WaPo Wednesdays- Lemon-Herb Chicken Satay
I’m back on track with WaPo Wednesdays, and boy, Lemon-Herb Chicken Satay is a great summer dish! What you do is combine herbs with lemon, a bit of olive oil, sugar and vinegar and marinate chicken strips with it. That’s all! I, of course, used this recipe as a guideline and riffed on it with what I had at home. Instead of parsely, I used oregano because it’s growing like crazy in my garden (and parsley is not). I also omitted chives because I didn’t have any-and why spend another couple of bucks at the store if I don’t really need to? I also marinated my sliced chicken strips in a plastic baggie (in the refrigerator for about an hour) prior to skewering them on water-soaked wooden skewers-it seemed to me that the chicken would gather the flavors better that way.
So, what you’ll find below is the WaPo recipe with 2 alterations for how I put the marinade together. The end result was absolutely delicious, and very summer-like. The flavors were verdant and bright. I served this chicken “satay” with Greek-style potatoes and feta.
MAKE AHEAD: You’ll need 16 to 20 small skewers, preferably soaked in water for 30 minutes. The satays need to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.Makes 16 to 20 skewers (4 or 5 skewers per serving)Ingredients:
- 12 large basil leaves
- 0.250 cup loosely packed flat-leaf parsley leaves (I substituted fresh oregano)
- Small handful of chives, chopped (I omitted)
- 1 large or 2 small cloves garlic, smashed
- Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tablespoons juice and 1 or 2 teaspoons zest)
- 0.250 cup olive oil
- 4 to 6 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 0.125 teaspoon sugar
- 0.250 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 0.250 to 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into strips 1 inch wide, 5 to 6 inches long and 1/4-inch thick
Directions:Combine the basil, parsley, chives, garlic, lemon zest and juice, oil, 4 tablespoons of the vinegar, the sugar, salt and pepper to taste in a blender. Puree until smooth, adding vinegar as needed to make a thick yet pourable marinade.Thread the chicken strips onto the skewer. Ideally, each skewer will have one strip of chicken, but smaller pieces may be threaded together if necessary. Use a silicone pastry brush to coat each skewer with the marinade, then carefully place the coated skewers in a large resealable plastic food storage bag (with the pointed ends facing in the same direction). Place the bag on a tray and seal; refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.Prepare the grill for direct heat. If using a gas grill, preheat to medium-high (450 degrees). If using a charcoal grill, light the charcoal or wood briquettes. For a medium-hot fire, you should be able to hold your hand about 6 inches above the coals for about 4 or 5 seconds. Have ready a spray water bottle for taming any flames. Lightly coat the grill rack with oil and place it on the grill.When the grill is hot, arrange the marinated chicken satays on the grill, keeping the uncovered part of the skewers away from direct heat if possible. Close the lid and cook for 2 to 4 minutes, until the chicken starts to brown and the edges look done.Use tongs to turn the skewers over. Close the lid and cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Serve warm or at room temperature.Recipe Source:From Nourish columnist Stephanie Witt Sedgwick..The Wrap-up-I would made this again in a heartbeat. I highly recommend that you invite your friends over to try it! What I really liked was that the marinade called for relatively little olive oil. Not that olive oil is a bad thing-it does add calories, however, and by using vinegar and sugar, you get a different dimension in the taste, and more volume to the marinade. Sources- I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts from Costco. The herbs, however, came from my garden.
