It’s no surprise that the most popular recipe on She’s Cookin’ is Ina Garten’s Lemon Chicken Breast that I shared from the beloved Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten, when her cookbook, “BarefootContessa, how easy is that” was released in 2010. Chicken continues to be the most popular meat in America and for good reason; it is a versatile lean protein that can be prepared quickly for weeknight dinners and simple, healthy chicken recipes abound.
Adapting Ina Garten’s Lemon Chicken Breast for Low Sodium
Ina’s Lemon Chicken Breast fits nicely into my Low Sodium niche as it is enhanced by wine, fresh lemon and sprigs of thyme – three of my favorite replacements for salt to boost flavor. It also is not brined – something that many restaurants do to ensure a juicy chicken breast, but a process that adds a considerable amount of sodium to chicken, which is it makes it to The Salty Six by the American Heart Association. Shocker, I know!
Lemon Chicken Breast – Ina Garten’s Favorite Recipe
Back in 2010, I was featuring Top Moms who loved to cook, and Ina’s Lemon Chicken Breast was contributed by my friend Kathleen who had attended a book signing at Williams and Sonoma and was beyond excited to meet one of her kitchen idols. Kathleen’s question for Ina was, “What is your favorite recipe from the book?”, and Ina response was the Lemon Chicken Breast, which made it the first recipe that Kathleen cooked. Always thinking, Kathleen, even brought a wooden spoon that Ina signed.
And now for Ina’s favorite recipe from “Barefoot Contessa, how easy is that?“.
Ina Garten’s Lemon Chicken Breast Recipe
- ¼ cup good olive oil
- 3 tablespoons minced garlic 9 cloves
- ⅓ cup dry white wine
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest 2 lemons
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1½ teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 boneless chicken breasts skin on (6 to 8 ounces each)
- 1 lemon
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Preheat the oven to 400 F.
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Warm the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, add the garlic, and cook for just one minute — but don't allow the garlic to turn brown. Off the heat, add the white wine, lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, thyme and 1 teaspoon salt, and pour into a 9-by-12-inch baking dish.
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Pat the chicken breasts dry and place them skin side up over the sauce. Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle them liberally with salt and pepper. Cut the lemon in eight wedges and tuck it among the pieces of chicken.
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Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken breasts, until the chicken is done and the skin is lightly browned. If the chicken isn't browned enough, put it under the broiler for two minutes. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and serve hot with the pan juices.
Note: For a lower sodium version of the recipe, eliminate the salt and rub the chicken breasts with a zero sodium lemon citrus spice such as Savory Spice Shop's California Citrus Rub.
Add more wine if you prefer a saucier chicken.
Photo credit: Quentin Bacon, Barefoot Contessa “How Easy Is That?” by Ina Garten
Nutrition Analysis via MyFitnessPal.com. Eliminate salt and salting the meat before cooking for low sodium version.
Hi Kathleen, what a fun experience…and she signed your spoon 🙂
Beautiful dish, love all of the garlic 🙂
I made this tonight. I was hoping for more flavor. It was kind of boring. I made recipe exactly as written. I used a Chardonnay for my wine. There was lots of juice in the pan but the flavor just did not get into the chicken. Yes I used boneless with the skin from whole foods. Recipe going in the trash. Sorry Ina.
Sorry it didn’t work out for you, Kellie. I always add more wine 🙂
Hi , I find if you add some extra lemon and one chicken bouillon cube it is quite delish…
Love it! Great Job.
I love the post. And your new photos in your Banner are fantastic, just like you.
@Kathleen – Aww, thanks. And thank you for being a Top Mom and sharing Ina and her lovely lemon chicken with us 🙂
Must be really exciting to meet Ina Garden….how fun that you even brought the spoon for her to sign :-))
So funny…Zomppa Patty has a she-crush on her too!! Happy for you for meeting her!
I love meeting people who inspire me!! Ina is my favorite Food Network chef (she’s one of the few that remain who doesn’t completely suck… sorry, but it’s true). That’s great to find out what her favorite recipe is from the book. Thanks for sharing 🙂
What a great post, thanks for sharing it! The recipe looks amazing too. It is always so nice to meet people that you really look up to!
What a great recipe! (And, I’m so sad I missed this opportunity to meet Ina.) We actually have everything we need in the garden right now to make this. Perfect for a mid-week dinner.
[K]
Hi Kathleen…thank you for sharing this delicious recipe with me. I love chicken breasts, and I’m always looking for new ways to prepare them. You can never go wrong with Ina! Thank you for sharing, sweet woman. May your Sunday be one of peace and love.
Such a fun experience and the chicken sounds lovely with the lemon flavor and fresh thyme! Nice!
How awesome is this? Delicious recipe – my mouth is watering! You can never go wrong with one of Ina’s recipes!
made this last night and left cookbook at the office. This post saved me. So so good. I used bone in chicken breasts and had to cook a bit more.
Ina is my favorite food network star! I have made several of her recipes and have enjoyed them all. I plan to prepare her lemon chicken recipe for dinner tonight and look forward to serving this to my family. Thanks!!!!!
