Tasty, healthy, and easier to make than you think. Homemade deli meat will become one of your favorite recipes for those homemade sandwiches and school lunches.
Combine honey, sea salt, onion powder, and garlic powder and mix well.
Coat chicken breasts thoroughly in the honey marinade.
Place chicken breasts in a zip-top bag. Press air out of the bag and seal.
Refrigerate for 48-72 hours (2-3 days).
Preparing:
Remove the chicken from the marinade and rinse with cool water.
Place the rinsed chicken in a dish of cold water (make sure the chicken is submerged) and soak 30 minutes for every 24 hours you marinated it. (See note below.)
Roasting:
Preheat oven 250 deg F (125 C).
Remove the chicken from the soaking water and dry well with paper towels.
Place the chicken on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Press black pepper or dried herbs into the chicken breast, if desired.
Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the internal temperature taken with an instant-read thermometer is 165 deg F (74 C).
Let cool at room temperature about 30 minutes.
Place chicken breasts in refrigerator until completely chilled before slicing.
Slice the chicken breast at an angle, as thin or as thick as you like. Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Notes
The honey marinade will be a thick and paste-like. I find it easiest to spread over the chicken breasts with my hands to make sure covers the whole surface.
When soaking the chicken in fresh water, soak 30 minutes for every 24 hour period it was marinated. ie. 72 hours marinating = 1.5 hours soaking
When soaking the chicken in water, I put the chicken and water in a sealable container and place it in the fridge, making sure the chicken is submerged in the water. The purpose of this soaking step is to desalinate the chicken while also balancing out the flavors.
You can marinate it for as little as 24 hours, but I find the best flavor comes from marinating it for 48-72 hours.
Depending on if the thickness of the chicken breasts, it may take longer than 50 minutes to roast. The most dependable way to make sure they are done is to make sure the internal temperature is 165 deg F (74 C).
I have found that dried herbs work better than fresh when roasting the meat.