Immune Boosting Chicken

Hullo!  With NYC nights getting quite brisk and beautiful puffs of snow falling from the sky I can’t help but crave warming comfort food.  This week I’m inspired to share with you one of my crowd-pleasing (read as: Adam and Grace because it’s the times we’re still living in) go-to dishes: Honey Lemon Ginger Chicken.

But that’s not all!  I also add turmeric, garlic and black pepper.  These additions are optional but these and all the main ingredients in this dish are anti inflammatory and/or immune boosting.  Really, it should be called Immune Boosting Chicken but it helps to look at the name of a recipe and get an idea of what’s in it.  Am I right?  

Preventive medicine can be the best medicine. 

It helps to make the recipe as written at least once then figure out how to tweak it to your degree of perfection when you revisit.  And have all the ingredients at the ready when making it for the first time so you’re not scrambling to get it altogether when the fires are burning.  The more familiar I become with a recipe the more I can get creative with using whatever I have on hand.  This is definitely one of those recipes where you can learn to do the same.  

Please let me know when you make this or If you have any questions or comments.  Enjoy! 

Ingredients 

3 T of cooking fat/oil

~2 lbs of chicken thighs, bone in, skin on

Salt

Ginger blend:

2” of ginger thinly sliced

1” of turmeric root minced or 1 teaspoon of dried turmeric (optional)

2 medium garlic cloves crushed (optional)

½ t of freshly ground black pepper

Glaze:

¼-⅜ C of honey

¼ C of lemon juice

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400F

2. On stove top, preheat oven proof, heavy bottomed pan, that fits all the chicken in one layer (it’s ok if it’s crowded), over medium heat with fat/oil

3. When a drop of water can sizzle in the pan add ginger. Stir to coat. Sauté for 1-2 minutes. If using turmeric and garlic, add them now with the black pepper and sauté until garlic becomes fragrant, about 1 minute. 

4. Remove as much of the additions from step 3 as you can while leaving the seasoned oil in the pan and set aside.

5. Salt chicken generously then add to pan skin side down.  Brown both sides of the chicken, and finish with skin side up.

6. Combine honey, lemon juice, ginger blend and pour over chicken before placing entire pan in the oven

7. Allow to cook for 30 minutes basting every 10 minutes or so until thighs reach internal temperature of 165-170F and honey lemon glaze has thickened.

8. Remove pan from oven and serve.

   Notes:

   • Time in the oven is dependent on the size of chicken pieces used.  Internal temperature should reach a minimum of 165F. 
     

   • If using drumsticks, the meat is more tender when cooked to internal temperature of 175F.
     

   • If using turmeric in the recipe please make sure to add the black pepper.  It makes the anti inflammatory compound in turmeric more bioavailable. 
     

   • If chicken is finished cooking but you’d like the glaze to be thicker then remove pan from oven, set chicken aside and put pan on stovetop over low/medium heat.  When simmering, stir occasionally until desired thickness is achieved then pour over chicken.