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A simply easy yet elegantly delicious dish. Lemon zest and juice give the chicken and pasta bright flavors with thyme. A sauce is made out of brown bits leftover from the chicken, which can easily be used to dress mashed potatoes, rice, or my favorite, spaghetti! You can count on this no-fail recipe to become a new weeknight favorite. No cream is needed for this comforting dish!
The lemon zest is grated onto the chicken then sear with the thyme and other spices. I pounded out the chicken because some of them were uneven in size, which means it’ll cook unevenly. It also tenderizes the meat, making the cooked result more tender. The sauce is made with wine, garlic, lemon, butter, and chicken broth. It adds more flavor to the sauce and makes sure there’s enough sauce for whatever you use to take in the sauce. I used spaghetti. It’s just a go-to for me when it comes to wine sauces like this. There isn’t much prepping needed for this dish, it’s a kitchen-sink recipe in a sense!
How to make Easy Lemon-Thyme Chicken with Pasta
This dish takes about 30 minutes total to cook. If you don’t have white wine in the house, you can use white grape juice. Another option, and this might be strange, but ginger ale is also a good substitute! I added some sauteed spinach to mine, but it also goes well with roasted broccoli or
- Chicken Breasts
- Butter
- Lemon Pepper: Some lemon peppers are seasonings, while others are just lemon pepper. I used a lemon pepper seasoning that does have salt in it, so I was careful not to oversalt. If you have lemon pepper that doesn’t have salt in it, feel free to salt the dish to your liking!
- Garlic Powder
- Fresh Thyme
- Lemon Juice and Zest
- Garlic
- White Wine: If you don’t have white wine in the house, you can use white grape juice. Another option, and this might be strange, but ginger ale is also a good substitute!
- Chicken Broth
Pound out the chicken breasts to about 1/4 inch thickness, then season with lemon pepper, garlic powder, fresh thyme, and lemon zest. Salt the chicken if your lemon pepper does not have salt in it already. Heat a large skillet on medium heat, add butter, and melt, then add the chicken. Brown them on both sides, then remove them from the skillet. The chicken will cook in the sauce! Bring a large stockpot of water to a boil and boil spaghetti until al dente, 9-10 minutes. Add some more butter to the skillet and allow it to melt. Add the garlic and cook until golden brown, scraping up any brown bits that remain, about 1 minute. Deglaze the pan with white wine and allow to reduce a little bit so the alcohol cooks out, then add the chicken broth and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer, then add the chicken back to the skillet. Cook until the chicken reaches 165F inside. Once the spaghetti is done, strain from the water and place into the skillet. The remaining water will thicken the sauce from the starch. Toss, then serve.
Tips & FAQs
- You can add charred lemon slices to this chicken dish. They can be charred in the same skillet before you start the chicken, or in a separate skillet while you make the chicken/sauce. Cut the lemon into thin slices, brush or spray them lightly with olive oil, and put in a skillet over medium-high heat. Check them every 2-3 minutes, and flip when the underside starts to have small blackened spots. So simple!
- Can I use other proteins? I used chicken breasts in this recipe. However, feel free to use thighs, or other meats altogether. Pork, shrimp, beef, are great alternatives.
- I don’t have time for thyme! Well, you can use other herbs if you want! You could use rosemary, sage, basil, oregano as well. For a more subtle herb flavor, simply go with some parsley.
- Does it have to be a fresh lemon? I recommend using a fresh lemon. Only because you need the zest to make this lemon chicken. I know there’s a lemon peel/zest spice bottle lying around somewhere in the supermarkets, but I love using freshly grated zest. Just brings a little more brightness to the dish itself.
- If you don’t want to use a fresh lemon, which I recommend you do because it costs less, you can use lemon peel in the spice bottle and the squeezable lemon juice.
- Add some heavy cream to make this a creamy dish!
Want the recipe? Click print below! Let me know how it came out for you by tagging me on Instagram (@missravenskitchen) and using #missravenskitchen! Follow my Facebook page for updates as well! Let me know if I need to tweak anything.
Easy Lemon-Thyme Chicken with Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts, split in half then pounded to 1/4 inch thickness (should be 4 pieces total)
- 1 1/4 tsp lemon pepper
- Salt, if desired
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
- 3 tbsp butter
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped finely
- 3/4 cup dry white wine
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 lb spaghetti
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat on medium heat and melt 1 tbsp of butter. Cook the chicken just until it’s brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Set aside. The chicken will be cooked with the sauce!
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti according to package directions.
- Add the remaining butter to the skillet and melt over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until golden brown, about 1 minute.
- Add the white wine and simmer for 5 minutes, allowing the alcohol to cook out and reduce. Add the lemon juice and chicken broth. Place the chicken back into the sauce and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the chicken reaches 165F internal temperature.
- Once the pasta is done, strain the noodles from the water and place them right into the sauce. The starch from the water on the pasta will thicken up the sauce a little bit.
- Toss the pasta in the sauce and serve with extra lemon zest and cheese.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
257.8Fat (grams)
11.77Sat. Fat (grams)
6.14Carbs (grams)
4.38Fiber (grams)
0.46Net carbs
3.91Sugar (grams)
0.97Protein (grams)
24.98Sodium (milligrams)
421.25Cholesterol (grams)
96.39I did my best to research! Let me know if these are correct!
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