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Smokey Grilled Chicken & Corn “Tabbouleh”
Nothing says summer like grilled chicken and sun sweet corn! This bird stays extra juicy bathed in a garlicky yogurt marinade with citrus and herbs for tangy, bright flavor that pairs beautifully with smokey charred corn off the grill!
Yes, I am aware this takes a VERY imaginative read of traditional tabbouleh, but for me tabbouleh is all about the extravagance of parsley and mint, and when you marry this together with chilis, lemon juice, and olive oil adorning your corn and brilliantly complementing your chicken, it becomes a meal I could eat everyday for the rest of August and be positively thrilled. Enjoy!!
Smokey Grilled Chicken & Corn “Tabbouleh”
Serves: 4
Ingredients
Yogurt Marinated Chicken Thighs
4 bone in chicken legs
1 cup Greek yogurt, 2% or whole
Juice of 2 tangerines
Juice and zest of 1 lime
4-6 cloves fresh garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 1/2 teaspoons coriander seed, crushed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons grapeseed or olive oil
Honey to drizzle
Sea Salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
Corn “Tabbouleh” with Parsley, Charred Scallions and Chiles
6 ears of corn, shucked and silk removed
1 tablespoon grapeseed oil, for greasing
6 scallions
Juice of 1 lemon
1 shallot, minced
1 fresno chile, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2-3 cups fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh mint, finely chopped
1 cup fresh chives, rough chop
Juice of 1 clementine
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
Sea Salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
•To make the marinade, mix together yogurt, citrus juice and zest, garlic, garlic salt, coriander seed, oregano, kosher salt, and grapeseed oil. Season with additional salt as needed. Add chicken legs, toss to coat well, and set in the refrigerator to marinate at least half an hour. If you have time to marinate longer, cover the bowl with plastic wrap (or add chicken and marinade to a Ziploc bag and seal for easy storage) and set in refrigerator up to 12 hours. Make sure to remove your chicken from the refrigerator 30 minutes before you are ready to cook so the chill can wear off.
•When you are ready to cook, make sure your grill or grill plate is clean and well-greased with a neutral oil (I like grapeseed oil), then heat on high until smoking and reduce heat to medium.
•Remove the chicken from marinade and gently pat excess marinade off with a paper towel before adding chicken legs to the grill skin side up, making sure not to overcrowd or they will steam. I let them go 5-10 minutes or until a deeply golden-brown crust has formed that allows you to easily release the chicken from the grill and flip. Continue cooking another 5-10 or so minutes until the chicken again easily releases. I then begin the process of flipping the chicken legs periodically and making little stacks of them against each other to grill all sides for even color and texture. I turn the heat down a bit lower at this point so we continue to cook the chicken thoroughly without drying out the exterior. Chicken is cooked perfectly when meat is no longer translucent and juices when you slice near the bone run clear (or a thermometer at the thickest part registers 160F since it will come up to 165F as it rests). Remove from the heat and allow chicken legs to rest 10 minutes before serving.
•To make the corn tabbouleh, lightly grease each ear of corn with grapeseed oil before placing onto the hot grill. Cover with parchment paper and weight with a grill weight or heavy bottomed pan to maximize grill marks. Rotate periodically until corn is nicely charred in places but still tender. Remove from the grill and allow to cool until safe to handle.
•Add scallions to the hot grill and allow to char slightly, flipping half way through, about 3 minutes. Once nicely tender and golden brown in places, remove from the grill and roughly chop, then add to a large bowl.
•Meanwhile, combine lemon juice, shallots, chiles and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt in a small bowl, mix to combine and let sit about 10 minutes to mellow some of the bite and heat.
•Use a knife to remove kernels and corn milk from each cob and add it to the bowl with the scallions. Add in the fresh herbs, shallots and chiles with their lemon juice, clementine juice and olive oil. Taste and season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper as desired.
•To plate, pile a mountain of corn “tabbouleh” onto your serving plate and top with beautifully rested chicken legs. (Optional: make more of the same yogurt marinade to drizzle all over the plate as a wonderful dipping sauce and garnish. If you’re going to do so, try toasting the whole coriander seeds in a dry pan for about a minute before crushing and adding them in with the yogurt so they won’t taste raw in the mix.) Drizzle the chicken with honey if using, and season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste. Then tuck in and savor the extravagant bounty of summer!!!
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