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Lemon Chicken Taco Dinner on a white ceramic plate

Recipe: Lemon Chicken Taco Dinner


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  • Author: Jenn Giam Smith
  • Total Time: 4 hours 44 minutes
  • Yield: 6 people 1x

Description

A delicious grilled chicken dinner that’s sure to impress even the pickiest of eaters. Made with a basic marinade, it’s packed with great flavor and plenty of food to fill those hungry tummies.


Ingredients

Units Scale

The Lemon Chicken Dinner

  • 3 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • Marinade (see lemon marinade directly below)
  • 16 oz Cheddar Cheese
  • Guacamole (store-bought or use the recipe directly below)
  • Pico de Gallo
  • 2 cups Rice [white/brown] (instant or you can cook your own.)
  • 1 cup Black Beans (cooked, you can use canned, or dried, but account for the time needed to soak and cook dried beans)
  • 3 1/2 oz Corn tortilla strips (store-bought or use the recipe below)

Lemon Marinade

  • 1/2 cup light-tasting olive oil
  • 5 Tablespoon lemon juice
  • 3 dashes Worcestershire
  • 2 Tablespoon taco seasoning

Guacamole

  • 3 ripe avocados
  • 1/4 cup Pico de Gallo
  • 3 Tablespoons Fresh Cilantro (chopped)
  • 3/4 teaspoon Salt

Corn Tortilla Strips

  • olive oil
  • Seasoning Salt
  • black pepper
  • six-inch Corn Tortillas


Instructions

Start by making the marinade

  1. Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, Worcestershire, and taco seasoning until combined well.
  2. Pour over the chicken breasts (or other meat of choice) seal in a food-safe bag, and marinate in the refrigerator for the allotted time to achieve the flavor strength you want (up to 3 days).

When you’re ready to cook the chicken…

  1. Preheat your grill to 400°F.
  2. Place the marinated chicken on the grill for about 10 min or so. Flip and continue to cook. Chicken should cook until internal temp hits 160°F
  3. Once the chicken is cooked to 160°F, take the chicken off and top each chicken with a handful of cheddar cheese, let sit with tented foil for about 5-10 min. Internal temp will hit 165°F
  4. While the chicken is resting, if you plan on making guacamole, make that now.

Making Guacamole

  1. ***Preparation Notes: Guacamole should be served as soon as you make it. Don’t make it in advance. It doesn’t keep well. It turns brown very quickly.
    Don’t chill the guacamole. It should be served at room temperature.
  2. Add the avocados to the molcajete and grind until slightly chunky.
  3. Add [wprm-ingredient text="<wprm-ingredient uid="13" removed="0">¼ cup Pico de Gallo" uid="4"] to the molcajete and incorporate. Do not grind the Pico de Gallo (I slightly smash it, but leave chunks).
  4. Add cilantro (start with about 2 Tablespoons because the [wprm-ingredient text="Pico de Gallo" uid="4"] also has cilantro. You can always add more).
  5. Add salt if necessary

For the corn tortilla Strips

  1. ***This can be made ahead of time, even a few days before***
  2. Cut [wprm-ingredient text="six-inch Corn Tortillas" uid="19"] into strips (size is up to you)
  3. Cover the strips in [wprm-ingredient text="olive oil" uid="16"], seasoning salt and pepper.
  4. Lay on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake at 350ºF for 5-10 minutes or until crunchy & golden brown.

To Assemble:

  1. Place a scoop of Rice, then black beans.
  2. Place chicken on top.
  3. Top with guacamole, pico, and tortilla strips.

  • Prep Time: 14 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Category: Dinner
  • Cuisine: Mexican-American

Nutrition

  • Calories: 999
  • Sugar: 4
  • Sodium: 3273
  • Fat: 49
  • Saturated Fat: 19
  • Carbohydrates: 75
  • Fiber: 5
  • Protein: 65
  • Cholesterol: 191