Paprika Chicken and Green Beans

This is one of those quick skillet suppers great for the summer months when you don't want to heat up the oven. Which I didn't think I would have to start thinking about in March! The added bonus is that your vegetables get cooked in the same pan when the chicken is done, so you get two flavorful meal items but only dirty one pan.

I love the flavor the paprika and garlic give to both the chicken and the green beans. I know cooking your vegetables this way may be new to some of you, but please give it a try. This is actually our favorite way to eat green beans.

I don't measure the spices, so I am using pictures to give you an idea of how everything will look as you go.

Recipe
olive oil
boneless skinless chicken breast
paprika
salt
pepper
2 cloves minced garlic
juice of one lemon or 1 T bottled lemon juice
1 lb frozen or fresh french style green beans

Preheat olive oil in a large skillet. Sprinkle one side of the chicken with paprika*, salt, and pepper. Put seasoned side down in hot skillet and season the other side. Add minced garlic to the pan and when ready, flip chicken to brown the other side. Add the lemon juice, reduce the heat to low, and cover until chicken is cooked through, about 20-30 minutes. Remove lid and turn heat up to medium and cook chicken until the pan juices are thickened and concentrated. Turn chicken when ready in order to coat evenly with the flavor. It should look something like the picture on the right.

Remove the chicken from the pan and keep warm.  Add the green beans to the same skillet. As you move the green beans around the pan make sure you scrape all of the brown flavor from the bottom of the pan. If you are using fresh beans, you may need to add a little water. Lightly sprinkle additional paprika, salt, and pepper to taste. Cook until heated through and serve along with chicken.

Additional Notes:
When sprinkling paprika, I always like to tip the jar sideways and tap the top in order to get it to sprinkle on my food. If I just shake on the paprika like I do other spices, it comes out in big clumps and I get more that I need. Paprika is spicy so you don't want to overdue it.