Of all the proteins I serve them, my kids enjoy chicken the least.
My go-to quick meal often involves a rotisserie chicken from Whole Foods and the kids usually gripe and complain about it. Same with my whole smoked chickens and baked chicken parts (which, incidentally are basted in duck fat* and I happen to think are divine.)
So when I hit on a chicken recipe that they like, I know I’ve really struck gold.
When I made this dish, I had three major goals in mind. First, I needed a quick and simple prep along with easy clean up. Second, parsley is just about the only thing I am growing well in my yard at present, so I wanted to use some. And, third, I wanted to re-create some chicken that the kids enjoyed from the Whole Foods hot bar a few weeks ago. (Which I bought them instead of a rotisserie to avoid the groans.)
That dish was a lemon, parsley and garlic number. My version is a little lighter, invariably simpler and really delicious.
The recipe calls for only one measuring tool – a quarter cup. That cuts down on the required clean up. If you want to make the dish a smidge more complicated and complex, you could add a clove of freshly-pressed garlic when you toss in the zest and parsley.
I hope you and yours enjoy!
(*This recipe also calls for duck fat which, if you can get your hands on some is by far the preferred fat. Any other healthful solid fat should work nicely as a sub. Remember, never buy a “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated” fat.)
- ¼ cup fresh curly-leaf parsley, chopped
- zest of one lemon
- juice of one lemon
- ¼ cup duck fat
- 8-12 chicken drumsticks
- salt and pepper to taste
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Melt duck fat in a saucepan over very low heat.
- Arrange chicken in baking dish.
- Salt and pepper the drumsticks to taste.
- Add lemon juice to the fat and pour this mixture over the chicken.
- Coat the drumsticks with the mixture.
- Sprinkle lemon zest over drumsticks.
- Sprinkle parsley over drumsticks.
- Turn chicken to coat.
- Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes.
- Turn the drumsticks over, carefully.
- Continue cooking until internal temp reaches 165 degrees F.
This has been shared on Nourishing Joy’s Thank Goodness It’s Monday #42. Go check it out!
