This stovetop skinless lemon chicken roast has light, brothy, clean flavours that are loved by children and adults alike!
I have wanted to write this recipe post for years, but felt so freaking self conscious that I never did it.
Growing up I made this Stove Top Lemon Chicken Roast recipe on repeat. For the house, for formal dinners, and even a few for my parents anniversary party like it was no big deal. Well, it is kinda no big deal because it's so easy to make.
Skinless Roasts? *gasp*
It was only when I moved to Canada and spent my year of unemployment watching a lot of Food Network that I realized skinless chicken roasts are not the norm. Oops.
So why does this recipe work even it is sans skin? Simple: when you cook it stovetop there is nothing drying it out. You are effectively steaming a chicken that is so flavorful because there is no barrier (skin) between the chicken marinade and the meat.
Bonus: because the chicken releases it's own flavors into your veggies you are basically cooking them in a light wholesome zingy broth.
Lemon Chicken Roast Recipe Notes
The marinade for this recipe is straightforward - salt, mustard powder, pepper, and lemon juice. The taste is bright clear and comforting.
The thin gravy it leaves may tempt you to add a little flour to thicken it to create a substantial one, but please try and resist. There is something so very lovely about spooning that broth over the chicken, dunking it in bread charred on the frying pan. That kind of broth-y magic a gravy doesn't create!
I typically marinate this chicken overnight after fairly aggressive poking of holes all over it. If you usually brine your chicken then just decrease the salt in this recipe. Brining for those unfamiliar is basically submerging the chicken in a sweet salty water bath to make it extra juicy.
Speaking of juicy chicken, a way of ensuring that (and max flavour) is to sear the chicken on the outside - this is admittedly a little fiddly, but well worth it. Then once that's done, it's all hands off low and slow. My chicken trussing skills are fairly limited, but I do tend to tie the legs with twine because it makes the man handling during the cooking process much easier.
Pro Chicken Tip: the smaller chickens will always be tastier and less fibrous!
Made it? Don't forget to rate the recipe below and share your Roast with me @flourandspiceblog on Instagram!
Stove top Lemon Chicken Roast
Ingredients
- 1 3-3.5 lb whole chicken, skin removed
Marinade
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 2.5-3 teaspoons salt start with 2.5, add extra with veggies if needed
- 1 tablespoon mustard powder (not liquid mustard)
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper
Veggies
- 2 cups mixed frozen veggies like carrots, peas, green beans
- 2-3 potatoes cut into 1.5 cm thick rounds or semi circles
- Oil for cooking
Instructions
Marinade
- Whisk all the marinade ingredients together, mix well and taste. It should be tart, salty, with the assertive warmth of the mustard and a little sharpness from black pepper. If you can't taste any of the elements then adjust the seasoning
- Take a fork and pierce holes into the chicken all over, these holes will allow flavour in but disappear once the chicken is cooked.
- Place the chicken in a bowl and pour the marinade over, using your hands (gloves or not, upto you) to make sure the marinade works its way in. Leave it in the fridge covered and breast side down for a few hours
- After a few hours flip it over and rub the marinade in once more till ready to cook. I suggest marinating for at least 6 hours, but prefer overnight.
Cooking
- Take the chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes to an hour before cooking - it will cook more evenly when it is not cold
- Heat a generous lug of oil (about ¼ cup) in a pot large enough to hold your chicken and veggies on medium high heat
- When the oil starts to shimmer carefully put the chicken in on it's back for 2-3 minutes, it will splutter so be careful!
- When the back takes on a lovely gold brown then move the chicken on to one side (leg) to get that lovely colour on each side and then finally the breasts. If your oil is hot it takes about 3 minutes to get colour. If the chicken sticks then that means it is not cooked enough yet.
- You can do this with your hands or with a tong, it is up to you, but building a little colour at this stage is absolutely key for flavour!
- When the chicken breasts are beautifully browned then add your veggies to the pot along with a pinch of salt, and half a cup of water. Let them fall to the side of the chicken.
- Bring to a boil then simmer tightly covered for 25-30 minutes.
- The chicken should look well cooked through and the potatoes done. Test a potato for doneness and seasoning. If it tastes bland your chicken may too so in that case turn the chicken over, add a little sprinkle of salt and let it steam for another few minutes.
- Serve hot with crusty bread.
Notes
Gotta run now, but want to make this later? No worries - just Pin the image below!
Hajira K says
Wow! Seriously wow…I followed this recipe exactly and it was beyond perfect and so simple to make. My only regret is having this bookmarked and not trying this sooner!
Sarah Mir says
YAY!!!! that makes me SO happy!! thank you so much! it's such a childhood favorite of mine!
Preeti says
Thanks for sharing! I'm definitely going to try this but maybe with a small change of just putting everything into a slow cooker for a few hours after searing the chicken 🙂
sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Ooh please do keep me posted!