Name: Garlic-Roasted Chicken Breasts
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: Makes 4 (main course) servings
Ingredients: 3 large garlic cloves; 1 teaspoon dried oregano; Scant 1/2 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes; 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; 4 chicken breast halves with skin and bone (2 to 2 1/4 lb total)

Thick chicken breasts can be hard to get just right; often you're left with a too-dry, too-bland dinner. But this high-heat roasting method results in crisp, crackly skin that gives way to moist flesh, perfumed throughout by a pocket filled with herbed garlic paste.

Recipe information

Total Time
40 min
Yield
Makes 4 (main course) servings

Ingredients

3 large garlic cloves

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Scant 1/2 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

4 chicken breast halves with skin and bone (2 to 2 1/4 lb total)

Preparation

Step 1
Preheat oven to 500°F with rack in upper third.
Step 2
Mince and mash garlic to a paste with 1/2 teaspoon salt, then transfer to a bowl. Stir in oregano, red-pepper flakes, oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
Step 3
Cut a 2-inch-long pocket (about 1 1/2 inches deep) horizontally in side of each breast half and spread 1/2 teaspoon garlic mixture into each pocket. Coat chicken with remaining garlic mixture.
Step 4
Roast chicken, skin sides up, in a foil-lined large shallow baking pan until just cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes.