Delighting in our first crop of Meyer lemons, my little brain immediately went to work deciding how they were to be used. All sorts of sweet concoctions swirled in my head. They kept swirling and swirling and swirling. I was gaining weight just doing the thinking part. Certainly, some of those prized lemons will find themselves, at least their juice, in a bowl with some sugar….possible butter, eggs and flour. But I wanted to use some of the lemon in a savory dish, too.
Due to our hectic schedule since Thanksgiving, I haven’t done a whole lot of cooking since the Grand Feast Day. Today was a day I wanted to get in my kitchen, pull out what produce needed to be used, go outside and gather what needed to be gathered and cook up something delectable.
I have such a fascination with cast iron cooking implements, especially my big ol’ cast iron Dutch oven. I love that thing more than I love my luggage. It’s nostalgic and sturdy and handy and just down right cool. Plus, one pot meals are my idea of a Grand Prize.
These are the items that I procured for tonight’s meal:
Kitchen – carrots, celery, potatoes, onions, bay leaves
Freezer – chicken thighs, homemade stock
Outside – rosemary, Meyer lemons
By George, I think we gots us a meal!
I didn’t have fresh garlic but I always keep garlic powder on hand for such a time as this (Hello, Esther!).
So, that’s how Braised Lemon Rosemary Chicken Thighs were born.
Some dishes aren’t necessarily made to be photographed. This might not be the prettiest dish I’ve ever whipped up, but it’s certainly one of the tastiest. I would serve this to company. No doubt about it. The chicken was falling off the bone tender and flavorful to beat the band. Veggies, cut in moderately large bite size pieces, held up to the cooking process and maintained a good texture. I got to look at my cast iron pot as we ate dinner. All in all, it was a grand experience.
Y’all come see us!
Braised Lemon Rosemary Chicken Thighs
Cutting the vegetables in moderately large bit size pieces helps to maintain a nice texture and prevents you from trying to get through a meal of mushy, squashy vegetables. I left the onion in eighths inside of slicing it because I like to see big pieces of onion.
yield: 4 to 6 servings
6 to 8 chicken thighs (bone in-skin on!!!)
4 stalks celery, including leaves, sliced
5 carrots, trimmed and peeled and sliced in 1/4 t0 1/2 inch rounds
4 small Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut in 1 inch cubes
2 sweet onions, peeled and cut in eights
1 lemon, sliced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 quart chicken stock
3 (6 in.) sprigs rosemary
2 bay leaves
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Salt and pepper chicken on both sides. Heat a large dutch oven and cover the bottom with oil. Cooking in batches, brown chicken on both sides for about 3 minutes per side. Remove from Dutch oven and set aside.
Throw prepared veggies and lemon in the pot that now has all the delicious cooking juices and bits from the chicken. Sauté for 10 minutes stirring often to coat all pieces with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Pour stock into pot with veggies. Stir well, scrape up all the goodies off the bottom. Stir in garlic powder.
Snuggle chicken pieces down into the veggies and stock. Place rosemary twigs and bay leaves anywhere in the pot your heart desires.
Cover and cook at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 hours.
Remove rosemary twigs, bay leaves and lemon rinds before serving. Actually, you can eat the lemon rinds if they suit your taste.
P. S. Please leave me a comment if you caught the reference to Esther! 🙂
You might also enjoy:
Braised Lemon Rosemary Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- Cutting the vegetables in moderately large bit size pieces helps to maintain a nice texture and prevents you from trying to get through a meal of mushy squashy vegetables. I left the onion in eighths inside of slicing it because I like to see big pieces of onion.
- yield: 4 to 6 servings
- 6 to 8 chicken thighs bone in-skin on!!!
- 4 stalks celery including leaves, sliced
- 5 carrots trimmed and peeled and sliced in 1/4 t0 1/2 inch rounds
- 4 small Yukon gold potatoes peeled and cut in 1 inch cubes
- 2 sweet onions peeled and cut in eights
- 1 lemon sliced
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 quart chicken stock
- 3 6 in. sprigs rosemary
- 2 bay leaves
- olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Salt and pepper chicken on both sides. Heat a large dutch oven and cover the bottom with oil. Cooking in batches, brown chicken on both sides for about 3 minutes per side. Remove from Dutch oven and set aside.
- Throw prepared veggies and lemon in the pot that now has all the delicious cooking juices and bits from the chicken. Sauté for 10 minutes stirring often to coat all pieces with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Pour stock into pot with veggies. Stir well, scrape up all the goodies off the bottom. Stir in garlic powder.
- Snuggle chicken pieces down into the veggies and stock. Place rosemary twigs and bay leaves anywhere in the pot your heart desires.
- Cover and cook at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 hours.
- Remove rosemary twigs, bay leaves and lemon rinds before serving. Actually, you can eat the lemon rinds if they suit your taste.
Kristi @ My San Francisco Kitchen says
Ooh yum! Your lemon rosemary chicken looks so great, my husband would love this! Bookmarking now!!
Jackie Garvin says
Thanks, Kristi! I hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Jean says
Yeah, yeah…keep on rubbing it in about you having a lemon tree! Some people!
Seriously the chicken looks good enough to eat. LOL! You can’t beat cast iron for great cooking and then there is that lemon tree…sigh….
Jackie Garvin says
Jean,
Don’t hate! 🙂 Who knows what next season has in store for that little lemon tree, but I sure am enjoying it this year.
Our orange trees are full again this year, too. We’re eating Satsumas right now. Navels are next and then Hamlins. Valencias will be the last to harvest. I think our grapefruit is ready to start dropping, too. That tree is so tall it has to drop its fruit for us.
Jean says
Ok rub it in…..
Jackie Garvin says
🙂
Barbara says
Hey Jackie, This sounds great and you got me thinking about my cast iron dutch oven and what I can make in it. A friend just offered me her cast iron pans…I’m going to take her up on it. They remind me of my mom cooking when I was a kid.
Jackie Garvin says
Barbara,
What a generous offer! You should graciously accept your friend’s offer and thank her endlessly. 🙂
cindy says
Oh, my goodness, I LOVE Meyer lemons and have some just waiting in the fridge for something to inspire me and you just did!
Jackie Garvin says
Cindy,
I hope you enjoy it! Meyer lemons are simply the BEST lemons. Period. 🙂
Suzanne says
Yep Jackie, I caught your reference to Esther… Did the Beth Moore study on Esther last year and totally enjoyed it!
Jackie Garvin says
Suzanne,
I did Beth Moore’s Esther, too! Loved it. I’ve also done her Daniel and it’s outstanding. Her Bible studies are intense but wonderful. 🙂
Suzanne Mattson says
I have to confess — i did not know what a Meyer lemon was … how can that be? But this dish sounded so so good, I decided to go to Wally World and get the ingredients to make it today and — lo, and behold — there in the produce dept was the cutest little bag of Meyer lemons! I was so excited (all to myself in crowded Wally World on a Saturday afternoon!) Making this wonderful dinner right now — in my cast iron dutch oven — and can’t wait till it’s done! Thanks Jackie!!
Jackie Garvin says
Suzanne,
I love the visual image you painted of you silently rejoicing in Wally World while all manner of activity is going on around you! 🙂 I’m also surprised you found Meyer lemons there. Walmart does surprise me sometimes…sometimes the surprise is good and sometimes it’s bad. 🙂
I hope you enjoyed your dinner.
Adam J. Holland says
First of all, the photos are gorgeous. (I’m partial to the overhead Dutch oven shot, being the Dutch oven cook that I am.) Second, you’re dang right it’s tasty! Congrats on your first crop of Meyer Lemons. My tree is about 14 years old and is having a difficult time recovering from the winter weather that I subjected it to recently. 🙁
Jackie Garvin says
Adam,
I’m so sorry to hear that you’re such an irresponsible Meyer lemon tree owner. I hope your tree can recover, in spite of the harsh conditions you pose upon it. Do you have room to plant another just to hedge your bet? Since that post, I’ve harvested a whole bunch of lemons and there some. Ore ripe ones that I will pull tomorrow. Man, those trees are no joke! They work year ’round. Thanks for your compliments, Adam. 🙂