Monday 27 April 2015

Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes


When life hands you lemons, instead of lemonade you can make roasted chicken. Or lemon cheesecake. Since I have gone back on the low carb diet trail, roasted chicken it was. Or more specifically, Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes. Oops! Potatoes? Those are carbs aren't they? Let's pretend they are not hee..hee..hee....


I found some lemons in the fridge and one had gone bad. Haiz! Must not waste lemons as they don't come cheap in this part of the world. So I have to find ways to use my precious lemons. And then there's the dried herbs that I need to use up. So this recipe from Food Wishes could not have come at a better time. 




The chicken pieces and potatoes are mixed together with lemon juice, salt, pepper, cayenne, garlic, dried rosemary and oregano. You may choose to leave the chicken to marinate for and hour or two or you could roast the chicken immediately.


I chose to roast immediately because I was very hungry hah..hah...There's quite a bit of liquids used because you have to add some chicken stock or water to prevent the chicken and potatoes from burning. 


There is no fear of burning actually because our local chicken here tend to release a lot of water when cooked. I found my chicken and potatoes swimming in lots of liquid but this is not an issue if you want lots of delicious gravy. I am not much of a gravy person, so in future I will leave out the chicken stock.


After 50 minutes, the chicken was beautifully browned. I removed the chicken pieces and drained off a fair bit of the roasting liquids. I let the potatoes roast for a further 30 minutes to let them brown and crisp up further. That was a long wait.



Once they were done, I couldn't wait to dig in. Ooohh...this chicken is so delicious! And best of all were the potatoes. They were so tasty. Crispy on the outside and soft and creamy on the inside. I had a hard time resisting taking more than my fair share. I think people will fight for the potatoes and not the chicken, so for heaven's sake, put more potatoes!



I was very happy with my lunch and since I have a few more lemons in the fridge, you can be sure that this Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes will make its appearance again in my kitchen. 










Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes
Recipe source : Adapted from Food Wishes

Ingredients :
- 6 chicken legs, drumstick and thighs separated
- 3 russet potatoes, cut in quarters
- 1 tbsp sea salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 rounded tbsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp cayenne
- 6 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (I used 2 lemons)
- 1/2 cup olive oil (I find this a bit too much. Will use 1/4 cup in future
- 2/3 cup chicken broth (I will leave this out in future)

Method :
1. In a large mixing bowl, mix chicken and potatoes with sea salt, pepper, rosemary, oregano, cayenne, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.
2. Grease or line a large baking tray and arrange chicken pieces in a single layer. Place potatoes in between the chicken pieces.
3. Pour marinade over the chicken and potatoes.
4. Pour chicken broth into the pan (this additional liquid is to prevent burning. But my chicken released a lot of water and made the pan very watery. I will leave it out in future)
5. Roast at 200C for 45-50 minutes until chicken is cooked and browned. 20 minutes into roasting, turn the chicken and potatoes to coat them in the marinade. Continue roasting and do the same thing after 20 minutes.
6. Once chicken is done, remove and set aside.
7. Continue roasting the potatoes until they are crisp and brown.
8. Serve immediately.




Photobucket

This post is linked to the event, Little Thumbs Up organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY and hosted by Diana of The Domestic Goddess Wannabe.

46 comments:

  1. ah you are right!!! there are so many things to do with lemons!!! well, I guess if you have the time, probably you can have a "lemon fest" indeed.. first you can have lemonade, then you can have some lemony salad or appetizer, then this Greek lemon chicken and potatoes, and lastly of course your best bet, a lemony cake for desserts!! wow, would that be an overdose of citric acid and vitamin C?? but who cares, they aren't harmful huh I supposed?? muahahaha~~ :p

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    1. I love lemons for the refreshing smell and taste. Truthfully, I would have preferred to bake a lemon cheesecake muahahaha!

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  2. okay back to your chicken!! aiyoyo, the name already got me excited and until I see the real thing, I can say I probably get ecstatic?? haha, look at the potatoes and the chicken and the color and the brown and the bits of herbs.. indeed look very very appetizing and mouthwatering.. yes, I love potatoes cooked this way, and yeah like you mentioned we pretend it's not carbs!! hahaha.. the only thing is, ahh you know me right, that I would want mine to be chicken breast instead of leg, err, but I wonder if that would be nice?? probably it test the one who cooks chicken breast on how not to make them taste too dry?? :)

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    1. I think chicken breasts pun OK but maybe have to remove it from the oven sooner to prevent drying out.

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  3. enjoyed it so much and having an encore at night for dinner?? wow, I must try this lah seriously!! nice to go with rice, okay since we already have potatoes, then might as well also forget rice as being carbs and one shot chuck down them all.. eat first and worry later, muahahaha!!

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    1. Yes, I made extra so that can eat for dinner and also can have some the next day. It will go well with rice too but I was already so happy with the potatoes!

