The 3-Ingredient Dinner Ina Garten Makes When She’s Too Tired To Cook

It might be hard to believe, but our favorite celebrity chefs can find themselves in a dinner rut, too. After developing recipes, filming demos, and cooking up food for everyone else, it’s only natural that the likes of Ina Garten or Rachael Ray wouldn’t want to make an elaborate meal for themselves. We wouldn’t either.

But, we all have to eat—so what would Garten whip up when she’s too tired to cook? The “easiest dinner [she] knows how to make.” A three-ingredient Chicken with Goat Cheese & Basil.

Ina Garten's 3-Ingredient Chicken Dinner

“Everyone needs a few dishes you can assemble in 10 minutes, then throw in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes while you drink a glass of wine. This is one of my favorite recipes for when I’m too tired to cook but really want a hot meal,” Garten captioned an Instagram post where she shows her followers how to make the simple dinner.

With just 10 minutes of prep, Garten’s not wrong, this really is the easiest dinner.

You just take chicken breasts with the skin still on them (you might have to ask the butcher for these) and loosen the skin a bit—enough that it’s still attached, but you can fit cheese and basil under it. Then, you’ll tuck a hunk of your favorite goat cheese, Garten opts for a garlic-and-herb goat cheese, and a fresh basil leaf under the skin and seal it back up.

Finally, top the chicken with olive oil, salt, and pepper and bake in a 375-degree F oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until the skin is lightly browned. Garten recommends taking it out of the oven when it’s “just barely done,” and then allowing it to rest under foil for 10 minutes. 

In fact, Garten made a separate Instagram post saying that she always “slightly" undercooks her chicken to keep it moist and juicy.

“If you overcook chicken, it gets very dry,” she explains.

She takes it out of the oven when the internal temperature reaches about 155 or 160 degrees. But, no, she doesn’t serve raw chicken—that’s why she lets it rest covered with aluminum foil.

“Just let it rest for about 10 minutes. The chicken keeps cooking and then all the juices get back into the chicken. You won’t believe what a difference it makes,” she says.

Under the foil, it will continue cooking to the safe internal temperature of 165 degrees, without running the risk of drying out the meat. Yes, it does sound strange, but we’d trust Garten with food tips any day—just have a meat thermometer at the ready.

What To Serve With Ina Garten’s Chicken

Garten doesn’t plate the dish in her video, but for serving the Chicken with Goat Cheese & Basil, we’d recommend any rice, risotto, or potato side you enjoy. And any veggie, like broccoli, asparagus, or green beans, is a great way to round out the meal as well.

It's official: Ina Garten has done it again with another chicken dish we'll be eating on repeat.