Chicken En Papillote (In Parchment)
Ingredients
- 2 pieces of chicken (boneless skinless or bone-in skin on breasts or thighs will work with this recipe.)
- 1 Lemon (or lime cut into slices)
- 1 Small Bunch of Mixed Herbs of Choice (parsley, oregano, thyme, cilantro, green onions, chives, rosemary etc - choose herbs based on final dish)
- 2 Garlic Cloves (cut into slices)
- 1 tsp Olive Oil
- ½ tsp Salt (or to taste)
- ¼ tsp Pepper (or to taste)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F
- Cut the parchment into two large heart shapes. Each half of the parchment hearts need to be at least one inch larger than the chicken.
- Cover a baking sheet pan (cookie sheet) with parchment. (This step is optional--I want minimal clean up so I cover my baking sheet pans.)
- Put both parchment hearts onto the baking sheet pan
- Next, open the parchment heart and place half of the herbs of choice and half the lemon slices on one half of the parchment.
- Then, season each piece of chicken with ¼ tsp to ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper (per piece of chicken).
- Place seasoned chicken on the bed of herbs and lemon slices.
- Add a ½ tsp of olive oil to each piece of chicken.
- Add sliced garlic and the remaining herbs and lemon slices.
- Finally, close the parchment by folding the other half of the parchment over and then fold or roll up the edges to securely close and seal the parchment package. Seal it well to ensure steam doesn't escape from the parchment packet.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes--until the internal temperature of the chicken is 170°F for a chicken breast and 180°F for a chicken thigh. Bone-in chicken will take longer than boneless chicken. All ovens are different, cooking time is just a guide. Keep an eye on the chicken and start checking the internal temperature for around 18 minutes. If it is a small cut of chicken, check temperature earlier. Do this until you learn your oven and have a good sense of how long this recipe takes in your oven.
- Optional uses for cooked chicken:If using the chicken for another recipe:Remove the chicken from the parchment package. Discard lemon slices, herbs, and parchment wrapper. Slice, dice, or shred chicken and follow the final recipe as the recipe instructs.If serving the chicken as the main dish you have two options for serving:One option: take the chicken out of the oven and immediately cut open the parchment package. Fold back the parchment paper exposing the top of the chicken and then broil the top for 3-5 minutes. This gives the chicken a nice color and crust while also enhancing the flavor. Then take the chicken out of the parchment package and put it on a serving platter or straight onto a dinner plate alongside some of your favorite side dishes.A second option: serve the chicken in the parchment paper on the dinner plate, still sealed and closed. In this method, the guest opens the chicken in the parchment package just before eating. As the guest opens up the chicken in the parchment paper package, the guest will release the aromatic steam right before they eat it.
Servings: 2