Lemon Butter Chicken

By Maria Lichty

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Quick Summary

Lemon Butter Chicken-this easy baked chicken recipe only requires 6 ingredients! The chicken is tender with a rich, buttery lemon sauce that is exquisite! This chicken dish is guaranteed to be a family favorite!

Lemon butter chicken in pan

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If you are looking for a REALLY good chicken recipe that you can make over and over again, this Lemon Butter Chicken is it! It is the perfect easy weeknight meal, but also fancy enough to serve when entertaining. It is a guaranteed favorite and turns out perfectly every single time.

You only need six ingredients and it only takes about 30 minutes to make! The chicken is perfectly tender and the lemon sauce is rich, buttery, but still light at the same time. It’s so good you will want to drink it or lick your plate:)

This simple chicken recipe is from my friend Jessica’s new cookbook, Everyday Dinners. The entire cookbook is filled with delicious dinner recipes. The recipes are fantastic and Jessica includes so many helpful tips to make dinnertime a breeze! Everyone needs this cookbook, it really is a dinner lifesaver.

lemon butter chicken recipe

Lemon Butter Chicken Ingredients

I love this recipe because you only need six ingredients and the ingredients are kitchen staples. This chicken dinner is easy to whip up any night of the week!

  • Chicken breasts– use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and slice them in half lengthwise
  • Olive oil– preferably extra-virgin olive oil
  • All-purpose flour– if you need the recipe to be gluten-free you can use your favorite gluten-free flour
  • Butter– the butter gives the sauce a rich flavor
  • Garlic– a must!
  • Lemon– you will need fresh lemon juice and lemon slices
  • Fresh Parsley– for garnish, optional, but so pretty and fresh!
baked lemon butter chicken on plate with salad

How to Make Lemon Butter Chicken

Are you ready to make the most simple and delicious chicken recipe out there? Let’s get started!

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Pound the chicken breasts with a meat tenderizer until they are the same thickness. Season them on both sides with 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Pro tip-you can pound the chicken ahead of time and keep it in the fridge until you are ready to make the meal.
  • Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive to the pan.
  • Take each chicken breast and dredge it through the flour, making sure it’s completely covered but shaking off any excess flour. Place it in the pan and repeat with the other chicken breasts, cooking for 3 to 4 minutes, then flip and cook them for 3 minutes more. This will have to be done in batches.
  • Transfer the chicken to a baking dish and repeat with any remaining chicken, using the remaining olive oil as necessary.
  • Once the chicken is out of the pan, keep the skillet over medium low heat and add the butter. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the lemon slices and lemon juice.
  • Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, flipping the lemons in the pan. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour the lemon-butter mixture over the chicken in the baking dish. The sauce is INCREDIBLE!
  • Bake the chicken until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with fresh parsley.

Serving Suggestions

This lemon butter chicken is the perfect meal because it goes with everything and is good in the spring, summer, fall, and winter! It is a staple recipe, anytime of the year.

Here are a few sides that we like to serve with lemon chicken:

Those are a few ideas, but really, any side dish goes! You can view more options HERE!

How to Store

Store any leftover chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days.

easy lemon butter chicken recipe

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Lemon Butter Chicken

Lemon Butter Chicken-this easy baked chicken recipe only requires 6 ingredients! The chicken is tender with a rich, buttery lemon sauce that is exquisite! This chicken dish is guaranteed to be a family favorite!
4.62 from 118 votes

Ingredients
  

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Pound the chicken breasts with a meat tenderizer until they are the same thickness. Season them on both sides with 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
  • Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive to the pan.
  • Take each chicken breast and dredge it through the flour, making sure it’s completely covered but shaking off any excess flour.
  • Place it in the pan and repeat with the other chicken breasts, cooking for 3 to 4 minutes, then flip and cook them for 3 minutes more. This will have to be done in batches. Transfer the chicken to a baking dish and repeat with any remaining chicken, using the remaining olive oil as necessary.
  • Once the chicken is out of the pan, keep the skillet over medium low heat and add the butter. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the lemon slices and lemon juice. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, flipping the lemons in the pan. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour the lemon-butter mixture over the chicken in the baking dish.
  • Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F. Remove the chicken from the oven and sprinkle with fresh parsley. Serve immediately.

