Cooking against the clock.
Every day I have to battle public transport to make my way to work, then back home. Last week I somehow caught the wrong train… not once, but twice! You see I have to change trains at Central Station. As my train pulls up at the station, I will quickly jump onto the other train on the other side of the platform. Yes, there are signs telling you the stations that the train will stop. Yes, I didn’t check them… at least I didn’t the first time I caught the wrong train and ended up on route to the airport which is nowhere near home. While traveling on the train, my thoughts on what to make for dinner… had to be something fairly quick to make. So I chose to make this Chicken with Lemon Garlic Cream Sauce recipe.
So why the big rush to get home? A couple of reasons.
Firstly, our current workawayer does 3 hours of tutoring online from 8.00pm. Means we have to finish dinner by 7.45pm at the latest otherwise she’ll starve. Secondly, my hubby picks me up from the train station to take me home which he does diligently every night. Bless him!
So by the time I got home, it was 30 minutes later than planned. What a disaster! This has meant I was behind the eight ball with the clock ticking away furiously. I had to turn around dinner in lightening speed. My planned meal of chicken schnitzels wasn’t feasible. Crumbing the chicken was going to take too long. I had to improvise and get something on the table in next to no time. So that’s when this recipe was born.
You must already have an idea that I have a love affair with garlic. It’s the most versatile aromatic around. I use it in almost every dinner I make. Plus you can’t argue that garlic has a lot of health benefits, particularly in the colder months as it has been getting here in Sydney. A little lemon and cream turns this one pan dish into something quite spectacular. Don’t worry, the lemon in the cream sauce isn’t at all overpowering – it’s just the right amount.
So disaster was averted. Dinner was on the table at a reasonable time despite starting to cook it later than I had planned. The entire family raved when they tucked into the meal. They wanted more than I had and the pan was almost licked clean!
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Chicken with Lemon Garlic Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless skinless
- 1/4 cup plain flour, plus 1 tablespoon extra
- salt and pepper
- 1-3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon garlic, crushed
- 1/2 medium white onion, finely diced
- 1/4 cup thickened cream
- 2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
- 1 lemon, sliced
Instructions
- On a plate, add flour. With each chicken breast, slice it in half (or thirds) to make thinner pieces. Sprinkle first with a pinch of salt and pepper on one side of the chicken. Then coat chicken with flour on both sides.
- In a small bowl, combine the chicken broth, lemon juice, garlic and 1 tablespoon of flour. Whisk together.
- Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 175ºC.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large oven-safe non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken in batches to prevent overcrowding. Allow to brown on both sides for 2-3 minutes per side. Don’t worry if the chicken isn’t cooked completely, it will be finished in the oven. Add a little more oil into the frying pan if you cook the chicken in more than one batch. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
- Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion to the frying pan and saute for 1 minute. Add the chicken stock mixture. Using a whisk, scrape the bottom of the pan so all the brown bits are loosened. Increase the heat up to medium-high and let sauce come to a simmer. Continue to cook the sauce for 5-8 minutes until thickened and slightly reduced. Remove from the heat, add the heavy cream, whisk to combine. Place the frying pan back on the heat for just 30 seconds. Don't allow the sauce to boil.
- Remove from heat, add the chicken back into the pan and drizzle the sauce over the chicken so it's fully covered.
- Place the frying pan in the oven for 5-8 minutes or until the chicken is completely cooked through.
- Top with chopped parsley and serve warm with additional lemon slices.