Lindley Chicken

The SMACKdown:
I'm happy to bring you a brand new recipe today! This recipe is not of my own creation, but was passed on to me by my friend Brittany. Let me tell you the story of how I first came to taste the yumminess of Lindley Chicken.

When Maggie and I adopted Levi my amazing coworkers organized to bring us meals for the first couple of weeks so that we could spend our time falling in love with our new baby and not have to worry about cooking meals. This was an incredible gift and we felt (and still feel) so lucky to have such awesome people in our lives, especially during this exciting, magical and sleepless time.

Let me tell you that all the food that was delivered was scrumptious, but one meal really knocked my socks off! My lovely friend/coworker Brittany brought us what she called Lindley Chicken. It was savory, salty, scrumptious, comforting and a wholesome dish that I couldn't get enough of! I of course asked her for the recipe which she gladly passed on, along with the history of its origins.

Lindley Chicken is Brittany's mom's recipe and it gets its name from Brittany's childhood friend (last name Lindley) who always wanted Brittany's mom to make this specific chicken dish when she ate over. Thus, this homemade meal received its name, Lindley Chicken, and the rest is history.

Aside from Lindley Chicken being absolutely delicious, it's also super duper easy to make (only 5 ingredients total!), quick to make and it's nutritious. Also, it introduced me to the world of braising!

When Brittany gave me the recipe I was so excited to see that one of the ingredients was Bragg's Liquid Aminos! My mom cooked with this stuff all the time and I hadn't seen it or even though of it in years! Bragg's can basically be substituted for soy sauce or tamari sauce in any recipe. I am happy to have this as a staple in my pantry now.

I've made Lindley Chicken in two different ways - with chicken thighs (the way Brittany cooked it) and with chicken breasts. I will provide instructions on how to cook it both ways because the instructions are slightly different. Brittany served Lindley Chicken over steamed white rice which I highly recommend.

Also, I want to highlight a kitchen utensil that I use every day (no hyperbole here) that comes in handy with this meal... rubber tipped tongs! Get some. You'll thank me :)



Ingredients:

• 4 chicken thighs (bone-in with skin) or 1 full chicken breast cut into quarters
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1/4 c. Bragg's Liquid Aminos
• 1/4 c. orange juice
• 1 TBSP olive oil

*If you are cooking chicken thighs, unless you like really salty food (which I do) reduce the amounts of Bragg's and orange juice that you use b/c the thighs absorb more of the liquids than chicken breasts.

Instructions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium to medium-high heat.

2. Add the crushed garlic and let it heat up for 30 seconds, stirring it around in the pot.

3. Place the chicken in the pot and let them cook 3-4 minutes until browned.

NOTE: If using thighs, you will want to cook the skin side down first!

4. Using your tongs, turn the chicken over to cook another 3-4 minutes to brown the other side.

5. Add the liquid aminos and orange juice to the pot, cover with a tight fitting lid and turn the heat to low.

6. Set your timer for 20 minutes and when the bell rings, BAM you're done! (told ya it was easy)

Let's all thank Brittany (and Brittany's mom) for this awesome meal and let me know if you try it out!

What have you been braising lately?