Notes

Recipe from Everyday Dinners by Jessica Merchant

Nutrition

Calories: 390kcal, Carbohydrates: 22g, Protein: 27g, Fat: 20g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 102mg, Sodium: 134mg, Potassium: 506mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 391IU, Vitamin C: 22mg, Calcium: 23mg, Iron: 2mg
Keywords chicken

Have you tried this recipe?

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Photos by Olive & Mango

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Maria

I'm Maria and my husband is Josh. We share a love of cooking, baking, and entertaining. We enjoy creating recipes that are simple, fresh, and family friendly. We love sitting around the table with good food, good conversation, and good friends and family! Our kitchen is always open!
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4.62 from 118 votes (100 ratings without comment)

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Comments

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    1. 5 stars
      We love this easy and very delicious recipe — the fully cooked chicken is very moist and tender. Our local grocers sell thin-sliced boneless chicken breasts which make this recipe even more of a breeze.

  1. Why does your picture look like the sauce has red in it – or it looks like you added paprika or something to turn it that color? Iโ€™m making this tonight and I want my dish to look exactly like yours! Yum! ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. I suspect the butter gets browned a little bit giving it this color and rich flavor.

    2. I think that’s just the browned part of the chicken. I don’t see any red.

  2. 5 stars
    I just made this for a group of 9 so I doubled the recipe and wow it was delicious! Iโ€™ve never received so many compliments

  3. 4 stars
    Lovely dish. I make something similar by adding 1/2″ slices of chorizo sausage and use olive oil in place of butter to turn it into Spanish lemon chicken. Try adding peppers, carrots or whatever takes your fancy. Yummy….

  4. 5 stars
    Made this last night and it was fabulous! Served with mashed potatoes and salad. I enjoyed how easy it was to make, and the sauce while admittedly a bit oily, was very tasty!

  5. 1 star
    I am stunned by the number of 5-star reviews for this recipe. The sauce was terrible. The chicken cutlets were delicious! But the sauce was so sour it rendered the dish practically inedible. My mother-in-law made the recipe another night and felt the exact same way – she said it was an “epic fail” and they could barely eat it. Maybe the 5-star raters didn’t use fresh lemon juice, and the bottled stuff isn’t as strong?? I am mystified. The sauce was AWFUL. I’m sorry to be so harsh. But it was.

    1. I used fresh lemon and juice and it was way too strong.
      The chicken was very tender and moist, but it was quite sour. Could have done with like 2-3 tbsp instead of 1/4 cup.
      I even added extra butter before I baked it. It didnโ€™t help cut the sour at all.

  6. 5 stars
    Iโ€™m 68 and have cooked many, many chicken dishes over the years. This one deserves every one of itโ€™s five stars, not just for the delicious finished product, but for the ease of preparation. Even the warmed up leftovers are great. My husband and I really enjoyed this. Thanks, Maria ! Another winner !

  7. I am making this tonight.
    With complete confidence,as all Mariaโ€™s recipes are 100% winners in my book!
    Happy holidays,

  8. 5 stars
    So delicious! I subscribe to receive your โ€œRecipes to make this weekโ€ email and this was in the most recent one. I look forward to each and every recipe that you send! So many new favorites have been added to my recipe folder. This one is exceptional! Thank you so much, Maria!

  9. 5 stars
    You knowโ€ฆ..think Iโ€™ll try the recipe tonight. I think that just. Maybe the people who complained about this recipe being sour or not good was because lemons come in quite large seizes ( like as big as an Orange). I have big ones and will only use half of it. Let you know. Carol

    1. I wonder this too – we have a Type 1 Diabetic in the house so not using flour would reduce the carbs signficiantly. Did you try it? I might just and hope for the best!

  10. 5 stars
    I made this for dinner tonight, as written, with no changes. It was memorable. The chicken was moist and so flavorful. This recipe is definitely a keeper, and a great option for the next time we have company. Yum!

  11. 5 stars
    Loved this recipe, chicken was so tender. I am making it for my family when they next visit. Do you think Meyer Lemons might sweeten the chicken a bit. If not, what do you suggest? Thanks

  12. 5 stars
    This was delicious! Received rave reviews from my husband. The chicken came out so juicy and was quite easy to make.