Grilled Marinated Tarragon Chicken →

Here’s a super-easy, low-fat, summery version of the classic French recipe Tarragon Chicken. Being in full summer-vibe mode, I adapted Nigela Lawson’s “Roast Marinated Tarragon Chicken” to the grill.  After all, why heat up your oven and house, when you can grill? Faintly licoricey, bitter-sweet Tarragon is an ideal herb to use with chicken, but fresh Thyme with some crushed garlic would also be a good choice in the marinade. Grilling the chicken adds complexity to the flavor of the finished succulent bird. If you have any leftovers, make a summer Chicken Salad accompanied by marinated summer veggies like cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and green beans. Enjoy! 

Grilled Marinated Tarragon Chicken
Yield: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

·   3- to 4-pound chicken (Cornish hen would also work well)
·   ¾ cup chopped fresh tarragon
·   Juice and grated zest of 1 lemon
·   ½ cup olive oil
·   Malden salt or other flaky sea salt 

PREPARATION 

1. Butterfly the chicken by placing it breast-side down and, using kitchen shears, cutting along both sides of the backbone and through small rib bones. Discard the backbone, and place the chicken in a large plastic bag with a zipper. Add ½ cup fresh tarragon, lemon juice and zest, and olive oil. Expel as much air as possible from the bag, and make sure the marinade coats the chicken. Refrigerate for at least ½ hour and up to 24 hours.
2. Heat your grill to 450 degrees. Oil the grill grates and place chicken skin side up on the grate. Spread the bird flat and roast until skin is crisp and golden, 35 to 45 minutes.
3. Sprinkle with salt to taste and cut into 8 serving pieces. Transfer to a platter, and garnish with remaining tarragon. Serve with salad or your vegetable of choice and roasted potatoes.

Adapted from a recipe by Nigella Lawson: “Roast Marinated Tarragon Chicken”

Wine pairing: a French Chablis, Spanish Verdejo, Viognier, or Pinot Grigio would work with this dish. A chilled Rosé would also be a good choice.

Marinated Grilled Chicken →

Here’s a great summer recipe for savory juicy grilled chicken. I prefer bone-in thighs with skin-on, but you can use skinless, boneless breast or thigh meat if that’s your dietary preference. For boneless breasts, cut the breast in half, place the meat between two layers of plastic wrap or parchment paper, and using a meat mallet or rolling pin, pound the meat to an even thickness (about 1/2 - 3/4 inch) so it cooks evenly. Reduce the cooking time for boneless breast meat so it doesn’t over-cook and dry out. Serve with Lemony Orzo Salad with Asparagus, or a green salad. A chilled Rosé or soft Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc will pair well with this dish. You might even want to try a slightly chilled light Beaujolais Nouveau.

Ingredients:
Serves 4-6

• 6 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs (air-chilled preferred)

  For the Marinade:

• 1/3 cup soy sauce

• ¼ cup olive oil

• ¼ red wine, sherry, or balsamic vinegar

• 1 teaspoon oregano (see note)

• ½ teaspoon sweet basil (see note)

• ½ teaspoon garlic powder or two cloves of garlic crushed, finely minced, or grated with a micro-plane

• ¼ teaspoon pepper

• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (optional, but recommended)

*Note: substitute 1 ½ teaspoons Herbes de Provence for oregano and basil, or 1 teaspoon each of ground dried thyme and dried rosemary.

Preparation:

1. In a large bowl, combine the marinade ingredients and add the chicken pieces; marinate for at least two hours, preferably 4 hours.

2. Preheat your grill to hot.

3. Remove the chicken from the marinade and wipe the excess marinade off each piece.

4. Place the chicken pieces on the grill over indirect heat and cook covered for 3 minutes per side, turning three times. Finish the chicken over direct heat to crisp the skin. (Note: when done the internal temperature of the chicken should be 165 F. for thighs or 160 F. for breast meat.)

5. Remove from the grill to a platter and tent for 5 minutes before serving.

Cast Iron Skillet Roast Chicken →

For many, roast chicken is quintessential comfort food. This is the easiest, best roast chicken recipe you will find. If you don’t already have a cast-iron skillet, you need to go out and buy one! It will quickly become one of your most useful kitchen tools. A follow-up recipe to my Spice Rubbed Roast Turkey Breast , the advantage of using the hot preheated cast iron skillet to roast your chicken is that you end up with beautiful crisp browned skin all over the bird including the skin on the underside of the chicken. The typical cast iron skillet can accommodate a bird in the 4-5 pound range which will feed four people. Highly recommended recipes for cast iron skillet cooking: Cook it in Cast Iron by Cook’s Country/America’s Test Kitchen.

Cast Iron Skillet Roast Chicken
Serves 4 with leftovers

Photo: c. foodblogchef 2020

Ingredients:

• 4-5 pound chicken (preferably air-chilled)

• olive oil

• Herbes de Provence or equal measures of dried thyme, rosemary, oregano, basil, and fennel seed.

• salt and pepper

• 1 small onion

• 3-4 cloves of garlic

• canola oil

• wood chips for smoking on the grill (optional)

Preparation:
Preheat your oven or grill to 400-425 F. with the cast iron skillet in the oven or grill. You want the skillet to be very hot so it sears the skin on the underside of the chicken.

Photo: c. foodblogchef 2020

1. Pat the chicken dry inside and out. You do not have to rinse your chicken to clean it.

2. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and dried herbs inside the bird’s cavity.

3. Place a small onion and a few cloves of garlic in the cavity and tie the legs.

4. Brush or rub the bird with olive oil and sprinkle salt, pepper, and the dried herbs evenly all over the bird.

5. Add a tablespoon of canola oil to the hot skillet and carefully place the bird breast side up on the skillet.

6. Close the grill or oven and cook for 1 hour before you check the temperature of the bird with a meat thermometer. You may have to continue cooking for another 15-20 minutes until the finished temperature reaches 155 F.

7. Remove the bird from the skillet to a cutting board and tent. The temperature will continue to rise about another 10 degrees to the recommended safe temperature of 165 F. for poultry.

*Note: while the tented chicken is resting, you can make a simple delicious pan sauce by adding a tablespoon of flour to the skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly until the fat in the pan and flour combine to make a roux. Once the roux begins to turn light brown, slowly add a cup of chicken broth and ¼ cup of dry white wine stirring constantly and scraping up the rich browned bits (fond) on the bottom of the pan until the sauce forms. Simmer and reduce the sauce for a few minutes to intensify the flavors and add a teaspoon of Dijon mustard (optional) and adjust the salt and pepper to taste. Any accumulated juices on the cutting board can be added to your sauce.

Wine pairing: Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Rueda, White Cotes du Rhone, Dry Riesling