What’s not to love about lemon and basil together? Add a bit of bacon, tender chicken, and plenty of juicy tomatoes and I am going to be all over that dish. When I first saw this sauce in my friend Shawn’s cookbook, I couldn’t get it out of my head. As she wrote the original recipe, the chicken in this recipe is replaced with scallops, which I imagine tastes fantastic too. However, I already had chicken on hand, so I went with the option I already had in the house.
This Chicken with Lemon Basil Sauce is amazingly flavorful, with a sprinkling of bacon, plenty of lemon and a surprising richness in the simple sauce. I served the chicken with the sauce over crisp spiralized zucchini and the lemony sauce was absolutely perfect with the vegetables. If rice or pasta is more your style, the chicken is great served that way as well.
- 4 strips of bacon cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup chicken broth
- zest from 1 lemon about 1 tablespoon minced
- juice from 1 lemon about 1/4 cup
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 8 large basil leaves about 2 tablespoons finely sliced
- 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
- For serving choose one:
- 3 raw medium-size Italian zucchini spiralized or julienned
- 8 ounces angel hair pasta cooked
- 2 cups Jasmine rice cooked
- Heat a large stainless skillet over medium heat and cook the bacon. While the bacon is cooking, sprinkle the cornstarch, salt, and pepper over the cut up chicken. Remove the cooked bacon from the pan with a slotted spatula and drain on a paper towel lined plate. Drain the grease from the pan, leaving 2 tablespoons in the pan.
- Place the hot pan back over medium heat and spread the chicken across the pan. Let it cook without stirring for 2 minutes. Turn the chicken pieces over and cook an additional 2-3 minutes, just until cooked through. Remove the chicken to a plate or bowl.
- Add the chicken broth, lemon juice, and lemon zest to the skillet and bring to a simmer. Cook for 3 minutes. Stirring occasionally and scraping the browned bits off the bottom of the skillet as it cooks. When the sauce has thickened slightly, add the butter and basil. Taste and add more salt and pepper, only if needed. Add the chicken and tomatoes to the sauce.
- Serve the zucchini noodles, pasta, or rice topped with the chicken and sauce. Sprinkle each serving with the cooked and crumbled bacon. Enjoy!
A splatter screen is very helpful when cooking the bacon for this recipe. Also, I'm a big fan of this spiralizer or this julienee tool for slicing the zucchini into perfectly "twirlable" noodles.
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THREE YEARS AGO: Fuji Apple Chicken Salad
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Shawn @ I Wash You Dry says
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