Tequila Lime Grilled Chicken

Have you ever read any of the Laura Numeroff picture books, such as If You Give a Mouse a Cookie? Her very funny books all start with a sentence like "if you give a mouse a cookie, he'll want a glass of milk" and on and on the story goes. I couldn't help but think about her books all day as I cleaned out every cupboard and drawer in my kitchen (it will start to make sense in a minute). My story all starts with a wonderful organic farm where I picked beautiful strawberries. I made lots of jars of jam and had so much fun, I decided I needed to go back to pick more berries so then I had to make more jam. I needed to move the 50 jars of jam off my dining room table which meant I had to make space in my pantry which meant I had to relocate what I moved out of the pantry, etc. I ended up spending 12 hours cleaning and sorting through every cupboard and drawer in my kitchen - all because I found a farm with great strawberries.

I asked my husband if he would be willing to cook dinner while I took a much needed shower and break and it worked out great. Gerry enjoyed having the chance to grill outside and pull our dinner together which he did perfectly. I had the chicken marinating in a mixture of tequila, lime and orange juice, chili powder, diced jalapeno, garlic and salt and pepper.

Gerry grilled the chicken outside on our gas grill and cooked the black bean and corn mixture. Everything came out wonderful with the chicken perfectly cooked and the beans were a very flavorful base.


Tequila Lime Grilled Chicken (Serves 2)

For the chicken:
1/4 cup tequila
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 jalapeno pepper, ribbed, seeded and minced
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

For the beans:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth
Cumin, fajita or taco seasoning and cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper
Dash of hot sauce
1/2-3/4 cup frozen corn

Combine the tequila, lime juice, orange juice, chili powder, jalapeno, garlic, salt and pepper in a bowl or plastic bag. Mix well; add the chicken breasts to the container. Cover and refrigerate overnight, or at least 8 hours.

When you are ready to cook the chicken, heat a grill to medium-high heat. Oil the grates to prevent the meat from sticking. Once the grill is heated, cooked the chicken until nicely browned and cooked through, about 15-20 minutes. (Alternatively, you can sear the chicken in a grill pan and then bake in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until cooked through.) Allow the chicken to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

While the chicken is cooking, prepare the beans. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and jalapeno and saute for 1 minute more. Add the black beans to the pan and cook for a few minutes until warmed through. Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Season with cumin, fajita or taco seasoning, and cayenne pepper to taste (Gerry used 1/4 teaspoon of each and it was perfect). Adjust salt and pepper as needed. Allow the mixture to simmer until most of the liquid has reduced. Stir in the hot sauce and frozen corn, cook for 2-3 minutes more. Divide the bean mixture between two serving plates and top with the grilled chicken. Garnish with lime wedges, if desired.


Adapted from Annie's Eats

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