These healthy garlic lemon chicken bites are the easiest weeknight meal you’ll ever make! Tender chunks of chicken breast are tossed in a flavorful mixture of flour, Italian seasoning, salt, garlic powder, and lemon zest before being pan seared. The finishing touch is a squeeze of lemon, fresh garlic and light butter. After simmering for just a couple of minutes, these chicken bites are ready for serving alongside your favorite side dishes, like over creamy mashed potatoes and with a vegetable. Add this easy recipe to your rotation, made with lots of pantry staples and family-friendly, too.
All about this recipe
This recipe was born when I wanted to make a quick, homecooked dinner when I was feeling under the weather. I looked in my fridge and pantry, and pulled out a handful of ingredients and some chicken breast, and this recipe was created. The ingredients in this recipe are all items that most households will have on hand: flour, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, kosher salt, garlic, lemon, and light butter. Although the ingredients are simple, together they create a delicious and flavorful quick pan sauce that coat these tender chunks of chicken in a beautiful way.
This recipe is easy to make, even for the most beginner cooks; the chicken is simply tossed in flour and pan seared quickly. The total cook time for the chicken is only 10-15 minutes. The best part is that in the same pan, simply toss the sauce ingredients with the chicken to finish the dish, making a delicious and family friendly meal in just 20 minutes.
Finally, serve this delicious dish alongside a starch like mashed potatoes or rice, and your favorite vegetable.
What you’ll need to make this recipe
- chicken breast
- all-purpose flour
- You can substitute gluten-free flour, if you wish.
- garlic powder
- Italian seasoning
- kosher salt
- lemon
- You’ll need the zest and the juice of the lemon.
- olive oil spray
- light butter
- I used this one: Light (icantbelieveitsnotbutter.com)
- garlic
How to make these garlic lemon chicken bites
Start out by cutting the chicken breast into bite-sized chunks. Add the flour to a bowl, and add the Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, and lemon zest to the flour. Toss to combine.
Toss the chicken bites in the flour to coat thoroughly. In the meantime, preheat a skillet or small Dutch oven over medium high heat, and add olive oil spray. Working in two batches, sear the first batch of chicken for a couple of minutes per side, until golden brown on the outside and thoroughly cooked. Add more olive oil spray on the tops of the chicken as needed. The internal temperature of the chicken should be 165F (you should use a meat thermometer to determine when the chicken is fully cooked). The total cook time of the chicken will be about 5-7 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken.
Remove the first batch of the chicken, and place it in a clean bowl to the side. Repeat this step with the remaining chicken. Remove the second batch of chicken from the pan and set aside. Reduce the heat on the skillet to medium to medium low. Next, wipe the skillet clean with a damp cloth to remove any burnt bits from the pan. Finally, add the cooked chicken back to the skillet, and then add the minced garlic, juice of the lemon, and the light butter. Toss the chicken bits in the sauce and simmer it on low heat for 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
Healthy Garlic Lemon Chicken Bites
Equipment
- skillet or small Dutch oven
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken breast, chopped into bite-sized chunks
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced
- 1/4 cup light butter, used: I Can't Believe It's Not Butter (Light)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breast into bite-sized chunks.
- Zest the lemon.
- Add the flour, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, kosher salt, and lemon zest to a bowl.
- Stir to combine the ingredients.
- Toss the chicken chunks in the flour mixture to coat the chicken evenly.
- Preheat the skillet over medium high heat.
- Add olive oil spray to the pan.
- Working in 2 batches, add half of the chicken to the skillet and cook for a few minutes per side.
- Cook the chicken until the outside is golden brown, and the inside is cooked through (temperature should be 165F internally). Add more olive oil spray on top of the chicken, and again as needed.
- Total cook time for the chicken should be about 5-7 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken pieces.
- Remove the first batch of cooked chicken from the skillet, and repeat the cooking process with the remaining chicken.
- Mince the garlic, and juice the lemon.
- Remove the second batch of cooked chicken from the skillet.
- Wipe the skillet clean with a wet towel if there are burnt bits in the pan.
- Lower the heat under the skillet to medium low.
- Add the cooked chicken chunks back to the pan, and add the minced garlic, juice of the lemon, and the light butter.
- Toss the chicken with the garlic, lemon and butter in the skillet.
- Cook the sauce and the chicken for another couple of minutes or until the flavors combine.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
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This recipe was quick and easy to do. My husband loved the flavoring. I did add a yellow squash as it was in my fridge but the recipe was not missing a thing. Thanks for sharing 🙂
So easy and yummy
So flavorful! Adding to the rotation
Quick and flavorful recipe!!
These bites were delicious! They were served on a mixed greens salad with a garlic dressing. Yummy!
Great flavor!! Yum!! Added to a little bit of rice. Wish I would have made more!
These chicken bites were super tender and delicious, also very quick to pull together. Really economical too, used two chicken breasts for four family members and served with couscous and salad on the side. Definitely keeping as part of our dinner rotation 🙂
I can eat this every single day 🤘😅
Another great recipe! Made it last night and it was a hit!
SO GOOD! definitely will be making this every week or every other week! It’s so good and was a huge hit with my family
This recipe tastes amazing!! A little difficult to make the first time but worth the effort. I think I’ll work smarter next time and it will be easier. Thank you for the recipe!!
I made this for dinner tonight. Super easy to make and my son said it might be his new favorite dinner. Thanks for all the great recipes.
My family loved this! I added a squeeze of Dijon at the end. My husband said this was restaurant quality.
Very good! This was an easy recipe and packed a lot of flavor.
Made for the first time tonight, beyond delicious! Just printed the recipe and added to my binder – will definitely be a frequent repeat at my house. The flavor was just amazing. Steph did it again!
This is so delicious. Tangy and feels indulgent!!
Simple and Delicious!
So simple but delicious and full of flavor! I’ve made it twice now and it’s loved by the family!
This is so yummy! I love the smooth lemon buttery taste! Can be paired with anything to make a great easy dinner!
I have been making this weekly, so delicious and filling.
So delicious and quick to make!
Everyone lived this! Definitely making again.
This is a delicious, super easy recipe and is great to have on hand when you don’t really feel like cooking. Served with some rice and sauteed green beans make a great meal!
My goodness! This was amazing!
Ive been wanting to try this for a while now. I decided to make it this week as part of a meal prep for lunch. This is amazing. The sauce is wonderful, Im thinking of making it with shrimp some other time. I will be paring this with rice, and roasted green beans.
Fabulous!
LOVED this recipe. It was efficient, fast, and delicious. My husband requested we keep it in rotation.
Best chicken I’ve ever made! My husband said it tasted like Chic-fil-A!
My Mom made this forever. It was a recipe given to her by a family friend. We call it “SPECIAL CHICKEN” after frying it in the butter , my Mom would put it in a Corning Ware casserole and bake it , so it’s fried , then baked!
Tasty! So quick and easy too!
So so good!!! Didn’t change a thing, delicious!