Lemon Pepper Hen · i’m a meals weblog

This lemon pepper hen served with cous cous is the reply to all of your dinner questions.

After a protracted day, there’s nothing I need greater than to order in. However then I feel: I have to do the adulting factor and the following neatest thing I can consider is a very easy to make dinner. One thing quick, and scrumptious that requires minimal prep and maximal chill time. Let’s face it, hen and carbs is all the time the reply.

What’s lemon pepper hen?

The title is fairly self explanatory: lemon and pepper and hen. The title comes from the seasoning, creatively named “lemon pepper.” Most lemon pepper hen is solely hen sprinkled with retailer purchased lemon pepper. Retailer purchased lemon pepper is made with granulated lemon zest and cracked black peppercorns. The shop purchased model generally comprises issues like salt, sugar, granulated garlic, and citric acid. It’s a reasonably straightforward taste profile to imitate. As straightforward as it might be to shake on some seasoning, making this lemon pepper hen is simply as straightforward and a thousand occasions extra scrumptious.

Assume: recent juicy lemon slices, with the assistance of the oven warmth, turning jammy and additional candy whereas mixing with savory hen juices to create essentially the most scrumptious sauce. The sauce is pure gold and ideal for scooping over cous cous (or rice!). These fluffy little kernels simply soak it up turning into tiny little bits of pure taste.

Easy methods to make lemon pepper hen

1. Prep. Pull bone-in pores and skin on hen thighs from the fridge and place them in an oven proof-dish. Season them with salt and pepper and allow them to hang around and mood on the counter when you end off your prep.
2. Warmth. Activate the oven – we wish it scorching, 450°F scorching so the hen will get good and brown on the tops and the lemons caramelize and launch all their juice.
3. Chop and blend. Whereas the oven is heating and the hen is tempering, peel 2 shallots and halve them. Wash some dill, roughly chop, and put aside. Wash and zest a lemon, setting the zest apart for later. Lower the lemon in half. Thinly slice half of the lemon and nestle the slices into the baking dish with the hen. Juice the remaining half of the lemon right into a small bowl. Combine in olive oil, oregano, and a pinch of salt and pepper to the lemon juice.
4. Bake. By now your oven needs to be scorching. Pour the lemon pepper sauce into the baking dish and place on the center rack of the oven and roast for 20-Half-hour, relying on measurement, or till cooked via.
5. Boil. When the hen is nearly achieved cooking, it’s time to make the cous cous. Convey a pot of salted water to a boil. When it’s effervescent, take away the pot from the range, stir in your cous cous, cowl, and let it steam.
6. Fluff. When the cous cous is completed, take away the lid, fluff, season with salt and pepper. Toss with olive oil and your prepped dill and lemon zest.
7. Serve. When the hen is completed, serve, spooning up these scrumptious lemon-y, pepper-y, chicken-y juices onto the cous cous. Get pleasure from!

Lemon pepper hen substances

• hen – bone-in, skin-on hen thighs please! Not solely are they often the most affordable minimize of hen, they occur to be essentially the most flavorful and most forgiving. The pores and skin and bone each prevents the hen from over cooking. For those who should, you possibly can positively use boneless skinless thighs and even hen breast, however ensure you keep watch over the time, they’ll prepare dinner lots sooner.
• olive oil – use the great things, however not the stuff that you just don’t warmth. Ie, use a excessive warmth olive oil, not a ending olive oil. As all the time, an additional virgin olive oil with a light-weight and gentle, unassertive taste that may disappear into the background going to style finest.
• oregano – oregano provides a heat, earthy, lemon-y, barely peppery taste to this dish.
• shallots – I like shallots as a result of they’re delicate and candy with a much less onion-y taste. Plus their fairly purple shade provides a vibe.
• lemon – a recent lemon goes to offer us zest (together with all these superb lemon oils) and juice.
• pepper – freshly cracked black pepper is what you need right here. Freshly cracked pepper has that tremendous floral, earthy, spicy, pepper taste we’re searching for. I don’t specify how a lot pepper on this recipe as a result of actually, it’s as much as you! I do know some folks discover black pepper spicy and a few folks discover it extremely gentle. Add pepper to your required style. That being mentioned, Mike and I are black pepper fiends and not too long ago obtained some extra bold Tellicherry peppercorns, the very best of the very best in peppercorns. They’re punchy, daring, and extremely peppery.
• cous cous – tiny little balls of pasta which are filling and enjoyable to eat, extra on cous cous beneath!
• dill – some chopped dill provides a herb-y brightness to your cous cous, making it irresistible.

What to serve with lemon pepper hen

Personally I feel cous cous is the proper accompaniment to lemon pepper hen. It’s filling, quick to make, and enjoyable to eat. In fact you can’t go wrong with rice or roasted potatoes both!

What’s cous cous?

Opposite to standard perception, cous cous isn’t a grain, it’s a pasta! For those who’re not too accustomed to cous cous, you’re in for a deal with. Cous cous are tiny steamed balls of crushed semolina. It’s often served with stew or in salad. They’re gentle and fluffy and are type of like tiny tiny little roughly-shaped balls of pasta.

Many of the cous cous that’s bought in shops in North American is pre-steamed and dried which makes it mainly immediate. All it takes is a fast 5 minute steam, making it manner sooner than rice, pasta, or different grains. You’ll find cous cous within the rice and grains aisle or online.

Easy methods to prepare dinner cous cous

Measure out how a lot cous cous you need to make, then add the very same quantity of water to a pot or saucepan with a lid. Convey the water to a boil and when it’s boiling, stir within the cous cous, cowl the pot, then take away from the warmth. Let the cous cous steam for five minutes, then take away the lid and fluff. Your cous cous is completed!

Cous cous to water ratio

The ratio for water to cous cous is 1:1 which makes it extremely straightforward to recollect.

That’s its! Who knew I may write a lot about lemon, hen, and cous cous!??!

Lemon Pepper Hen with Lemon and Dill Cous Cous

Oven baked lemon pepper hen thighs served with lemon dill cous cous

Serves 2

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Prepare dinner Time 30 minutes minutes

Whole Time 40 minutes minutes

Lemon Pepper Hen

• 4 bone in pores and skin on hen thighs
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 shallots peeled and halved
• 1 lemon

Dill Cous Cous

• 1/2 cup cous cous
• salt and pepper to style
• 2 tbsp chopped dill
• 1-2 tbsp further virgin olive oil or to style
• lemon zest

Vitamin Information

Lemon Pepper Hen with Lemon and Dill Cous Cous

Quantity Per Serving

Energy 562
Energy from Fats 330

% Each day Worth*

Fats 36.7g56%

Saturated Fats 6.6g41%

Ldl cholesterol 106mg35%

Sodium 168mg7%

Potassium 452mg13%

Carbohydrates 24.6g8%

Fiber 2.3g10%

Sugar 0.6g1%

Protein 32.9g66%

* P.c Each day Values are based mostly on a 2000 calorie weight loss program.