Lemon Garlic Chicken With Raisins

Submitted by Sydney Mike

"This was found in the Sun-Maid 'fruit & sunshine recipe book' that I received during a recent cookbook swap! With 'lemon' & 'garlic' & 'chicken' how could I not post it here! Prepartion & cooking time does not include time to cook the brown rice (about 1 hour)!"

 

• Ready In: 45mins
• Ingredients: 12
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1⁄4 cup lemon juice, fresh
• 1⁄2 teaspoon lemon zest, minced
• 2 cups carrots, sliced
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄8 teaspoon pepper
• 3 cups cooked brown rice, hot
• 3⁄4 cup dark raisin
• 2 tablespoons parsley, fresh, chopped

directions

1. Heat oil in heavy frying pan over medium heat, then add garlic & cumin.
2. Sautee until aromatic, about 2 minutes.
3. Add chicken breasts & saute about 2 minutes, turning chicken over to brown on both sides.
4. Add lemon juice & bring to a simmer, then cover & simmer 10 minutes.
5. Add zest & carrots & continue simmering another 10 to 20 minutes, or until chicken is fully cooked.
6. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
7. In another bowl or pan, combine hot rice with raisins & parsley, then serve.

Reviews

[TasteTester]

I rated this 4 stars because of the flavor -- the chicken was very juicy and I loved adding raisins to the brown rice mixture. They were perfect together; it was yummy, and something I would never have thought of doing. As far as the prep directions, I would have to give 3 stars. I found some problems and changed some things. I browned the chicken first, removed it from the pan, and then added the garlic & cumin for 2 minutes. I felt they would get a little bitter after cooking in the pan for 2 minutes, and then another 2-3 minutes at a medium-high setting to brown the chicken. Using just the 1/4 cup lemon juice wasn't enough to make the carrots soft. After 30 minutes total as the recipe stated to cook the carrots and chicken, the chicken was done and the carrots were still quite hard. Next time, I'd parboil them separately and add them for the last 10 minutes the chicken was cooking. The lemon juice got quite dark and thick in the pan, so next time I'll add a little chicken broth to make a nicer sauce. Finally, when preparing the rice, after the rice has boiled and set on a burner to simmer, it will be ready when the entire meal is prepped and cooked. I don't think it has to be made ahead of time. These are helpful comments, not criticisms, that I hope will help in preparing this dish.