Ramblings From the Kitchen: Grilled Chicken with Tomato Salsa

All of us have our favorite food. Being a quintessential north Indian, my first love will always be Dal Chawal with Raita and Green Chutney *slurps* … But if I have to pick a dish that I would definitely order when dining out, it would be the very hearty and warm Grilled Chicken. There is something about the dish that makes me feel happy and joyous. So when my cook goes on leave or I have a weekend to do my own cooking, Grilled Chicken is what comes out of those trysts. (or other times, Pasta!)

Over the past few years I have tried making Grilled Chicken using recipes off the internet, mishmashed with my own add-ons. Buttermilk, yogurt, lemon, the basic Indian Masala ones… they all have been experimented with. But yesterday was something different. I tried something on my own, relying on my taste buds and my understanding of which flavor will work with what. Happy to report – very tummy-happy Husband and I !!

So here is a quick recipe…

Grilled Chicken with Tomato Salsa and Rosemary Potatoes (for 2)

Ingredients for Grilled Chicken:

1. 2 skinless boneless Chicken Breast pieces
2. 2 tbsp of Ginger – grated
3. 2 tbsp of Garlic – grated
4. 3 tbsp of Soy Sauce
5. 2 large Lemon – juice squeezed
6. 1 1/2 tbsp of Honey
7. Pepper
8. 1 tsp Paprika
9. 1 tsp Dried Basil
10. Salt

Ingredients for Tomato Salsa:

1. 2 Tomatoes – chopped
2. 1 Red Onion – chopped
3. 1 Stalk of Spring Onions – chopped
4. Half a Yellow Pepper – chopped
5. 1 big green chilli – chopped
6. Couple of Fresh Basil Leaves – chopped
7. Fresh Coriander leaves – chopped
8. Salt
9. Pepper
10. Chilli Flakes

Ingredients for Accompaniments:

1. 2 Medium-sized Potatoes – diced
2. Dried Rosemary
3. 1 tsp lemon
4. Pepper
5. Salt
6. Couple of French Beans/Baby corn/Carrots (You may add all or some of these to the plate)

Preparation of Grilled Chicken

1. For the Marinade: Mix together – Grated Ginger, grated Garlic, Lemon Juice, Soy Sauce, Honey, Salt, Pepper, Paprika and Dried Basil
2. Make criss-cross small cuts into the Chicken Breast pieces to make sure the marinade goes well through
3. Take a ziplock bag and pour the Marinade in it. Add the 2 Chicken breast pieces to the bag, shake it around so it is well-coated and keep it in the refrigerator for about 1 hour
4. Heat 1 tbsp of Extra-virgin Olive oil in the pan and make sure it is hot
5. Take the Chicken Breast pieces out of the Ziplock and place them in the pan. Coat the remaining marinade on the chicken.
6. As the Honey and lemon work their magic, you will see a sticky paste forming on and around the chicken pieces. That will be the Awesomeness!
7. Pan-grill on each side for about 5-8 minutes or till the Chicken in cooked

Preparation of Tomato Salsa

1. Heat 1 tbsp of Extra-virgin Olive oil in the pan
2. At high heat, add the Green Chilli, Onion, Tomato, Yellow Pepper and Spring onion
3. Toss for about 1 minute and add the pepper, salt and chilli flakes
4. Using a masher and mash the mix to make it into a semi-paste
5. Add the basil leaves and coriander and keep the pan on the side for plating up

Preparation of Accompaniments

1. In a pan, heat about 1 tsp of Butter
2. Add the potatoes, dried rosemary, salt and pepper and cover it
3. Once the potatoes are cooked, add the Beans/Carrots in the same pan and let them soak in some of the butter and pepper
4. Don’t do the vegetables for more than 1-2 minutes. They need to be crispy yet flavorsome!

Now the Plating….

• Place a big serving of the Tomato Salsa and spread it well on the plate
• Add the Chicken breast, gleaming in all its Sticky glory, on top of the Salsa
• Place the potatoes and the beans/carrots on the side
• Pick up the knife and fork, take a glass of wine and get ready to devour……

The chicken tastes beautiful.. almost a tangy-sticky-sweet wonder on plate. And the Salsa adds the zing to it!

It took about 30 minutes to do all that, of course excluding the marination time… It is easy and you can easily make it for a weekday dinner when you really don’t have it in you to do elaborate cooking.. Try it and let me know how it turned out! 🙂