Island Chicken

Dinner was very traditional growing up. I'd say this was mostly due to my dad being a "meat and potatoes" type of man. We didn't really do casseroles or  ethnic dishes. Dinner was some form of meat, some starch, and some veggie. That is, except for the nights when we had pasta and I was the happiest kid alive, although I'm sure that doesn't surprise anyone.

When I was making my meal plan the other morning I wanted a "traditional" dinner. Nothing too exciting, just a piece of chicken with a simple baked potato and simple sauteed green beans. I planned to just season the chicken and bake it when I remembered seeing this recipe ages ago. Honestly, I hadn't given this recipe a second thought back then, but I quickly assembled the marinade and hoped for the best. I should have known better than to doubt Annie though because this dinner was excellent. It was that traditional meal I had been hoping for, but even better because the chicken was so flavorful. John loved it and went on and on so I intend to make this again.

**Side note, I didn't have the lemon juice the original calls for so I used orange juice, thinking citrus juice would do the trick. It was great, but I am eager to try it again soon with the lemon!

Source: Annie's Eats

Ingredients:
½ cup vegetable oil
3 tbsp. lemon  juice (orange juice worked wonderfully if you don't have lemon juice)
1½ tbsp. soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
½ tsp. dried oregano
¼ tsp. salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2-4 chicken breasts


Directions:

1- Combine all ingredients except chicken in a mixing bowl or large airtight plastic bag.  Whisk or shake well until the marinade is well mixed.  

2- Add the chicken breasts to the bowl or plastic bag so that they are covered by the marinade.  If using a bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap.  If using a plastic bag, press out all the excess air and seal the bag tightly.  Refrigerate and marinate up to 10 hours.

3- When ready to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 350° F.  Place the chicken breasts in a baking dish and pour the excess marinade over them.  

4- Bake in the oven until cooked through and the internal temperature reaches 165° F, about 20-45 minutes (exact baking time will depend on the size of your chicken pieces.)  Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.