This evening I found myself upon yet another foray into the world of making chicken not boring. I was in the mood for tacos, and had little interest in cubing up some chicken and frying it up with some pre-made taco seasoning. Not that there’s anything wrong with taco seasoning – I’ve had my fair share of good ‘ole ground beef tacos – but it’s grilling season, which means neglecting that beautiful cooking surface would be nigh unforgivable. I’m a fan of dry rubs, but I’m usually happier with the complexity of flavor imparteded by a fresh marinade, so I dug through the fridge too see what I could use.
My goal with this recipe was to create a nice balance of sweet and spicy that my wife and I could both enjoy. I was more than successful in this endeavor, as we both agreed that this recipe was a keeper.
Marinade ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 cup rough chopped white onion
1 chipotle pepper in adobo
2 garlic cloves
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp Chile powder
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp brown sugar
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and pepper
Toss all of those ingredients (not the chicken, obviously) into a food processor, and hit the on button. Let everything process down into a semi-fine marinade. Season to taste. Cover the chicken breasts (I used three large chicken breasts) in the processed mixture, cover with plastic wrap, and let them soak for about an hour. This gives all those great flavors an opportunity to soak into the meat.
As the chicken is marinading, I made up a small batch of salsa slaw to serve on the tacos.
Grill up the chicken on medium-high direct heat to get some nice grill-marks and crispness to the outside (about 4 min a side, depending on size and heat), remove from heat, and slice into bite-sized chunks.
I served with fresh tomatoes, pepperjack, and salsa slaw. In truth, all it needed was the slaw.
The sweet and spicy grilled chicken was complimented perfectly by the slaw, which had a nice zing from the medium salsa that I used in the mix.
Enjoy!
Love, Food & Beer 