Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Boring Chicken No More

We have noticed in our household, lately, that our kids appear to be passing the picky-phase.  Or maybe they are growing and just really hungry.  We delight in watching them eat everything from asparagus to brussel sprouts to kale chips.  Our youngest has even become pretty adventurous at the Indian restaurant.  The two things that I can think of that our kids absolutely refuse to eat, strangely, are mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese. 
This chicken dish is a current family favorite.  I grew up with a variation of this that came from some sort of magazine about time-saving skillet meals.  It is actually one of the few things from my childhood that I make somewhat frequently.  I don't use a recipe anymore, but I thought it was worth writing down and passing on because it is such a family favorite.  No need for chicken nuggets in our house.  One time I made this, my 5-year-old probably ate half of the chicken all by himself.  That evening my husband was late getting home and he didn't get any chicken.  We were hungry.  Oops.
Lemon Caper Chicken
1-1/2 lb boneless chicken breasts cut into 1" pieces
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp poultry seasoning
4 tbls butter
1 cup chicken broth
1-2 tsp minced garlic (depending on preference)
Juice of one lemon
3 Tbls capers
In a paper bag, place the flour, salt and poultry seasoning, shake to combine.  Add chicken pieces, close bag and shake to coat evenly.
In a large skillet, melt half of the butter on medium heat.  When butter is melted and slightly bubbling, add chicken.  Cook about 5 minutes per side until chicken is cooked through and browned.  Add the second half of the flour when chicken is flipped over so that both sides get a little bit crispy.  It's okay to supplement with a little olive oil if you need more liquid in the pan.
When the chicken is cooked through, pour broth over, maintaining medium heat.  While broth thickens and bubbles, add garlic and lemon juice, simmering for a couple of minutes until sauce is a bit translucent.  Add capers and voila! it's ready to go.

It's a pretty versatile chicken dish with a bit of a mediteranean taste to it - it would be great paired with anything Greek.  I usually serve this over plain rice with some kind of roasted vegetable.  We are quite the rice-lovers in our house and when I recently reorganized my pantry with a couple new shipments of tupperware, I discovered we keep about seven kinds of rice on hand at any time.  Tonight we used short-grain-brown, one of my favorites.  I also made roasted asparagus to go with it.  It was a dinner that made my pregnant-tummy happy.

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