Jamie Oliver’s Chicken in Milk Is Probably the Best Chicken Recipe of All Time (2024)

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Faith is the SVP of Content at Apartment Therapy Media and former Editor-in-Chief of The Kitchn. She is the author of three cookbooks, including the James Beard Award-winning The Kitchn Cookbook. She lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband and two daughters.

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updated Apr 17, 2020

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Jamie Oliver’s Chicken in Milk Is Probably the Best Chicken Recipe of All Time (1)

Many years ago, I wrote about this oddball Jamie Oliver recipe that was so weird and yet so delightful it sent me into fits of hyperbole. Best chicken recipe of all time? Maybe! Since then, everyone from Food52 to the New York Times have followed my lead in their love for this milk-braised chicken, which debuted in Jamie’s book Happy Days with the Naked Chef in 2002. The Times even made it look pretty (quite a feat).

On the offhand chance that you’ve never met this now-famous recipe, read my original piece. Don’t be put off by the gushing — I had a major crush on this chicken off the bat, but in the past years it’s settled into true love. And when you find yourself with leftovers, here’s how to relive the glory all over again.

Chicken in Milk: A Delightfully Weird Recipe

A few years ago I noticed this rather odd recipe on Jamie Oliver’s site. It called for roasting a chicken in a big pot with a pint of milk, a lot of lemon zest, a cinnamon stick, and unpeeled garlic cloves. Milk, cinnamon, and chicken were three things I wouldn’t ever think to combine; it sounded like a bad recipe Mad-Lib. And yet its very strangeness enticed me. I was familiar with the Italian method of cooking pork in milk for tenderness and flavor; would this be similar?

More showstopper chicken recipes: Who Wins the Title of the Best Chicken Dinner Party Recipe of All?

How to Cook Chicken in Milk

I’ve now made this many times, and the first thing in its favor is the speed and ease of impromptu preparation. It’s great for a last-minute roast chicken dish. You don’t need to salt it two days ahead or brine it — just brown it well in a big pot with a lot of butter and oil. Here’s how it works.

  1. Brown a whole chicken in copious amounts of olive oil or butter on the stovetop.
  2. Pour in about 2 1/2 cups milk, two lemons‘ worth of zest, a cinnamon stick, and fresh sage leaves. Scatter in a handful of garlic cloves in their peels.
  3. Bake for 90 minutes at 375ºF.
  4. Pull apart and eat with all the yummy sauce.

To brown the chicken I use a Dutch oven (like this Staub oval cocotte, my absolute all-time favorite piece of cookware). I heat up butter over high heat and really, really brown the chicken. It is very important to brown this chicken with guts and gusto. I use tongs (like these) to turn the chicken to brown all four sides; just jam them up its butt. Don’t be afraid to really get it dark brown! This is what your flavor will build on.

Then you drain off much of the fat. (Oliver says to throw away all the fat you brown the chicken in; you won’t need it. I actually recommend saving it for cooking potatoes or vegetables.) Put the chicken back in the pot (if you removed it while draining fat), add the milk, garlic cloves (no need to peel or smash), lemon zest or peel, and cinnamon stick, along with a handful of sage leaves. Put in the oven and roast for an hour and a half. This is where the magic happens. But first, one question…

To Cover or Not to Cover?

The first time I ever made this, I had a spaced-out moment and glibly assumed that since I was cooking a chicken in a pot that that meant the lid should go on. I banged on a lid and put it in the oven. An hour later it hit me: Was that called for in the recipe? I double checked. Nope! So I ran in and took off the lid for the last half hour of cooking. The chicken turned out fine — in fact, more than fine, as I will tell you more about below.

The second time I cooked this chicken I tried it with the pot lid off the whole time as specified in the recipe. And all things being equal, I think that the first way, with the pot covered for part of the cooking time, was better. While it was still an incredibly good dish, leaving the lid off made it taste more like a traditional roast chicken. It was less tender, and I felt like the flavor really didn’t permeate the chicken the way that it did the first time.

So I still recommend the first method, with my happy mistake; I leave the lid on for at least half of the cooking time. The chicken was moister, the flavor permeates it better, and there was a little more sauce.

Why Jamie’s Chicken Is So Good

While cooking, this chicken smells absolutely divine. The first time I made it, my husband groaned when he walked into the house. “What is that?” he asked. When I uncovered the pot the golden-brown chicken was sitting in a pool of creamy pan sauce, the milk having dissolved into small bits of curd and juice. Unlike the curdled milk I was expecting, this looked and tasted more like liquid lemon gold, bathed in chicken juices.

We pulled the chicken off the bone, ladled on the sauce, and my face almost fell into my plate. The meat was incredibly, mouthwateringly succulent and tender; far more so than my best Zuni chicken ever. It was completely infused with lemon and balanced with a deeply aromatic muskiness from the cinnamon and sage. The cloves of garlic were perfectly cooked too; we fished them out and squeezed their sweet innards onto the chicken and slices of thick country bread. We couldn’t stop eating the chicken, the meat drenched in savory lemon sauce.

I know I’m going out on a limb with this one, but it is still the truth: This is still the best chicken I have ever had. Its magic lies in its sheer deliciousness and simplicity, but also in its unexpected combination of ingredients and method. It’s a recipe that you think could never work — and yet it does, and that small moment of surprised delight seasons the whole dish.

