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.
OMG! This recipe incorporates all my favorite things! Lemon, dill and turmeric. Sooo delicious! I’ve never heard anybody put into words how I feel about fresh dill but you did ? yum. True love of this dish!
Very good and easy! I dredge my thighs in flour before I seared to make the sauce a bit thicker and juiced a whole lemon…will make again!
It was yummy! I used instant Pot instead for 20 min to simmer after I browned the chicken and the chicken melts in your mouth. I don’t have turmeric, I used ginger instead and it’s excellent since my kiddos were sicked it was probably better for them. I will try with turmeric next time.
This is one of the best Lemon Chicken dishes that we have ever tried (and we try most of them). Many of my fave flavors and I just love the dill and turmeric with the bright lemon sunshine. 🙂
Hi Tori, This recipe looks very delicious. I will give this a try. Q: Is there another herb that can be substituted for the dill ? Thank You:) CL
Hi Caren! I love dill here, but thyme would also be nice. A little rosemary would work too, but just a little so it doesn’t overwhelm the lemon flavor. 🙂
Great recipe! I added lemon slices and olives during the simmering process and it’s delicious! Thanks Tori!
Glad you enjoyed it Romeo!
Also tried adding the lemon slices while simmering but it tasted bitter ☹️
Hi Hannah, I don’t recommend adding slices while simmering. Romeo had good results, but if they simmer too long they can indeed cause a bitter taste.
Going to try this. What would you serve with it?
I usually serve it with a simple steamed white basmati rice, the rice soaks up the sauce and it’s very tasty. I also serve it with a green side, like roasted asparagus: https://toriavey.com/oven-roasted-asparagus/
can you make this the day before?
Yes, but I recommend reserving some fresh dill to garnish with before serving.
This looks absolutely delicious. Thank you for sharing this recipe! I love recipes that make use of dill in tasty ways. Can’t wait to try this one at home!
Thank you for sharing this! I made this with boneless, skinless thighs and used freshly squeezed lime juice instead of lemon juice because that’s what I had on hand, but it came out beautifully and made a perfect sauce. I ate it like an open-faced sandwich on schwarzbrot slices.
we dont like the thighs can i use breasts and what should i change about instructions
This recipe is really developed for thigh cut. You could use bone-in skin-on breast, but the cook time would depend on weight (they won’t take as long to cook), and without testing it I would hesitate to give you the wrong instructions.