Slow Roasted Chicken Breast (Juicy!)

Name: Slow Roasted Chicken Breast
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: 4 chicken breasts (deskinned and deboned); 1 tsp paprika; ½ tsp ground coriander; ¼ tsp garlic powder; ½ tsp ground white pepper; ½ tsp salt; 1 Tbsp olive oil; 1 cup chicken stock; ½ stick butter (cut into 4 or 5 pats); 2 sprigs rosemary

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It’s winner, winner, chicken dinner with these juicy, slow roasted chicken breasts.

Slow Roasted Chicken Breast featured image

Say goodbye to boring, dry boneless chicken breasts. Life is too short to settle! The convenience and versatility of boneless, skinless chicken breasts is a plus, but too often they are baked or sauteed in a way that leaves them somewhere near “Meh” and definitely short of amazing. And while the popularity of rotisserie chickens has made dinner time easy – pick one up on your way home from work and it’s warm and ready to go, you still have to deal with bones and skin — and sometimes, the seasoning is a bit too salty. By roasting your own boneless, skinless chicken breasts at home you can control the seasoning and ensure that they turn out juicy every time.

Before you even taste the finished product fresh out of your oven, your home will smell so good and cozy. The smell of roasted chicken wafting through your kitchen creates that warm, inviting feeling and is just a hint of the delicious flavor to come. Once you cut into the cooked chicken breast, the juicy texture is proof alone that roasting is the way to go. No more dry, rubbery meat that needs a good sauce or dip! This chicken stays moist. The classic chicken flavor is amplified by the spices rubbed on the outside before baking, and while there’s nothing fancy about the flavor, it is perfect on its own or can be used in any number of other dishes requiring baked chicken.

Ingredients

4 chicken breasts skinless and deboned
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp Garlic Powder
½ tsp ground white pepper
½ tsp salt
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup chicken stock
½ stick butter cut into 4 or 5 parts
2 sprigs rosemary

How to Make Slow Roasted Chicken Breast

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 325F. Then mix the spices together with the salt to make a rub.

Step 2: Sprinkle the spice mix over the chicken breasts and pat it to get the rub to stick nicely to the chicken.

Step 3: Drizzle olive oil into a casserole dish and place the chicken into the dish.

Step 4: Pour in the chicken stock and then place the pats of butter around the chicken. Toss the rosemary sprigs into the casserole dish too.

Step 5: Cover the dish with aluminum foil and then place in the oven to bake for 60 minutes. Take it out every 20 minutes or so and use a spoon to pour the butter and chicken over the breasts to baste them.

Step 6: Remove the foil and baste the breasts again before serving them.

FAQs & Tips

How to Make Ahead and Store?

One of the best parts about this chicken recipe is that you can definitely make it ahead and freeze for a later use. First, pour the accumulated juices into a small airtight container. Freeze this separately from the chicken. Then wrap the cooled, cooked chicken pieces (individually) in plastic wrap. Place those pieces in a larger resealable bag and close. Freeze (or refrigerate if using within 1-3 days) for up to 3 months. For leftovers, you can refrigerate leftovers for up to 4-5 days or freeze for up to 3 months, wrapped following the instructions above.

What can I substitute for white pepper?

White pepper, with its milder flavor profile and earthy taste, is part of the spice rub on these chicken breasts. If you need to substitute, either use a slightly smaller amount of ground black pepper, pink pepper, or an equal amount of ground (sometimes called dry) mustard. White pepper adds zest without heat – experiment to see what tastes good to you before substituting!

Double check the seal!

A huge part of this recipe’s success comes from the tight seal of the foil on the dish. The tightly sealed foil allows the moisture from the steam to stay in the dish instead of evaporating. Going around twice, feeling for gaps is not neurotic in this case – making sure there is a tight seal is essential to retaining that moisture. Same goes for the subsequent times you re-seal the foil when basting during the roasting time.

What does basting do?

The two or three times you uncover the chicken during the roasting time to spoon the butter and chicken stock over the tops of the chicken breasts is the basting. While you may associate basting with a big turkey in the oven, it definitely has its place here too. When cooking, the tops of chicken breasts are exposed to the most air, so tend to start (the dreaded) drying out faster. Basting keeps moisture on this top layer of the chicken so that doesn’t happen.

How do I avoid tough cooked chicken?

While this recipe is almost foolproof, you do want to make sure you don’t overcook the chicken. Overcooking is one of the most common reasons boneless skinless chicken breasts are underwhelming. As the timer winds close to the 60-minute mark, check the chicken in 3-to-5-minute intervals. Start at 55 minutes. If you have a meat thermometer, it should read at least 160-165 degrees for food safety.

Serving Suggestions

For a weeknight meal that comes together quickly, prepare a stovetop side dish like green beans almondine or rice pilaf during the 60-minute roasting time. For other possible side dishes, check out Baked Bree’s Pasta with Peas or Stovetop Macaroni and Cheese. You can also let it cool, slice it and serve this chicken atop a main meal Caesar or Cobb salad. The possibilities abound!