Lemon Chicken

Pollo Al Ajillo Con Limón

       

          This is a Spanish recipe, and the title translates to chicken with garlic and lemon. It is a lemon-marinated, broiled chicken, originally from the nuns of the Santa Clara Monastery in Burgos, Spain. The recipe is simple, but extremely good.  

You start by cutting the chicken into individual pieces. The recipe calls for a whole chicken, but I used pre-cut chicken thighs. Then, you combine the garlic, parsley, thyme, and salt in a bowl and mash it to a paste. After they're combined together, add the lemon juice, oil, and white wine to the mix. The directions say to marinate the chicken for two hours, but I only marinated for one because of time constraints. After the chicken was done marinating, I sprinkled it with salt and pepper and put it in the oven at 400ᐤF for 20 minutes. I served the chicken with asparagus lighting drizzled in grape seed oil and salt.

Here's the recipe so you can make it yourself!

                           A 3-3 1/2 pound chicken                          2 tablespoons lemon juice

                           5 cloves garlic, peeled                              1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

                           1 tablespoon minced parsley                    1/4 cup dry white wine

                           1/4 tablespoon dried thyme                      freshly ground pepper

                           salt

Cut the chicken into small serving pieces, detaching the wings and legs and dividing the breast in 4 pieces and each thigh in half crosswise.

In a mortar, mash to a paste the garlic, parsley, thyme, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir in the lemon juice, oil, and wine. Arrange the chicken pieces in a shallow ovenproof casserole dish. Pour the mixture over the chicken and marinate for 2 hours. 

Heat the broiler. Remove the chicken from the marinade (leave the marinade in the casserole) and place skin side down on a broiler tray about 3 inches from the flame. Broil 5 minutes, or until browned. Turn, baste with the marinade, and broil 5 minutes more.

Return the chicken to the marinade in the casserole. Season with salt and pepper and place in a 400ᐤF oven for 15 minutes, basting occasionally.

close up of the finished garlic-lemon chicken

How does this recipe remind you of your heritage?

Casas, Penelope. New York: Knopf Doubleday Group, 1996. Print.