Lemon Rosemary Chicken – Cooking With Essential Oils

Delicious lemon rosemary chicken is pan fried in butter and baked in the oven to give it an irresistibly crispy skin with juicy tender meat. It’s loaded with flavor and healthy too!

I actually haven’t done a whole lot of cooking with essential oils yet. I’ve thrown a drop of orange in chocolate (you seriously HAVE to try it), made peppermint brownies, and whipped up iced lavender lattes.

I often throw a drop of lemon in my morning smoothie.

In a pinch, I toss a drop of cilantro and lime into my homemade guacamole.

Ok, when I type it all out like that, I guess I do use them in my kitchen. But, up until tonight, never in baked meats and potatoes.

Well my sister Laura, from Our Oily House, stopped by and changed that! She had been talking about making lemon rosemary chicken for a while now, and I simply had to try it. I invited her over to make a video with me, and dinner too of course.

Imagine that. Inviting your little sister over to make you dinner. Everyone needs a little sister or two.

Or in my case, three. Thanks mom and dad!

I loved the chicken we made tonight. I really did. But, would you believe it… the star of the show was the lemon honey mustard dressing she made for the salad.

Wowza that’s going to be a new staple in the old farmhouse!

This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.

Why cook with essential oils anyway?

You may be wondering why you would even want to bust out the essential oils when cooking in the kitchen. Well, the main reasons are convenience and flavor.

Each drop of essential oil packs in a super concentrated version of everything that is in the herbs/fruits that they come from.

For example, it takes 45 lemons to make one 15 mL bottle of lemon essential oil.

Want something to have a lemon flavor without having to zest five lemons? Use a couple drops of lemon essential oil!

Want the flavor of fresh rosemary, but it’s the dead of winter and the frost done snatched away everything from your beautiful herb garden? Just add a drop of rosemary essential oil.

Best essential oils for cooking

Peppermint

One drop will flavor a whole batch of coconut flour brownies, making them perfect for a holiday gathering. I also like to add it to peppermint mochas. Peppermint is an excellent aid for digestion and one drop is equivalent to 28 cups of peppermint tea.

*Don’t consume peppermint essential oil if you are nursing.

Citrus oils

Lemon, orange, and lime are all wonderful oils to use in the kitchen.

I add a drop of lemon essential oil to my morning berry kefir smoothie. It’s delicious, energizing, and detoxifying.

Lime (next to cilantro essential oil) is great for all things Mexican- taco meat, guacamole, rice, etc.

Italian spices

Basil, thyme, oregano, and rosemary are all great for cooking. Be careful though, because these are STRONG.

Sometimes all you need is just a toothpick dip, not a whole drop.

Basically this just means to stick a toothpick in the bottle of essential oils and then stir the toothpick around in your dish. Sounds crazy, right? I’m telling ya, you’ll taste it.

Essential oils are just THAT strong.

Can you just cook with any old essential oils?

No. Essential oils aren’t regulated by the FDA, so you never know what the heck you’re getting.

Plus, if they’re not organic, the concentration level of essential oils makes that a huge problem. If it’s bad to eat non-organic basil, imagine how bad it would be to eat several bunches of it.

That’s basically what you would be doing, since essential oils are so concentrated. It’s important to know where they are sourced from.

I only trust Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade. You can get more info on that HERE in my free online essential oils class.

Watch The Tutorial

Sign up for our “Cooking with Essential Oils” class HERE.

Tips:

• If using one or two drops of essential oils is too much for you, you can use the toothpick method. Dip a toothpick into the top of the essential oil bottle and then swirl the toothpick into the butter. This will just add a touch of flavor.
• Use a cast iron skillet so you can brown the chicken first to add more flavor and then bake the chicken in the same skillet. Less dishes to clean.
• Wait until the skillet with butter is nice and hot before adding the chicken. This will help it not stick but also the chicken develops that nice crispy skin and flavor.
• Don’t use just any essential oils. See above the only brand I use.

Tools you may need:

Cast iron skillet

Spatula

Measuring spoons

Lemon Rosemary Chicken Ingredients

4 pounds chicken thighs (with the skin on and bones in)

1 drop rosemary essential oil

2 drops lemon essential oil

1/4 cup butter

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

How To Make Lemon Rosemary Chicken

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Preheat a large cast iron skillet on the stovetop over medium to high heat.
3. Add the butter and essential oils to the cast iron skillet.
4. Once the butter is hot enough to produce a sizzle when the chicken hits it, add the chicken thighs. Cook them on one side until browned, and then flip.
5. Sprinkle the chicken with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
6. Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and bake for one hour.
7. Serve next to crispy potatoes and a fresh salad, sauerkraut, or sautéed brussel sprouts.

I share all my tips for crispy potatoes in the cast iron skillet in this post.

Lemon Honey Mustard Dressing

My sister showed me how to make this the other night. I mean I was expecting it to be good, but it was amazing. Pretty sure I will be making this almost daily now!

The ingredients are simple and healthy.

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup mustard
• 1/4 cup mayo I like to use my homemade avocado mayo
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 drops lemon essential oil

Mix all the ingredients together in a glass jar. Pour over salad, chicken, veggies…anything that you would ever use honey mustard on. Check the expiration date on your mayo. This should keep about that long, since the mayo is the first thing to expire.

I tried tossing this over some chicken thighs about midway through baking and it was delicious. The lemon adds such a fresh flavor, even in the dead of winter.

What to serve with this recipe:

• Crispy potatoes
• Sourdough dinner rolls
• Green Bean Casserole From Scratch
• Zucchini Lasagna
• Green salad with Kefir Ranch Dressing

My free essential oils class

Get my FREE essential oil class HERE.

Find more delicious dinner ideas straight from our farmhouse kitchen:

• Stuffed Bell Peppers with Ground Beef
• Best Chicken Pot Pie Recipe With Sourdough Biscuits
• Skillet Pork Chops With Garlic And Butter
• Cheeseburger Soup Recipe
• Chicken Salad Recipe – 3 Ways

If you try this recipe and love it, I would love if you gave it 5 stars! Thank you!

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