The recipe for Baked Lemon Chicken is part of my memories from the 80s when, newly married, I invited my friend Fernanda for lunch. It was a way of cooking chicken that her mom Angela used, and it was so tasty that I repeated the recipe for many years. With the new oven, I had abandoned this cooking method that forced me to thoroughly clean the oven each time. However, I was craving it, so I prepared it by slightly changing the procedure, and I must say it’s really good. Even the breast, which is usually dry, is tender and flavorful this way.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Electric oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 1 chicken (already cleaned)
- 2 lemons
- 4 sprigs rosemary
- 4 teaspoons fine salt
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Tools
- Cutting Board
- Cocotte oval pyrex
- Brush
Steps
Turn on the oven to static mode at 392 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash the chicken thoroughly, dry it with paper towels, and if there are any feathers, singe them on the gas. Cut a lemon in half and rub it over all the meat. Salt the inside and insert 1 small whole lemon (I used half of a large one because that’s what I had). Tie the rosemary with string to prevent it from shedding needles and insert it as well.
Place the chicken inside a narrow and tall-sided baking dish to avoid too many splashes (I find a pyrex cocotte works well). In a bowl, prepare an emulsion with the juice of 1 lemon, the extra virgin olive oil, and the salt, and brush this all over the chicken. Bake at mid-height and every 20 minutes continue to baste it by brushing it with the emulsion. There’s no need to turn the chicken; it will cook well underneath too. After 1 hour and 45 minutes, the Baked Lemon Chicken will be cooked and nicely golden. Cut it into four parts and serve it, basting it with the cooking juices.
