SERVES2 to 3

INGREDIENTS

For the chicken:

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• Salt/Freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil

For the sauce (optional):

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon packed brown sugar
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• Pinch red pepper flakes

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the oven and season the chicken. Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 425°F. Place the chicken in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. The most basic seasoning that this meat really needs is salt and pepper. At this point, if I’m not adding another sauce, I drizzle a little bit of olive oil over the meat too, to help it brown well in the oven.
2. Make a sauce (optional). Whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl.
3. Toss the chicken with the sauce. Pour the sauce over the chicken and toss to combine.
4. Transfer the chicken to a baking dish. Place the chicken in a single layer in an 8- or 9-inch baking dish. No need to grease the dish, just lay the chicken inside.
5. Roast the chicken. Boneless, skinless thighs cook quickly. Roast until the chicken has an internal temperature of 165°F, about 20 minutes. If they are not ready, continue roasting and checking the temperature every 5 minutes.
6. Rest the chicken. Remove the baking dish from the oven, cover with aluminum foil, and let the chicken rest for 10 minutes. This will help it be more tender. Eat and enjoy!

RECIPE NOTES

Doubling: You can double this recipe and bake the chicken in a 9×13-inch baking dish.

Storage: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

PREP TIME: 5 MIN COOK TIME: 30 MIN TOTAL TIME: 35 MIN SERVINGS: 4 CAL: 649

INGREDIENTS

• 4 chicken breasts boneless, skinless
• 1 cup Caesar salad dressing 
• ½ cup sour cream (optional)
• 1-1½ cup Parmesan cheese grated

INSTRUCTIONS

• Heat oven to 375F and spray the inside of an 8″ x 11″ baking dish with cooking spray.
• If the breasts are uneven thickness, pound them (placed in a Ziploc bag and on a flat surface) to an even ¾”-1″ thickness using a meat pounder. Sprinkle the breasts (both sides) with grated Parmesan cheese & freshly ground black pepper, and place them in the prepared baking dish.
• Whisk together Caesar dressing and sour cream in a small bowl. Pour the Caesar/sour cream mixture over each breasts then sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese on top.
• Place the prepared chicken in the oven and bake at 375F for 30 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of one of the middle breasts reads 150°F.
• Turn the oven to broil and broil the breasts an additional 2-4 minutes or until the chicken turns golden brown. It can burn quickly, so watch it closely. When done, a meat thermometer should register 165F when stuck into the thickest part of one of the middle breasts. Remove from the oven, cover loosely with foil and allow chicken to rest 5-10 minutes before serving.
• If desired, garnish with chopped parsley.

Ingredients 

• 2 cups basmati rice
• salt
• 3 tablespoons plain yogurt
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons neutral-tasting oil

Directions

1. Fill a large stockpot with 4 quarts of water and bring to a boil over high heat.
2. In the meantime, place rice in a bowl and rinse with cold water, swirling vigorously with your fingers and changing the water at least five times, until the start has run off and the water runs much clearer. Drain the rice.
3. Once the water comes to a boil, salt it heavily. The precise amount will vary depending on what kind of salt you’re using, but it’s about 6 tablespoons fine sea salt or a generous 1⁄2 cup kosher salt. The water should taste saltier than the saltiest seawater you’ve ever tasted. This is your big chance to get the rice seasoned from within, and it’s only going to spend a few minutes in the salted water, so don’t panic about over-salting your food. Add the rice, and stir.
4. Set a fine-mesh sieve or colander in the sink. Cook rice, stirring from time to time, until it’s al dente, about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain into the sieve and immediately begin rinsing with cold water to stop the rice from cooking further. Drain.
5. Remove 1 cup of the rice and combine it with the yogurt.
6. Set a large, very well seasoned 10-inch cast iron skillet or nonstick frying pan over medium heat, then add the oil and butter. When butter melts, add the yogurt-rice mixture into the pan and level it out. Pile the remaining rice into the pan, mounding it gently toward the center. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, gently dig five or six holes into the rice down to the bottom of the pot, which will be gently sizzling. The holes will allow steam to escape from the bottommost layer of rice so that a crisp crust can form.) There should be enough oil in the pan so that you can see it bubbling up the sides. Add a little more oil if needed to see these bubbles.
7. Continue cooking rice over medium heat, turning the pan a quarter turn every 3 or 4 minutes to ensure even browning, until you start to see a golden crust begin to form at the sides of the pan, about 15 to 20 minutes. Once you see the crust turn from pale amber to gold, reduce the heat to low and continue cooking for another 15 to 20 minutes. The edges of the crust should be golden, and the rice should be cooked completely through. There isn’t a way to tell what tahdig will look like until you flip it, so I prefer to err on the side of over-browning, but if that makes you uncomfortable, pull the rice after about 35 total minutes in the pan.
8. To un-mold the rice, carefully run a spatula along the edges of the pan to ensure that no part of the crust is sticking. Tip out any excess fat at the bottom of the pan into a bowl, gather your courage, and then carefully flip it onto a platter or cutting board. It should look like a beautiful cake of fluffy rice with a golden crust.
9. And if for any reason your rice doesn’t slip out in one piece, do what every Persian grandmother since the beginning of time has done: scoop out the rice, chip out the tahdig in pieces with a spoon or metal spatula, and pretend you meant to do it this way. No one will be the wiser. Serve immediately.