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  4. Your roasted greek lemon chicken with potatoes look so so yummy Phong Hong.. I have to say the potatoes look so so very "hoi wai".. Look at the colour, oh my.. Like you said, crusty and crispy on the outside, and soft powdery creamy inside, I'd forget about the carbs for a while I tell you.. I enjoy the potatoes more this time, the colour is just so so nice.. Call me crazy, but I don't mind my chicken and vegetables swimming in "oil", coz the oil comes from the chicken (and maybe some butter before roasting), but I don't mind eating it with rice later.. "kai yau lou farn" (chicken oil mixed with rice), nice leh...

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    1. Louiz, the oil and gravy was very sedap. I think if make pasta and use it as chap also will taste super good. But I didn't do that lah because already wallop so much potatoes.

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  5. Whenever i come to your blog, i drool and drool as all your foods are so tempting...

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  6. Wei... if that whole tray is for two of you in a single meal.... that is a lot of chicken there wei!!

    Anyway, if you are worried with potatoes, you might try sweet potatoes or pumpkins! ;)

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    1. hee..hee...yes, I made extra so that can last till dinner and the next day. lazy to cook so many times mah! Yeah, will try sweet potatoes or pumpkin next time as they are equally delicious.

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  7. My girl would love this - roast lemon chicken...and she loves potatoes - in any form! I do bake some for her sometimes - baked jacket potatoes.

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    1. Oohh..I love baked jacket potatoes especially topped with sour cream and bacon bits!

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  8. This is tasty & yummy ! Yes I "dumped" lots of potatoes as my big kids love roasted or baked potatoes.

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    1. Yeah, or else they will be fighting for the potatoes!

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  9. I make roast chicken all the time but I parboil my potatoes (and chuff it up) first so that it cooks in the same amount of time coz I don't think I can wait a further 30 mins for the potatoes to soften! ;D And yes, we need to put more potatoes in...I like the look of your potatoes! But I'm wondering why the recipe is called Greek Lemon Chicken, PH?

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    1. I'm thinking maybe the lemons and olive oil make it Greek? But whatever it is, I enjoyed the chicken and especially the potatoes a lot! Why do potatoes have to taste so good? arrgghh!!

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  10. I know what you mean when the additional 30 minutes of roasting is a long wait! I always have problem with this so I always cut the potatoes a bit smaller. Haha. This looks absolutely amazing and delicious!

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    1. It was delicious! Am still thinking of it hah..hah...

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  11. I know I will eat more potatoes than the chicken. So I am going to put in more potatoes! Oh..like Sharon just said, I am drooling and drooling and feeling very hungry...lol

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  12. Hi Phong Hong, this looks delicious and easy. Mix and chuck into the oven. That's it. Good dish to cook when I want to watch TV meal time., hehehe!

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    1. Yes, Kimmy! This is a very convenient meal suitable for our busy or lazy days hee..hee..

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  13. Hi PH, so this is basically just using lemon as the main ingredient eh! Totally up my alley, sounds really easy! Must try this. I just bought some good quality lemons from the market. Yum!

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    1. Hi Esther! Do try it because it is very delicious. Always love lemons in roasts and bakes!

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  14. I love potatoes. Definitely can eat a lot, the chicken too!

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  15. I would have the potatoes please. You may eat all the chicken. :)

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    1. hah..hah... Must add more potatoes and less chicken :)

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  16. It's always not a good idea to come in to your blog at night ... sigh .... now my stomach growling ...

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  17. Potato and chicken are always a great combination right? Hehe~

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  18. Hi Phong Hong,

    Since when carbs is bad for us??? LOL!!! You know... Chicken with no potato is not chicken enough... LOL! With potatoes, lemon and Greek style herb roasting, chicken will be not just chicken... but heavenly chicken!!! LOL!

    Zoe

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    1. Hi Zoe! Carbs are bad for fatty me but not you hee..hee... I agree that without the potatoes, something is terribly missing!

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  19. Wow, such a delicious one-dish meal and looks easy to prepare too. Bookmarked!

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    1. Cheah, I am sure you will love this!

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  20. As usual, I love the way you bake your chicken and potatoes.. now feeling hungry... food always make me salivate... very wai sik me!

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    1. hah..hah..there's plenty of food in Australia you can enjoy!

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  21. HI PH, Wow! This is the recipe that I need for busy week day meal . Looks so sedap & easy to make . Love senang & cepat recipe , all time , every time . LOL Thanks for sharing , will try it out ASAP .

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    1. Hi Kit! You must try this recipe and I hope that you enjoy it!

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  22. Hi Phong Hong,
    This is such a lovely roasted chicken with lemon.
    I like more potatoes please!
    mui

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    1. Yes, my dear! More potatoes for you!

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