Gril-licious
Grilling is one of those summertime pleasures that, when summer’s over, I always feel I haven’t indulged in enough. My husband is excellent on the grill, and it’s so quick—plus I usually wind up with much less mess in the kitchen. If I remember to marinate the meat, we can usually throw dinner together in about half an hour (after the grill’s been fired up, of course). We have heard great things about gas grills, but we are traditional (and poor), so we use the old-fashioned charcoal method. I love the smoky flavor the coals give to whatever I cook.
This chicken recipe derives from leftover tequila in the house and a margarita sauce I once watched a chef at the Brick Oven (a restaurant where I worked in college—sadly, it no longer exists) fix for tilapia. If you have margarita mix on hand, I know it would be good in place of some of the orange juice; we just didn’t have any when I got ready to mix up the marinade.
Grilled Margarita Chicken
For the marinade:
½ c. tequila (I use whatever is cheapest; we only use the good stuff for real margaritas)
3 lbs. chicken breasts
2-4 cloves garlic, depending on the size of your garlic (the stuff I bought at the farmer’s market last week is tremendous, so I only used 2)
Juice of one orange and three limes (if you roll them on the counter a few times, putting a good bit of pressure on them, they will yield more juice. Cutting them into wedges instead of halves helps too.)
1 T. chili paste (I used the Sambal chili paste I bought at an Asian market, but any hot chili sauce would do)
2 t. Kosher salt
Ground pepper
2 t. honey plus extra for drizzling
1 t. cumin
Olive oil and orange juice (or margarita mix) to cover
Mix together everything but the olive oil and orange juice (I do it right in the baking dish, or whatever I’m putting the chicken in); then place the chicken in the dish and turn several times until it’s good and coated. Drizzle with more honey and pour over equal parts olive oil and orange juice/margarita mix until the breasts are just covered. Marinate at least a few hours, preferably overnight. Grill over a medium fire for about 20 minutes, turning frequently to prevent it from getting too black on one side.
I served the chicken with a version of Sara Foster’s Apple and Avocado Salad from Fresh Everyday and grilled corn. I assemble the salad right on the plate, as the chicken and corn are cooking. I use spinach instead of watercress, and place one layer of torn leaves on the plate. Top with sliced avocado, chopped mint leaves, green onions, and chopped green apple. Instead of mixing up a separate dressing, I drizzle equal parts lime juice and olive oil on each salad and top with a good dose of salt and pepper. Finish with a good handful of crumbled feta cheese. The lime in the chicken and in the salad dressing is a nice pairing.
For the Grilled Corn, I like it simple. Wrap cobs in aluminum foil, dotted with pats of butter, and cook for about 10 minutes. I like sweet summer corn very plain, seasoned only with salt and pepper (and of course the butter); I also like it crunchy, so if you prefer yours cooked more thoroughly, just leave it on the grill a little longer.
Set aside the leftover chicken breasts; you will need 2 for the Taboulleh chicken salad, and then you should still have 3 or 4 left. I will probably use them for quesadillas next week, so I wrap them really well in plastic wrap and place them in a large Ziploc bag. That way, they won’t dry out in the fridge.