Diana Henry is one of our favourite food writers and we can’t recommend her book of chicken recipes, A Bird in the Hand, highly enough. This lemon & pistachio chicken from that book is nothing short of delicious. She cooks this every year, and we think we may too.
Wine Suggestion: There’s a richness to this dish that demands an equal wine like Zind Humbrecht’s Pinot Gris Calcaire from Alsace that had an excellent balance of depth, fruit, freshness and texture.
Lemon & Pistachio Chicken – serves 6
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- leaves from 2 sprigs of thyme
- 70g unsalted butter
- 120g shelled pistachio nuts
- 40g white breadcrumbs, plus extra if needed
- finely grated zest and juice of 2 unwaxed lemons
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- good pinch of caster sugar
- handful of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- 6 large skin-on boneless chicken breasts
- 2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
- 300ml chicken stock
Put the shallots, garlic & half the thyme into a pan with 50g of the butter and a pinch of salt. Cook over a low heat for 5 minutes, then tip into a large bowl.
Chop the pistachio nuts or blend in a food processor until coarsely chopped. Add the breadcrumbs and nuts to the shallot mixture. Add the lemon zest and juice, oil, sugar and parsley. Season well and stir to make a stiff, coarse paste. If the mixture is too dry add a little more oil and it too wet a few extra breadcrumbs.
Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6.
Put the point of a sharp knife into the thicker end of each chicken breast and cut a cavity that runs along the length. Season the chicken inside the pocket, then use a teaspoon to fill the hole with the stuffing. Squeeze the sides together to close the incision as much as possible. Season the chicken on the outside, drizzle with a little olive oil and put into a roasting tin. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
When the chicken is cooked remove the chicken from the tin and skim off the fat from the juices. Put the roasting tin over a medium heat and splash in the white balsamic vinegar and stock. Bring to a rolling boil and reduced until slightly thickened. Add the rest of the butter and thyme and serve poured over the chicken.
(Original recipe from A Bird in the Hand by Diana Henry, Mitchell Beazley, 2015.)
This looks heavenly. Thanks for sharing the recipe 👍😃🤤
A friend of mine cooked this recently. It was absolutely gorgeous. Diana Henry is a legend.
Couldn’t agree more Maura. We love her recipes and this one was fab. Can’t wait to get her new book! J&J