One of our favorite healthy and easy dinner recipes is Chimichurri Chicken! An addictive green herb sauce drizzled over simple spice-rubbed boneless chicken breasts (or thighs) makes for a flavor-packed meal.
CHIMICHURRISAUCE: In a large Mason jar (See Note 1), add the finely chopped garlic cloves, (2-3 cloves if sensitive to garlic, or 4 cloves for garlic lover!) red wine vinegar and freshly squeezed lime juice. Stir and set aside. Finely chop a bunch of parsley to get a full 1/2 cup (you should use most if not all of a good-sized bunch; some stems are fine -- I just chop off the bulk of large stems and then chop the rest). Finely chop the cilantro and measure to get 1/2 cup. Add the olive oil, dried oregano, red pepper flakes, and honey to the Mason jar. Place the lid on the jar and shake to combine. Add the 1/2 cup finely chopped parsley and cilantro to the jar and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (I use 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.) Place the lid on the jar and refrigerate overnight or let stand at room temperature while preparing everything else.
CHICKEN: Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium-high heat (about 400 degrees F.) (See Note 2.) Generously oil the grill or ridges of grill pan (I drench a rolled-up paper towel in vegetable oil and, holding it with tongs, rub it over the grill grates.) Remove excess fat from the chicken breasts. Slice the breasts in half horizontally, cover with plastic wrap (to avoid splatter), and pound halves to an even thickness using a meat mallet or the bottom of your frying pan. (This helps them cook evenly.) Using a pastry brush, brush olive oil over all sides of chicken. In a small bowl whisk together cumin, coriander, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper (or add salt/pepper to taste; if not using kosher salt (and using table salt) you'll need to reduce the amount of salt.) Sprinkle this seasoning mix over all sides of the chicken. Press in but don't rub into the chicken.
COOK: Place the halved and pounded chicken onto the grill or grill pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes per side, until the chicken is cooked through (registers 165 degrees F on a food thermometer and juices run clear). Remove the chicken from the grill/grill pan and let rest for 5 minutes, tented with foil. Slice chicken against the grain.
ASSEMBLE: If desired, serve cooked chicken over a grain of choice. We like white rice or couscous best! I like to stir about 1/3 cup chimichurri sauce into the cooked grain. Add chicken on top and spoon generous amounts of sauce over top. For storing leftover chimichurri, see directions in the blog post.
Notes
Note1: If you prefer to use a mini food prep food processor, read the post for directions.Note2: You can also use a regular pan! Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add (horizontally halved) chicken breast and cook for 4-6 minutes per side until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear. Transfer the chicken to a clean plate and loosely cover with foil. Let the chicken rest for 5-10 minutes. Slice against the grain.