Tag: baked chicken

This “so simple it’s crazy” chicken dish is pure comfort food, baked to perfection if you like it juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside.

I used bone-in chicken thighs but you can use breasts, drumsticks or a mix thereof.  Cooking with the bone-in tends to give it more flavour & helps retain moisture.  If you like Southern fried, it tastes similar but without the breading & excess fat – a healthy alternative.

Place chicken on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Sprinkle chicken generously with garlic salt, dehydrated chopped onion (or onion salt) + white pepper on both sides.  Rub it in, then put bay leaves over top.  Pour fresh lemon juice & a little bit of extra-virgin olive oil on top & cover with thinly sliced lemons.  Bake at 325 F for about 1 ½ – 2 hrs. or until crispy on the outside.  Turn oven off & leave for up to ½ longer.

Inspiration for this delicious recipe came from a renowned urban diner in Chicago, namely the “White Palace Grill.”  There are Diners and then there are Diners!

Open since 1939, The White Palace Grill might be the finest example of an urban diner in Chicago or anywhere else for that matter.  It has managed to stick around while other businesses have come and gone.

In addition to an extensive lunch and dinner menu, the White Palace Grill serves up eggs practically any way you can think of 24 hours a day. The diner attracts city workers, policemen, firemen, business people, college students, politicians, the after hours club crowd and just about anybody. The mix of people is terrific and diverse. It is an urban oasis.

Just as a picture tells a story (if the walls could describe every patron who has walked into the place they could write a book), the White Palace Grill is a key part of Chicago history. If you need a break from “caramelized onions”, “infused” sauces and names of food you can’t pronounce then go over anytime 24 hours a day 365 days a year.

Of course it helps to live in Chicago.