LOVE Ina Garten! Watched her make this recipe yesterday and then looked it up online to discover this post. Made it last night and it came out great. I used skin-on, bone-in split chicken breasts which is what my grocery store had available and it worked. Would have preferred bone out, skin on, but unless you go to a butcher, it’s difficult to find. Also didn’t have fresh thyme. I used an Italian spice mix which was great, but I’m sure the fresh herbs would have really knocked it out of the park.
@Liz Ann – Glad you found her recipe here 🙂 It’s such a simple recipe that yields great results!
Hi, I found this recipe on Pinterest, and OMG this was the most delicious chicken in the world! Dare I say, my absolute favorite EVER!
I actually reviewed it on my blog. Feel free to check it out at http://www.2girlsandapin.com/2-girls-and-a-pin-test-ina-gartens-lemon-chicken/
Thank you SO SO much for posting this recipe. It was absolutely divine!
Take care,
Jelena
Awww, this made my day – so glad you liked it. I love it when readers take the time to tell me how much they love a recipe! Thanks, Jelena 🙂
I’m sitting here shaking my head at your sheer genius. A spoon. You had her sign a spoon!!!
Years ago I made the rounds of food shows and cooking classes amassing a good-sized collection of signed cookbooks… which are all now tucked away in a back room on shelves. But a spoon! I could have a Julia Child-signed spoon right there next to the stove every. single. day.
GENIUS!
I can’t seem to fine chicken breast with the skin on. Any suggestions? Will skinless ones work?
Hi, Lauren – Yes, skinless will do. Isn’t it crazy – you can hardly find skin on chicken breasts or thighs anymore unless you buy a whole cut-up fryer!
This was absolutely delicious. I did not have fresh thyme on hand, but I plucked about 8 sprigs of rosemary from my back yard and I added that to the brew. I used bone-in split chicken breasts and the baking time was still 40 minutes. My chicken was 170 degrees when I took it from the oven to let it sit, and was extremely moist, with beautifully roasted skin, and deliciously flavored. The dish was satisfying but clean and fresh. I served this with roasted vegetables – carrots, red onion, asparagus, and potatoes. My family thinks I have a hint of culinary genius in me, My real genius is having the good sense to channel Ina when I cook! 🙂 Ina, thank you for your wonderful recipes. They are all perfection with great instructions that don’t keep you guessing!!! Thank you! This is one I will make again.
Hi, Sandra! Thanks for taking the time to leave such a wonderful comment. You’re absolutely right, we can always rely on Ina – she’s the best!
Owwaoo chicken! I really love your lemon chicken. I think when it was made then it gave`s nice smell, because it looks really delicious. Thanks for nice sharing.
Made this tonight with boneless skinless chicken breasts (that was all they had at my store …) I used the exact ingredients just added some garlic powder and lemon pepper to the chicken before cooking. Cooked on 375 for 35 minutes. Seriously DELICIOUS my chicken is so tender. Thank you!
Hi Colleen – you’re welcome and thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment to let us know how the recipe worked for you. It makes me happy to hear success stories from readers 🙂
Has anyone added potatoes in with this dish? I am wondering if you could add potatoes to the dish to give them the flavor also? Any thoughts and do you think they would have the same cooking time?
Hi Rachelle – unless the potatoes are small or cut in half, they would take longer than the chicken. Give it a try and see what happens or place them in a separate dish, that way you can allow them to roast a little longer if necessary. Hope this helps 🙂
Hi Priscilla! Thank you for your suggestions. I did make the potatoes separately, cutting them into wedges. I did like how they turned out because they still got crispy and not soggy (as I suspect they would if included). I used the same flavorings and tossed the potatoes in them prior to cooking. I then used some of the pan sauce at the end when serving. The next time I make this recipe, I think I would add more stock or more liquid at the end to the pan to make more sauce. I did not find that there was much liquid left in the bottom of the pan.
Sorry, but Ina doesn’t know how to cool low sodium. Ever watch her show? This recipe has 582 mg of sodium alone, but add in the chicken breast at 120 to 160mg sodium and you’re looking at 702 to 742mg per serving, not considering the recipe says to liberally salt the breasts. Don’t believe what is on the internet;
Hi, Nancy – you’re right, this is not a low sodium recipe, it was a Guest Post and the recipe is included as part of the story. However, tips to make it lower in sodium are included if readers should choose to do so.
Absolutely delicious! Loved the flavor!
Hi Ina
I love your blog … Pretty amazing … Well researched and neatly done …
I have a few questions for you … Is there a replacement for wine … Being a Muslim I can’t use it … Plus I would be very grateful if you could have a category for hypertensive and diabetic people like me … Both on the high side …
Looking forward to your response
Regards
Thank you for your kind comment. There are many non-alcoholic substitutes for wine. For Ina’s Lemon Chicken Breast I would use chicken stock. A low sodium diet is also good for people with hypertension. I can refer you to several great websites that have recipes for special dietary needs such as diabetics:
Eating Well (http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/17899/health-condition/diabetic/),
Taste of Home (https://www.tasteofhome.com/health-wellness/diabetic/, and
Cooking Light (https://www.cookinglight.com/eating-smart/nutrition-101/diabetic-recipes).
Hope this helps! ~Priscilla
Can you use this recipe with bone in chicken thighs too?
Hi Maria – You can certainly use chicken thighs. They have a more hearty, meatier taste so extra lemon and wine may be in order.