Recipe Box, Lemon Teriyaki Chicken
Are you ever disappointed when you make a recipe that should be insanely good, and it turns out just so-so?
I recently made a Lemon Teriyaki Chicken, that was going to be so WOW easy, and so IRRESISTIBLY delicious, that it was bound to make me a star ⭐️
Except that it didn’t…
It is WOW easy,
but instead of IRRESISTIBLY delicious, it was just so-so…the sauce was quite tasty but the chicken was dry
And then I found this from Bon Appetit,
The 4 Biggest Mistakes to Avoid When Cooking Chicken Breasts
- Don’t buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts 😳 Okay, I do sorta, kinda, know this, and often buy chicken thighs, but I did buy the no-no boneless skinless breasts for this recipe
- Don’t skip the marinade or brine 👍 I did marinate this chicken for 3 days
- Don’t ever poach! 😵 I try to cook my chicken in the crockpot in broth, beer or salsa to for use in recipes, but in a pinch, I do poach. The best way to poach is to bring chicken in broth or seasoned water to a boil, cover, and turn off the heat. Leave the pot on the burner for 30 minutes or so. The chicken gently cooks as the water cools down and the result is quite tender. If you’re using it for a casserole, don’t worry if it’s not quite cooked all the way through, it won’t matter because it will finish cooking when you bake the dish.
- Don’t just eat the dry chicken, save it with a sauce 🍲
Or slap it in a bun and slather it with mustard and mayo 😅
Lemon Teriyaki Chicken
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/3 cup orange or pineapple juice
- 3 lemons juiced
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 1/2 T cornstarch
- 2 large boneless chicken breasts cut into tenders or 6 chicken thighs
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Combine honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, juices, vinegar and garlic powder in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat and stir in cornstarch. Stir until incorporated.
- Place chicken in a sprayed shallow baking dish. Season with salt and pepper and pour sauce over chicken.
- Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or up to 3 days. Remove cover and bake at 375 degrees for 30-45 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
- Serve chicken over rice or pasta, or slice and serve in a sandwich bun. Makes 2-3 servings
Next time, I’m going to use chicken thighs and try this in the crock pot
In reality, I made this chicken when HH and I both had bad colds and no appetite. We weren’t in the mood for it that night, and ended up not baking it for several days. I think I got so tired of him asking, “When are we having that lemon chicken,” I think I simply lost my taste for it!
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Hi Jenna, I wonder if your 3 days of marinating contributed to your chicken being dry with the acid from the citrus and vinegar? I’m almost always disappointed when I use boneless, skinless breast and I hate dealing with raw chicken to boot. Thank goodness for rotisserie chicken from the grocery store! 🙂
I think you are right Mary! Thank you!
I go between buying boneless, skinless chicken breast to buying bone-in with the skin. Sometimes I get lucky but mostly not. When I cook with the bone-in it is always better but then I feel guilty because I think some of that fat stays on my chicken! What’s a girl to do. It helps knowing a pro like you has to deal with it too. Love your solution here, that sammie looks delicious!
Happy weekend……….
Thanks Emily, I really appreciate your comment. I think Mary was right, the chicken sat in the sauce too long and became tough. I love to marinate beef and pork for several days for great flavor, and didn’t consider this wouldn’t work for chicken…I just hate it when things don’t cooperate! Happy weekend to you to! >
I don’t eat dark meat so I always buy the breasts. Haven’t had a problem with it being dry. If I am making plain baked chicken I use bone in breasts.
Have a good weekend. Here in NY we are expecting snow!😟
Thanks Kathleen, I am going back to bone-in! I can’t believe there is snow in your forecast, Mother Nature is playing a lot of tricks this Spring! >
I just read an article in Cook’s Illustrated about using bone-in chicken v. boneless/skinless. I do occasionally buy the boneless, but they don’t always turn out dry. It may be just the chicken itself, because it sounds like you cooked it low and slow. Some experts say chicken breasts should cook fast so they don’t dry out, but then you have the issue of it maybe not getting done in the middle.
I would have thought it would be fantastic! It really does sound good. Add butter. Butter makes everything better! Ha!
Lots of big flavor in that marinade, glad you’re gonna try it again:@)
Jenna, I hate it when a recipe is a disappointment! Boneless and skinless is so much easier and healthier, but it doesn’t have the flavor! Oh, well we have to sacrifice something! Happy weekend!