Freezer-Friendly Italian Lemon Chicken

Guest post from Michelle.

Yeast is one of those ingredients that is becoming banned from more and more people’s diet lists, for various health reasons. I recently did some food allergy cooking for a friend who had about 50 items to which she was allergic, yeast being one of them.

I wanted to serve her a salad but did not know what to do with the vinegar (yeast is often an ingredient in vinegar) found in most store-bought and homemade salad dressings (not to mention the other ingredients she had to avoid).

After doing some research, I came up with an Italian dressing recipe that turned out SO delicious.

You will Love This Easy Lemon Chicken Recipe

I made the dressing again, this time as a marinade for our chicken.

My husband’s response was, “That’s the way marinade on chicken is supposed to taste. I couldn’t quit eating it.”  

It really was that good, very healthy, and simple to make.

Baked Lemon Chicken Ingredients

• 4-6 pounds of chicken (Use whatever chicken you desire, whether chicken breasts, chicken thighs, drumsticks, cut-up fryer, etc.)
• 1/3 cup lemon juice (about 1 large lemon)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup grapeseed oil, canola oil, or olive oil (or a combination of oils)
• 1/2 t. garlic powder
• 1/2 t. basil
• 1/2 t. oregano
• 1/2 t. paprika
• 1/2 t. onion powder
• 1/2 t. kosher salt
• 1/2 t. black pepper

How to Make Lemon-Baked Chicken

To Marinate:

1. Rinse chicken and remove any fat or skin (if desired).

2. Separate into two freezer bags (or baking dish if cooking right away).

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, water, oil, and spices to make the marinade.

4. Pour 1/2 the marinade into each freezer bag; seal tightly and place in the freezer.

5. When ready to cook the chicken, remove bag from freezer and place in a baking dish in the refrigerator to thaw for about 24 hours.

6. Once thawed, allow to marinate as long as you can.

To Cook:

1. Place pieces of marinated chicken in a greased baking dish.

2. Bake at 325º for 1 hour.

3. Turn the heat up to 375º and bake for another 20-30 minutes.

Lemon Chicken Recipe Easy Variations

You can substitute apple cider vinegar for the lemon if desired — although it will change the flavor somewhat.

You can also mix and match the seasonings to fit your family’s taste preferences.

This chicken would cook beautifully in the crockpot or on the grill if you don’t want to heat up your kitchen.

What to Serve with Italian Lemon Chicken

I recommend serving the chicken over steamed rice with a side of vegetables.

It would also be great with a baked potato and Cesar salad.

How to Store This Italian Lemon Chicken Recipe

The marinated bags of chicken can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours, or frozen for up to 3 months.

Once the chicken is cooked, you can refrigerate any leftovers in food storage containers.

Freezing Italian Lemon Chicken

We recommend freezing the marinated chicken in zip-top freezer bags to save space and for easy cleanup.

If you want to freeze the chicken after baking, it’s easiest to cut the chicken off the bones and into bite-size pieces. Freeze the chopped chicken in 1 or 2-cup containers to use in soup, casseroles, etc.

How to Reheat This Italian Lemon Chicken Recipe

After the chicken is cooked, you can simply microwave it to reheat — or pop it in the oven at 250 for 15-20 minutes.