Braised Lemon Chicken with Dill and Turmeric – Easy Weeknight Dinner Recipe
Fresh dill makes me happy. I love many herbs, but dill is right at the top of my list. The aroma reminds me of spring. Its bright green color cheers me up. The little baby herb fronds are so soft and fun to chop. Dare I say it? This herb is cute. Dill makes me smile. Weird? Yes. I must have been a pickle in my past life.
For centuries dill was used in medicinal concoctions for everything from colic to bad breath. During the time of Queen Elizabeth I dill was recognized for its culinary value and was added to her royal gardens. One recipe that appeared during the Elizabethan period calls for dill in a dish of steamed spinach and sliced shallots with lemon juice. The pairing of dill and lemon, even early on, makes perfect sense. Lemon and dill go together like peas and carrots, as Forrest Gump would say.
Nowadays dill is generally associated with pickling, but it can be used in all kinds of savory dishes. Here I’ve paired fresh dill with lemon juice and turmeric to create a simple and satisfying chicken entree. Chicken thighs are braised, slowly simmered with fresh dill in broth with a healthy does of anti-inflammatory turmeric spice. I also add a pinch of cayenne for just a touch of heat. Freshly squeezed lemon juice is added at the very end along with an extra sprinkle of fresh dill for a bright burst of flavor. This dish takes only 5 minutes to prep and another 40 minutes to cook, resulting in a satisfying entree just perfect for a weeknight meal. As obsessed as I am with dill, my husband and stepdaughter crave lemon. The flavor makes us all happy and I love the ease of preparation; this dish has quickly worked its way into our regular meal rotation. Enjoy!
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Braised Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Dill
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs, bone in skin on
- Salt and black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 onion sliced
- 1 quart low sodium chicken broth you won't need the whole quart
- 8 sprigs fresh dill + 1/2 tbsp chopped dill divided
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- Pinch cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt or more to taste
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or more to taste
NOTES
Instructions
- Heat olive oil on high in saute pan until it just begins to smoke. As oil heats, season the chicken thighs generously with salt and pepper.
- Sear the chicken thighs, skin side down, for a few minutes until they are golden brown. Reduce heat to medium. Remove thighs from pan and set aside.
- Add sliced onion to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, soft and starting to turn golden. Drain any excess fat from the pan.
- Return thighs to pan, skin side up. Pour in chicken broth until it reaches halfway up the sides of the thighs.
- Arrange the fresh dill sprigs over and around the thighs (reserve the chopped dill). Sprinkle on 1/2 tsp turmeric, a pinch of cayenne, and 1/4 tsp salt (if you’re salt sensitive, you may omit the salt here and simply add to taste at the end of cooking). Bring broth to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium.Cover the pan, vented, and reduce heat to medium low. Let the thighs simmer for 40-45 minutes, basting with the cooking liquid every 10 minutes or so, until meat is exceptionally tender.
- Remove thighs from pan. Remove the dill sprigs from the broth. Add 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice to the pan sauce, or more to taste, as well as additional salt and pepper to taste if desired. The sauce should be semi-thick at this point; feel free to thicken it further with a slurry of 1 tbsp water and 2 tsp cornstarch, adding slowly to the pan and stirring at a simmer until desired thickness is reached.Serve thighs and sauce topped with remaining freshly chopped dill. Pairs well with any neutral-flavored starch like rice, quinoa or mashed potatoes.
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
Research Sources:
Seymour, Miranda. A Brief History of Thyme and Other Herbs. New York: Grove, 2002. Print.
Though I eyeballed the spice measurements, the flavor combination in this recipe is unexpected and amazingly delicious. My whole family loved it. I’ll definitely make this again. Thank you for a creative recipe.
I googled fresh dill as I wanted to use it up and ended up on your recipe. I’m glad I used yours and not the other ones. I served it with orzo and cooked green beans. I was hoping to have leftovers…. it was so good we ate it all just the two of us! My husband never tasted turmeric and now he’s a big fan. Next time I might add mushrooms and/or black olives like suggested in the comments. It’s a keeper! Thanks.
PS I’ve never seen my husband enjoy a chicken dish like this one! He was licking his fingers!
Johanne
Happy to hear it! Hope this will encourage you to enjoy other recipes on the site as well. 🙂
This was an amazing dinner. So easy to make with simple ingredients equals very tasty. Made just as described for my family with the basmati rice. Asparagus is out of season so did broccoli steamed and lightly sated with some garlic. Will definitely be making this again. Thank you very much Tori.
Very glad you enjoyed it!
It was good. My husband enjoyed it! I also added some garlic, and it enhanced all the flavors nicely! Would totally add some next time I make this again.
Wow! So Good! We just returned from vacationing in Greece and I was really missing the flavors of lemon and dill. I simply googled dill recipes and this came up. So glad I clicked this recipe instead of the others. I added mushrooms with the onions and also did the slurry at the end. Now I have such a lovely gravy!
We have had this recipe twice and will one more time this week. First, myself and my husband; we loved it. Second time was with my two Sisters; we loved it again and later this week with two Sisters from our Church and I am certain there will be more applause. I have served it once with Israeli Couscous and once with roasted red potatoes. This week will be once again with the Israeli Couscous.
Thank you very much, Tori, for sharing this recipe. It is not the first recipe of yours’ we have tried and enjoyed and unlikely to be the last.