If you’ve been reading teeny tiny foodie over these last many months, then you might know that I don’t eat chicken but I do cook it for Eliana. Let me tell you that it is really weird to put a dish out into the world and have absolutely no clue about how it tastes. Also, I constantly revise the recipes that I prepare based on how they taste after each preparation in order to improve the dish, so to not taste the chicken and make revisions is pretty challenging for me. To determine if the baked chicken that I don’t eat tastes good or not, I rely on two things: first, the reactions of both Eliana and Matt. And second, how it smells after it has been cooked.
Usually, I think it smells pretty good.
You know, for something I don’t eat.
So, after some trial, error and revisions, here is my revised recipe “formula” for baked chicken breasts and some of the combinations that have gone over well with the family. Enjoy!
- Spiced Baked Chicken Breast
- -4-6 chicken breasts, rinsed and patted dry
- -1-2 teaspoons sea salt
- -1-2 teaspoons pepper
- -1 tablespoon garlic powder
- -½ tablespoon of a spice with some heat such as chili powder, cayenne pepper or paprika
- -⅛ cup fresh herbs, finely chopped (when available)
- -Olive oil, to taste
- -2-3 tablespoons of citrus juice (typically 1-2 lemons or limes or 1 orange)
Heat the oven to 365°. Pour a little bit of olive oil into a baking dish and put the chicken in, one breast at a time, and rub it around in the olive oil. (I use a fork to do this). Do this on both sides.
Squeeze the citrus juice onto the chicken, then sprinkle on a generous portion of the spice mixture. Flip over the chicken breasts and squeeze more citrus juice over all the chicken. Again, sprinkle a generous portion of the spice mixture over all of the chicken.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Variations:
- -Substitute turkey breasts for the chicken breasts and cook for 20-30 minutes
- -Substitute chicken cutlets for the chicken breasts and cook for 15-20 minutes
- -Add 1-2 teaspoons of a “flavor twist” such as cinnamon or ginger
The carnivores in our family have particularly loved when I add the following combinations with the standard spice mixture of garlic powder, salt and pepper:
- -Lemon juice with rosemary and paprika
- -Lime juice with parsley and chili powder
- -Lime juice with cayenne (Matt liked this one but commented on how it “had kick.” Eliana likes a bit of spice, but this batch was too spicy for her. Whoops! See photos below.)
- -Lime juice with chives and chili powder
- -Lemon juice with sage and paprika
- Make Orange Ginger Chicken and use orange juice, cayenne pepper and the standard spice mixture topped with bits of fresh ginger and orange slices
Happy Cooking!