Oven-Roasted Chicken in a Special Extra Virgin Olive Oil Sauce

We're sharing a new oven-baked chicken recipe with an olive oil sauce — very easy to make and ready in just 30 minutes. The result is genuinely impressive for the time it takes and the simplicity of the ingredients. I encourage you to try it and send me your feedback so I can keep improving it!

Ingredients for 4 people:

• 4 medium potatoes
• Thick-cut chicken fillets
• Onion (optional)
• Parsley
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tomatoes
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 glass of unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preparation time: 30 minutes

First things first — the moment you walk through the door, before you've even taken your jacket off: preheat the oven to 190°! Yes, it's not the first time someone has spent ages peeling and chopping, only to find — whoops! — the oven is stone cold. At that point the kids start snacking on breadsticks or cheese, and your carefully prepared recipe ends up getting reviewed by a bunch of people who are already full before they've even tasted it, haha. While the oven heats up, peel the potatoes and slice them thinly. Thinly — not transparent, don't go overboard! ;). There's also the temptation to cut them thicker to save time: don't do it! If you do, the potatoes will come out undercooked or need a lot more time in the oven, which defeats the whole point. Right, let's not dawdle — the minutes are ticking. Now take a little olive oil and spread it over the baking tray so the potatoes don't stick. Then lay the potato slices in the tray so each one slightly overlaps the previous. This keeps them from sticking to the bottom and helps them come out in one piece. Add a little salt and put them in the oven for 15–20 minutes, depending on your oven. You'll know they're done when they give way with a gentle press of a fork. If you're making the recipe with onion, add that in too, alternating potato slices and onion rings so they're evenly distributed. I didn't add any because my daughter doesn't like onion (actually, she detests it, bless her). But the recipe is better with a bit of onion — sweet onion especially. While the potatoes are cooking, defrost the chicken in the microwave. 8–10 minutes should do it. And while the potatoes are browning and the chicken is defrosting, get on with chopping the parsley. What do you mean you don't have parsley?! Don't be lazy — pop downstairs for a minute and grab a bunch from the fishmonger or the corner shop that's always open. Go on! You've got time! When you're back with your parsley, peel the garlic and slice it, then peel the tomatoes and chop them very finely. If I'm in a rush, I sometimes use a grater or even a blender. Keep it brief — two or three quick "turbo" bursts and you're done. By now roughly 20 minutes should have passed since you put the potatoes in (unless you stopped for a beer on the way back from getting the parsley, of course). Time for the chicken. Pull out the tray and lay the fillets on top with a little salt and ground black pepper, being careful not to burn yourself. Then slide the tray back in the oven for another 10 minutes. If you have a grill function, switch it on now — it'll give the fillets a nice golden color and a slightly toasted flavor, though it's not essential. While everything finishes cooking, heat the unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a pan and, once it's hot, reduce to medium heat and add the garlic slices, stirring frequently. When they start to turn golden, add the parsley and the grated tomato and cook until the tomato darkens slightly, stirring often. Don't overdo it or you'll have no tomato and no sauce. It all comes together in 3–4 minutes. And you're done! All that's left is to take the tray out of the oven and spoon the sauce over everything. I was a bit stingy with the sauce as you can see in the photo — but I'm sure yours will turn out better! You can use regular olive oil, but this recipe with a good unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil is absolutely delicious. I hope you enjoyed it — and please do leave your comments so I can keep improving the recipe. Thank you!