Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Five-star lemony chicken breasts, a Pierre Franey favorite

This quick, classic recipe yields juicy white meat in an assertively bright sauce.
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Cooking

January 31, 2024

Four bronzed chicken breasts sit in a cast-iron skillet filled with an herb-flecked sauce.
Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cybelle Tondu.

Lively and Elegant and Not at All Dry Chicken Breasts

Getting chicken breasts right is a flex, but a tricky one. The delicate white meat, so low in fat, can go from supple to chalky in only one distracted, phone-checking, heartbreaking minute.

Pierre Franey's five-star recipe for chicken breasts with lemon solves this problem by searing the chicken quickly on both sides until golden brown and then building a sauce in the same skillet. The meat finishes cooking in the liquid, which keeps it from overheating. The pan sauce is rich and tangy, filled with shallots, thyme, two full teaspoons of grated lemon zest and, of course, butter (a French cook's answer to most things). And the chicken emerges tender and redolent of citrus and herbs. Pierre suggests serving it over mashed potatoes with basil and olive oil, but I also love it with crispy roasted potatoes, which are easier, anyway.

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Chicken Breasts With Lemon

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Either of those potato dishes would make a fine partner for Kevin Noble Maillard's microwave salmon, a paragon of silky, speedy simplicity. Kevin's recipe calls for immersing the fish in salt water to subtly season the fillets, allowing their oceanic flavor to shine. Add a dollop of your preferred condiment (mustard, mayonnaise, chile sauce, pesto), or else serve it with a drizzle of good olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. It's one of the easiest meals you can make and has practically no cleanup — a boon for busy salmon lovers everywhere.

Shrimp fans might try Eric Kim's take on shrimp fried rice, conveniently made from bagged frozen mixed vegetables, with a splash of mayo-ketchup sauce decorating the top. Not as instantaneous as the salmon, perhaps, but still an easy triumph for the harried.

The freezing, long nights of January may be lifting a little, but soup season remains in full effect. My new recipe for coconut black bean soup will help cut the chill, whether sporadic or relentless, of February and March. It's creamy (though nondairy), spicy and cumin-scented, with coconut milk adding a gentle note of sweetness. Quick-pickled onions in lime juice provide a bracing garnish.

Similarly warming, but starring penne (or rigatoni or cavatappi), we have Hetty Lui McKinnon's mushroom and cottage cheese pasta. The cremini mushrooms, cooked with onions and garlic until caramelized, are puréed with cottage cheese into a thick and creamy sauce full of sweet, earthy flavors. A bright hit of fresh parsley and red-pepper flakes cuts through the plushness.

Last up, here's some chocolate to ease us into February: my dairy-free olive oil brownies with sea salt. These fudgy squares of bittersweet complexity are topped with crunchy salt, which makes them extra hard to stop eating. But pace yourself, because those heart-shaped boxes are right around the corner.

Naturally, you'll want to subscribe to get these and all the other amazing recipes at New York Times Cooking (and thanks to you if you already do). If you need any technical assistance, you can send an email to the good people at cookingcare@nytimes.com. And I'm at hellomelissa@nytimes.com if you want to say hi.

That's all for now, see you on Monday.

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David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Hadas Smirnoff.

Microwave Salmon

By Kevin Noble Maillard

15 minutes

Makes 2 servings

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David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist; Simon Andrews.

Shrimp Fried Rice

By Eric Kim

30 minutes

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Article Image

David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Coconut Black Bean Soup

By Melissa Clark

35 minutes

Makes 4 servings

Article Image

Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.

Mushroom and Cottage Cheese Pasta

By Hetty Lui McKinnon

30 minutes

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Article Image

Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times

Olive Oil Brownies With Sea Salt

By Melissa Clark

40 minutes

Makes 16 brownies

Fresh, delicious dinner ideas for busy people, from Emily Weinstein and NYT Cooking.

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Tanya Sichynsky shares the most delicious vegetarian recipes for weeknight cooking, packed lunches and dinner parties.

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Tanya Sichynsky shares the most delicious vegetarian recipes for weeknight cooking, packed lunches and dinner parties.

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