Meyer Lemon Chicken with Baby Potatoes and Castelvetrano Olives
After I saw this recipe on the cover of the newest Cooking Light issue and decided to make it immediately. I had never heard of Castelvetrano olives but found them easily at my local grocery store’s olive bar (and they weren’t too expensive either!). This recipe had a few steps to it so it wasn’t as easy as my usual weeknight meals but it was worth the extra work. I loved the tender chicken in the lemony sauce with the baby potatoes and olives. The olives aren’t mandatory but they were my favorite part of the recipe–they added a great texture and flavor to the dish. I served this chicken with the Lemon-Garlic Kale Sauté for a healthy and delicious meal.
How to Make Meyer Lemon Chicken with Baby Potatoes and Castelvetrano Olives
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the OVEN PROOF skillet over medium-high heat. Cut the chicken breasts into thirds then season each side of the chicken with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper, and garlic powder, to taste. Add the chicken to the HOT skillet and cook for 5-6 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown; flip the pieces over then place the skillet into the oven.
Bake the chicken for 12-15 minutes or until cooked through and the juices run clear. Remove the chicken from the skillet and place it on a plate loosely covered with a tin foil tent.
While the chicken is baking in the oven, place the cut potatoes into a pot of boiling water; cook for 5-7 minutes or until fork-tender. Remove from the heat, drain potatoes, and set aside.
To the same skillet, you cooked the chicken in, add another 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet over medium heat; swirl to coat. Add the par-cooked potatoes to the hot skillet and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are golden brown. Remove from the skillet. Add the lemon slices to the skillet and cook for 45-60 seconds per side until golden brown. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
Add the last 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet; swirl to coat. Add the sliced garlic and shallots to the pan; cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add 3/4 cup of chicken broth to the pan then cook, scraping pan to loosen bits, for 3 minutes or until sauce reduces. Return the potatoes and lemon slices to the pan then add the olives; bring to a boil.
Mix the last 1/4 cup of chicken broth with the cornstarch until well combined then add to the skillet; stir until well mixed and the sauce has thickened. Add the lemon juice and butter, stirring until the butter melts. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Return the chicken to the skillet, turning to coat. Serve immediately with parsley sprinkled on top. Enjoy.
Equipment
- Ovenproof Large Skillet or Cast Iron Skillet
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into three pieces each
- Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
- Garlic powder to taste
- 1 ½ tbsp olive oil
- ½ lb small baby potatoes sliced
- 1 Meyer lemon cut into slices
- 2 cloves of garlic thinly sliced
- 1 shallot thinly sliced
- 1 cup of chicken broth divided
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 cup of Castelvetrano olives watch out for pits
- 1 tbsp Meyer lemon juice
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the OVENPROOF skillet over medium-high heat. Cut the chicken breasts into thirds then season each side of the chicken with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper, and garlic powder, to taste. Add the chicken to the HOT skillet and cook for 5-6 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown; flip the pieces over then place the skillet into the oven.
- Bake the chicken for 12-15 minutes or until cooked through and the juices run clear. Remove the chicken from the skillet and place it on a plate loosely covered with a tin foil tent.
- While the chicken is baking in the oven, place the cut potatoes into a pot of boiling water; cook for 5-7 minutes or until fork-tender. Remove from the heat, drain potatoes, and set aside.
- Add the last 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet; swirl to coat. Add the sliced garlic and shallots to the pan; cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add 3/4 cup of chicken broth to the pan then cook, scraping pan to loosen bits, for 3 minutes or until sauce reduces.
- Return the potatoes and lemon slices to the pan then add the olives; bring to a boil.
- Mix the last 1/4 cup of chicken broth with the cornstarch until well combined then add to the skillet; stir until well mixed and the sauce has thickened. Add the lemon juice and butter, stirring until the butter melts. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste.
- Return the chicken to the skillet, turning to coat. Serve immediately with parsley sprinkled on top. Enjoy.
Sounds extremely flavorful , Pam, especially with the addition of Meyer lemons!!!
What a gorgeous dish! I’ve never heard of Castelvetrano olives either but I’m so excited to try it! And you know I can’t ever give up a recipe that involves meyer lemons!
That is such a beautiful dish. Love all the flavors. Although I personally do not like Olives, I am more than willing to give it a try after seeing this lovely dish 🙂
That is one GORGEOUS looking dinner!!
Looks absolutely delicious….Have to try it soon!
It does sound like it’s worth those few extra steps!
Oooooooh, Pam, this looks fantastic!! And I love that you used Castelvetrano olives! I actually had not heard of them before either until just a few months ago when The Obsessive Chef told me about them. I went out and found some a short while later… The would definitely be perfect for this dish!
I adore Meyer Lemons! Yum!
I’ve never heard of those olives either… they’re so bright green! Are the less pickled than regular ones??
Jess,
They didn’t taste pickled at all. We all really loved their flavor.
Pam
This looks amazing, Pam. I bet the flavors were incredible today.
That looks yummy Pam. I can almost smell it. I put a whole chicken in the crockpot yesterday with some salt, pepper, crushed garlic, and smoked paprika and let it cook on high for 5 hours. I removed it and shredded it for tostadas. It was SO good!!! Chicken is comfort food for me!
Hugs,
Kris
This looks delicious, Pam. I’m always looking for new and interesting ways to prepare chicken.
My local Sprouts just got an olive bar, I need to look for those guys. I love olives!! The dish looks delicious and worth the extra effort.
If I could think of a really good way to make this meatless, I would so do it. I LOVE the Meyer lemon/olive combo! Maybe with white beans? Hmm.
I am seriously drooling over this right now! I love chicken, and combined with the meyer lemons and olives? This looks incredible, Pam!
That sounds quite delicious, will certainly try this recipe. Thanks Diane
A bright and colourful and tasty dish for January! 🙂
So pretty and it sounds super delicious! I haven’t found any Meyer lemons yet but I’ve been on the prowl! 🙂
Oh, this sounds delicious!
This looks delicious. It sounds like it would have wonderful flavor with all the yummy ingredients.
I have to make this as I love all the ingredients. I might try it with chicken things too. It looks delicious!
This is very tasty. I really love the add of fresh olives.
This looks really good and right up my alley. Thanks for posting!
Castelvetrano must be Italian or Spanish for “Don’t Drop These On Your Toe” because those are some big olives. I thought they were baby limes at first in the picture. Great post, Pam!
I am a sucker for anything Meyer Lemon. This looks amazing! I don’t think I’ve ever seen olives like that before. I’m going to be looking for them for sure.
Wow! Chicken, lemon, and olives. What’s not to love! Great recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Tried this tonight and it was delicious, great flavor from the lemon. Used white rose potatoes, sliced 1/2 inch thick, then quartered. Didn’t use the olives. Another great recipe from this site.