Get the recipe: Chicken in Milk at Jamie Oliver’s website. Note: I notice that he’s changed the instructions to have you brown the chicken in olive oil, not butter, as originally indicated. I use butter or an oil with a higher smoke point than olive oil.

More Recipe Riffs on Chicken in Milk

Since publishing this we have riffed on this recipe using coconut milk, the slow cooker, and other small improvements and options that may be helpful to you.

  • Slow Cooker Chicken in Milk
  • How To Cook a Whole Chicken in Coconut Milk in the Slow Cooker
  • Chicken in Coconut Milk with Lemongrass
  • One-Pan Coconut Milk-Braised Chicken

Have you ever tried Jamie’s chicken in milk? What did you think? Do you change it up at all, or make it exactly as written?

This recipe was a contender in our March 2019 Chicken Champions recipe showdown, in the fancy dinner party bracket. Check out that showdown and its competitors below.

More from Our Chicken Champions Recipe Showdown

  • The Full Showdown: Who Wins the Title of the Best Chicken Dinner Party Recipe of All?
  • Recipe Review: Julia Child’s Coq au Vin from Mastering the Art of Fine Cooking
  • Recipe Review: Silver Palate Chicken Marbella

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Recipe Review

Jamie Oliver’s Chicken in Milk Is Probably the Best Chicken Recipe of All Time (2024)

FAQs

Jamie Oliver’s Chicken in Milk Is Probably the Best Chicken Recipe of All Time? ›

Marinating chicken with milk helps to tenderize the meat, making it juicier and more flavorful. The lactic acid in the milk breaks down the proteins in the chicken, resulting in a more tender texture. Additionally, the milk can also help to infuse the chicken with added moisture and a subtle creaminess.

What does letting chicken sit in milk do? ›

Marinating chicken with milk helps to tenderize the meat, making it juicier and more flavorful. The lactic acid in the milk breaks down the proteins in the chicken, resulting in a more tender texture. Additionally, the milk can also help to infuse the chicken with added moisture and a subtle creaminess.

What to serve with Jamie Oliver's chicken and milk? ›

Goes well with sautéed greens, pasta, rice, potatoes or bread.

Why do you boil chicken in milk before frying? ›

These enzymes and acids work together in order to break down the proteins allowing the chicken meat to become tenderer. This is the reason why chefs soak chicken in yogurt or milk overnight before cooking it.

How long do you soak chicken in milk before frying? ›

Soak the chicken in the milk mixture for 5 to 10 minutes. Roll the chicken in flour, being sure to completely cover each piece. Set aside to dry. In a large cast-iron skillet melt lard over medium heat.

What happens when chicken is soaked in milk? ›

04/11Soak chicken for 48 hours in milk to make it tender

If you ask any seasoned chef about one tip to make the chicken tender, pat will come the reply to soak it in milk for 48 hours as chicken has a tendency to dry out when cooking. Not only does milk tenderise the meat but adds moisture to it.

Why do you cook chicken in milk? ›

The pairing may sound odd, but this simple, mostly hands-off method produces the most tender, flavorful chicken imaginable. The calcium in the milk is thought to jump-start a natural enzyme in the chicken, which acts as the tenderizer. Cooking the chicken in the liquid further infuses it with moisture and flavor.

What is milk chicken made of? ›

Chicken in Milk: A Delightfully Weird Recipe

It called for roasting a chicken in a big pot with a pint of milk, a lot of lemon zest, a cinnamon stick, and unpeeled garlic cloves.

Is KFC chicken boiled before frying? ›

No, it's not. It is dipped in water first, cold water, so the breading will stick to the meat but it is not boiled or precooked in any way. Does KFC boil their chicken? No, but they do marinate it before breading and frying.

Why do you put an egg in fried chicken? ›

Using egg whites to adhere the coating to the chicken ensures that the crust stays put, even if your chicken sticks to the bottom of the frying pan. The last bit of atypical preparation is sprinkling the hot chicken with the Bromberg's Fried Chicken Seasoning once it comes out of the fryer.

Can you make fried chicken with milk instead of buttermilk? ›

Can You Use Milk Instead of Buttermilk for Fried Chicken? No. Using milk instead of buttermilk will not have the same effect. However, it's easy enough to make buttermilk at home.

How do chefs get chicken so tender? ›

Brines and marinades help tenderize the meat by bringing more moisture in the protein. With that extra moisture, you lose less when you cook.

What does putting a lemon in a chicken do? ›

The benefits of the hot steaming lemon going into the chicken are very obvious as the meat tastes amazing, and the chicken cooks slightly quicker because of it. Rub the chicken inside and out with a generous amount of salt and freshly ground black pepper.

How long can you leave chicken in milk? ›

For these cuts, marinating for 2-4 hours or even overnight can result in a more tender and flavorful chicken.

What happens when chicken and milk together? ›

“Consumption of this combination could even lead to adverse effects in the long run. These effects may include gut-related issues such as stomachache, nausea, indigestion, gas, bloating, ulcers, bad odour, constipation, acid reflux and many severe skin disorders,” she further added.

Why do people dip chicken in milk? ›

Soaking chicken in milk or buttermilk in the refrigerator overnight is a common practice when making Southern-style fried chicken. This practice supposedly tenderizes the chicken through the actions of enzymes naturally present in the milk.

What does milk help in chicken? ›

Milk is a really nice treat for poultry and if used judiciously can provide great help when fighting Coccidiosis and Necrotic Enteritis.

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