July 28, 2022

Lemon Chicken with Charred Leek Sauce

Say hello to your new dinner on rotation: lemon chicken with charred leek sauce! This crispy lemon chicken is marinated to perfection (and brined too if you prefer) and served with the most amazing charred leek, lemon, jalapeño and green onion sauce to serve over, under or alongside this dish.

Serve with rice, with salad, and you’ll have dinner on the table in no time!

Ingredients you need for this lemon chicken recipe

Chicken: For this recipe we are using chicken legs, but you can use any of your favorite chicken cuts like bone-in chicken breasts, boneless skinless chicken breast, or chicken thigh, both of which would work great.

We are marinating the chicken with butter AND olive oil, with a dash of paprika, lemon zest and juice. However, you can totally opt to remove butter if you want to make this non-dairy. I love the butter since it not only adds extra umami flavor, but also helps get the chicken really crispy.

Lemon juice and lemon zest: Not only are we using lemon zest and juice in the chicken marinade, but we are also charring lemon with our sauce ingredients for extra lemon-y flavor and that charred lemon flavor for the sauce, which is my favorite!

Leeks: The star of the sauce are large leeks. We are charring the leeks with green onions/scallions, jalapeño and lemon. Then it’s all chopped up, tossed with shallots, dijon mustard and olive oil to create a delicious, punchy lemony sauce!

Herbs of choice such as thyme and/or rosemary

Black pepper and kosher salt

Instructions to make this recipe

Marinate your chicken and prep your grill

Let’s marinate the chicken to start. I like to brine my chicken the day before, but it’s not fully necessary, so up to you! If you’re not brining, next, heat up a pan, or a grill.

On a sheet tray, shallow dish or pan, add in your chicken legs and marinate your chicken by seasoning with olive oil, melted butter, a pinch of paprika, salt, pepper, lemon juice, lemon zest and thyme. Set aside to marinate or cook immediately. Place on your heated grill to grill chicken, or in a large skillet on the stove top.

Make your sauce

While your chicken is cooking, make your sauce. On the grill, oven or stovetop, char your leeks (wash and trim) and cut in half vertically, green onions/scallions, jalapeño as well as lemon halves. Season with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Add on the grill or stovetop until charred.

Keep an eye on your vegetables, the lemon will be taken off first, then the green onions and the leeks last – according to your preference of char. Remove all and let cool until cool enough to handle.

When cooled, finely slice your leeks, green onions and jalapeño. Place your mixture in a small bowl to medium sized bowl and drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper, sugar, minced shallots and dijon mustard, as well as your charred lemon juice. Mix.

Assemble!

When your chicken is crispy and golden brown on the outside, and cooked on the inside, remove from the grill or stove, serve with your charred leek sauce either on top of the chicken, underneath the chicken, or served alongside. Feel free to garnish and serve with more lemon slices. It should be tangy and super saucy! Enjoy!

Tips, Tricks and Substitutions

How do you prepare and cook leeks?

To prepare:

You’ll begin by trimming off the roots, and the dark coarse parts at the top of the leeks. Cut the leeks in half, lengthwise and wash under cool water between all the layers, and dry. If I’m doing rings of leeks, I will cut them up, then place in a bowl of water to make sure they are thoroughly rinsed, and then dry for them.

To cook:

In this recipe, we are charring on the grill/skillet, then slicing, but you can use leeks for anything from stocks, bases for braises to even salads and soups.

How do I brine chicken?

The night or day before, I like to brine my chicken. Sometimes I forget, and I won’t but it does make a difference in not only flavor, but also tenderness! All you need to do is place your chicken covered with water, salt and pepper in a tight covered container/bowl/bag that closes.

If you’re looking for more recipes using leeks, you can check out our Pasta with Leeks and Green Peas, Caramelized Leek and Cabbage Pasta with Lemon or Creamy Potato Leek Soup.

More chicken recipes you’ll love

If you do make this Lemon Chicken with Charred Leek Sauce (first of all, thank you!!), be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram and through social media so I can be sure to see what you’re making! If you’d like to stay in touch and get the latest to your inbox, sign up for our Newsletter here as well!

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