Roasted Chicken with Grapes
I make dinner almost every night for my family. Those dinners range the gamut from pasta, to seafood to steak and chicken. It really depends on what we’re in the mood for. While I love chicken and steak, my boys are partial to pastas and pizza. But since we can’t eat chicken nuggets and pizza every night, I make nice, healthy dinners for the family during the week and then on the weekends the boys get their pizza.
One way I keep things healthy is by using simple ingredients. Turns out an oven, a little salt and pepper and some organic chicken make a delicious meal. You don’t need all the extra BS. Now that’s not to say the extra BS isn’t delicious. I love panko. I love spices and sauces. I love adding something unexpected to give the entreé a little extra umph. But again, that extra umph comes from all natural ingredients as opposed to a jar. Marinara sauce? My own. Terriyaki? All mine. Salad dressing? It’s as simple as whisking together a little olive oil, vinegar and lemon juice.
While spices and sauces are great, one thing I really love adding to my entreés is fruit. Seasonal fruit combined with a salty protein makes for a wonderful dinner. See, I love sweet things, but add a little salt and the whole flavor experience is so much better. It just adds depth. Why do you think it’s so important to add salt to baked treats? Because that salt actually makes those sweet treats even sweeter! The same is true when you add a sweet fruit, like grapes, cherries or strawberries to a savory dish.
While citrus juices are the most common choice when it comes to adding fruit to savory dishes, citrus adds a completely different flavor because it hits a different part of your palate. Citrus takes care of the sour flavors. They add a bright, tanginess that is absolutely necessary in bringing a dish together. But adding a sweet aspect rounds out the dish. It’s why you’ll often find raisins or currants in a couscous or pilaf. It gives you a more complete experience. And that’s what the grapes are in this dish. They provide that sweetness, making it a wonderful weeknight option when you want something a little more interesting than your basic roasted chicken breast.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
- salt and lemon pepper
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 bunch red seedless grapes, cut into small clusters
- 1 garlic head, separated and cloves peeled
- 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1/4 cup chicken stock
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F and season chicken with salt and pepper.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large oven-proof skillet over high. Add chicken, skin sides down, and cook, undisturbed, until skin is browned and crisp, about 10 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate.
- Add grapes, garlic, rosemary and stock to skillet, stirring and scraping up any browned bits. Return chicken to skillet, skin up, nestling it among the grapes. Drizzle with remaining oil.
- Place skillet in oven and roast chicken for about 25 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted in the breast registers 155°F. Let chicken rest 10 minutes; serve.
