This is my take on a classic recipe: breaded chicken, lightly fried and then baked with a tangy lemon sauce.

Yield: 2-3 large pieces of chicken breast, cut into smaller pieces

Total Time:

** minutes to prepare

** minutes to cook

Ingredients

Chicken

• 2-3 large pieces of chicken breast, uncooked up to 3 pounds
• Oil for frying

Breading

• ¹⁄₂ cup flour for breading
• 1-2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• ¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
• ¹⁄₂ cup flour for dredging

Lemon Mixture

• ¹⁄₄ cup lemon juice, concentrate
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon thyme
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon dried garlic, granulated
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon onion powder
• ¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt

Cooking Instructions

Preparations

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Prepare for breading

1. Break 2 eggs into a bowl and beat with a whisk or fork

2. Put ¹⁄₂ cup of flour for dredging onto a small plate or wide bowl

3. Prepare the breading mixture in a separate wide bowl by mixing together ¹⁄₂ cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of paprika, ¹⁄₂ teaspoon of salt and ¹⁄₂ teaspoon of baking powder

4. Sift together thoroughly

Cut and bread chicken

1. Cut several large uncooked chicken breasts into 4 pieces each

2. Dredge a piece of chicken breast through the plate of plain flour, coating entirely

3. Dip the same piece chicken into the egg mixture, coating completely

   1. Allow any excess egg to drip off of the chicken

4. Gently dredge the chicken in the bowl with the breading mixture

5. Once the chicken is completely covered, remove it and place it on another small plate

6. Repeat this with each piece of chicken

7. Once all of the chicken is breaded, let it rest for about 10 minutes before frying

   1. Chicken can be dipped into the breading mixture a second time for a slightly thicker breading

Prepare the lemon mixture

1. In a small mixing bowl or shaker, whisk together ¹⁄₄ cup lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
2. Add 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, ¹⁄₂ teaspoon thyme, ¹⁄₂ teaspoon granulated garlic, ¹⁄₂ teaspoon of onion powder, and ¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt, whisking together thoroughly
3. Lastly, whisk in 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the mixture

Cooking

1. Add enough oil to a skillet to coat the bottom
2. Heat the oil over medium heat and when a small drop of flour dropped into the oil sizzles, it is ready to fry the chicken
3. Add the breaded chicken pieces and fry for 3-5 minutes per side until the chicken breading turns a golden brown

4. After both sides have fried, remove the chicken to a baking dish.

5. Bake the chicken uncovered for 10 minutes at 350 degrees

6. After 10 minutes, baste the chicken with the lemon mixture and add the rest of the mixture to the pan

7. Bake for an additional 40-50 minutes, basting the chicken with the lemon mixture from the pan every 10 minutes until the chicken is done (reaches an internal temperature of 160)

Notes

The amount of lemon mixture in the recipe will sufficiently coat all the chicken, but for extra strong tangy lemon flavor, double the lemon mixture. In my house, we double the lemon mixture for extra strong tang and so that there’s extra sauce in the bottom of the pan for drizzling over rice or vegetables.

Revision: 5/9/2020