan and turn up the heat to med-high (8) to thicken the sauce, stir once or twice to mix in the melting butter.

When the the chicken is in the oven add wine and rice and wine to the bowl of asparagus and add the butter in thin slices then microwave for 3 minutes.

Never forget about the rice, stir occasionally and check for doneness by fluffing with a fork and taste testing for flavor and tenderness, you may season to taste at this point or add more butter or even a bit of cream to taste... at this point it is difficult to make the rice more tender without drowning it.  If timed correctly, the rice should be done before the chicken and can sit covered on the burner on low as with the coconut rice.  Same with the Asparagus, it will sit well in the microwave.

When the timer goes off for the chicken, remove promptly and place into the frying pan and reduce the heat back down to medium. Let the breasts absorb the juices on each side for 30 seconds to 1 minute before serving onto the plate. 

When serving onto the plate spoon a little of the sauce over the chicken making sure capers are included to add garnish, then add the rice and asparagus.  Do not forget a steak knife for each guest as well as the wine you cooked with!  (It is good practice to get two bottles, one bottle of cheap and one bottle of good, or one bottle of small and one large bottle; so that there is enough wine to go around.  Have extra beverages for non-wine drinkers, lemonade compliments this dish well.)

Hope you enjoy your meal!

-xoxo The Sorority Housewife