This creamy lemon chicken recipe is ideal for those who are looking for an easy yet tasty low carb recipe to cook. It will only take a few minutes to prepare and requires only basic ingredients.
The creamy sauce, which is made with heavy cream and unsalted butter, makes the chicken taste so delicious. And, this creamy lemon chicken from ThymeWithApril is so satisfying, and you can serve it for lunch, dinner, or on special occasions, such as Thanksgiving!
It’s guaranteed to delight your guests even if they are not following a low-carb diet.
Recipe notes
Smoked paprika
The original recipe calls for smoked paprika but I’m not sure it’s a good idea to use smoked ingredients but it really depends on how much you use overall.
Scientists at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center tested the potentially harmful effect of foods and flavorings on the DNA of cells.
They found that teas, coffees and “smoky flavoring” could be damaging our DNA at levels comparable to that caused by chemotherapy drugs. Smoked paprika and hickory smoke powders caused some damage but less so.
Related reading: Is Mold in Coffee Bad for You?
I’m always a bit wary of smoked spices now because a test that my husband had done showed a DNA adduct (a segment of DNA bound to a cancer-causing chemical) that came from smoked products.
When a chemical binds to DNA, it gets damaged resulting in abnormal replication. The only thing we could think of that he used was a herb and spice mixture which contained smoked paprika.
Although the researchers say that more studies need to be done especially on tea and coffee with all their known benefits there have been previous studies done on smoked products and I believe it’s best to be wary of these and not have them too often.
Good Quality Produce
It’s important to use the best quality chicken and other ingredients for the recipe if you can. Even if you are simply following a low carb diet for weight loss and not all the other health benefits of it you still want to be healthy don’t you?
I’ve tweaked the recipe to include organic, free range or pastured chicken. If you are wondering what the difference is then I’ll try to explain.
Organic Chicken
This means that the diet chickens are fed is organic and farmers adhere to organic principles. They can apply for organic certification if the principles are met.
It’s hard to know exactly how they are raised unless you know the company where they came from and read what they say about how they raise the chickens.
They may not able to forage for bugs or grasses like pastured chickens but may be fed a grain based diet to fatten them up. On the other hand they could be organic and pastured which would be better.
Pastured Chicken
Pastured means the chickens have access to grass 24/7 although they may be housed at night to keep them safe. They are moved frequently so they have access to fresh grass. The birds are kept in small groups of about 50 to 75 birds so they are less likely to succumb to disease.
Free Range Chicken
Free-range chickens are not caged. The have access to a fenced outdoor area which may also have some type of netting or fencing over it to keep them safe from predators.
Different countries have different legal requirements for birds to be labelled free range. The USDA’s requirement for Free Range is that birds must have “outdoor access” or “access to the outdoors.”
In some cases, this can mean access only through a “pop hole,” with no full-body access to the outdoors and no minimum space requirement. Not too good really is it?
So to find out what your label really means you have to do a bit of research and then stick to the brand that gives the most reliable information.
Want some more low carb and keto chicken recipes? Try these tasty ones:
Keto Chicken Breast Recipe in Creamy Pesto Sauce
Mediterranean Chicken Recipe
Keto Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Keto Chicken Casserole with Mushrooms (Slow Cooker Recipe)
Low Carb Spicy Buffalo Chicken Meatballs Recipe
Low Carb Creamy Lemon Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 slices of boneless and skinless organic or free range and pastured chicken breast
- 1 cup organic chicken broth (low sodium)
- 1 tbsp. chopped garlic
- 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 1/3 cup shallots, chopped
- 1/4 cup organic heavy cream
- 2 tbsp. unsalted grass fed butter butter
- Avocado or coconut oil
- Juice of 1 organic lemon
- 1 organic lemon, sliced
- Fresh parsley, chopped
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Himalayan salt
- Paprika
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190C) .
2. Place the chicken in a Ziploc and pound the meat with a rolling pin until it’s about 2 inches thick.
3. Season the meat with pepper, salt, and paprika on both sides.
4. Put the chicken broth in a bowl. Add the lemon juice, garlic and red pepper flakes. Mix the ingredients together.
5. Place a skillet on medium or high heat and heat the oil. Cook the chicken breast for 2 to 3 minutes on each side until lightly browned. It will be finished in the oven so don’t worry about it being undercooked. Remove the chicken from the skillet and place on a plate.
6. Pour the chicken broth mixture into the same skillet and add shallots. Whisk all ingredients together. Allow the broth to simmer for up to 15 minutes to reduce and thicken up a little. Add the butter. allow to melt then add the cream. Stir well. Put the chicken back into the skillet and coat with the creamy lemon sauce.
7. Bake in the oven for 8 to 10 min or until the chicken is fully cooked. Top your creamy lemon chicken with chopped parsley and lemon slices. Serve with a salad or a low carb vegetable dish and enjoy!
Check out April’s video demo of how to prepare this creamy lemon chicken.
