Lemon Garlic Chicken Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What does adding lemon juice to chicken do? ›

Lemon helps add flavor and tenderize the chicken, but if left for too long, it will actually start breaking down the proteins way too much, resulting in tough, rubbery, or even mushy texture. For even cooking, pound chicken breasts to about ½ inch thick evenly. Remember to zest the lemon before squeezing it.

Yes, marinating chicken with lemon juice can help make it more juicy and tender, especially when combined with other acidic ingredients like vinegar or yogurt. The acidity in lemon juice helps to break down the proteins in the chicken, resulting in a more tender texture.

Cut the Chicken

Mix well with your hands and let marinate for at least 20 minutes. Next, mix the sauce by combining chicken stock, lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, honey, distilled white vinegar, and cornstarch. I always like to premix my sauce to have it ready to go during the fast cooking process.

The oil moistens the chicken while spices and herbs add flavor. The raw meat is tenderized by acid aids, thereby allowing the oil and spices to have an effect. Many marinades use vinegar as an acid substitute but lemon juice is more effective as it lends a citric flavor.

The acidity of the lemon juice can break down the chicken's proteins, resulting in a mushy texture if left in the marinade for too long. Always marinate your chicken in the refrigerator and discard any leftover marinade to ensure food safety.

Information. Most recipes for marinating meat and poultry recommend six hours up to 24 hours. It is safe to keep the food in the marinade longer, but after two days it is possible that the marinade can start to break down the fibers of the meat, causing it to become mushy.

For best results, meat should be marinated for 4-6 hours. Tender cuts of meat can be marinated for a shorter period of time. Always discard the marinade when you remove the meat for grilling or braaiing. Unused marinade that is used at a later stage may cause food poisoning.

You can marinate chicken anywhere from 2 hours up to 24 hours, though marinating chicken for even 15 to 30 minutes can impart flavor and moisture into smaller pieces of meat. Generally, bone-in cuts of chicken, such as wings, drumsticks and breasts, will require a longer marinade time than their boneless counterparts.

Velvet chicken is a Chinese cooking technique where boneless, skinless chicken pieces are coated in a mixture of baking soda, cornstarch, wine, and seasoning, then briefly cooked resulting in tender, velvety chicken that easily absorbs sauces. In some methods, egg white is also included.

What can I use instead of lemon juice to marinate chicken? ›

Like pickling, smoking, and curing, the practice of rinsing chicken with lemon juice probably started out as a way to neutralize any off-aromas in the meat and cut down on bacteria.

Raw chicken pieces on a cutting board with lemons. Lemon is a classic flavor for marinating chicken, especially when paired with black pepper and rosemary. Use a lemon marinade on thin chicken breasts for a quick weeknight meal or marinate a whole chicken for roasting.

Some cooks and chefs consider lemon as important a flavor enhancer as salt, using the peel (or a slice or wedge) as a garnish, or adding juice or zest at the end of cooking as a finishing touch.

Tenderizing: The acidity in lemon juice can help break down the proteins in the chicken, making it more tender and juicy. Health benefits: Lemon juice is a good source of vitamin C and antioxidants, which can help support immune function and protect against cell damage.

How lemon juice tenderises the meat. An acid-containing marinade not only helps to flavour meat; it also helps to tenderise it. Acid causes The protein and connective tissue in meat are broken down by acid. At a molecular level, meat proteins have a spiral shape.

Over time the acids in the lemon juice can start to “cook” the chicken before it even hits the grill or the heat source, turning it white and affecting its texture. If a protein spend too long marinating in lemon juice, the texture can start to break down and become mushy.

Acids also tenderize meat a little bit, but that's not much of a concern with chicken, it's already tender as can be. Add a splash of vinegar or a squeeze of lemon for flavor. As long as you don't overcook the meat, moisture and tenderness will be there.