One of the best ways to inject flavour into meats is with a marinade. Chicken is mild when it comes to meat so there’s alot of room for flavours.
As I’ve written before, Greeks prefer their savory foods to remain savory, although some sweetness is tolerated and enjoyed. This marinade for chicken is sure to please Greeks of all generations and all regions.
I’ve added some heat, as my family comes from Florina and we do like our spicy foods but you may certainly skip this but I recommend trying just a little heat – that cold beer will be even more enjoyable!
Marinade recipes are very free-flowing as every one’s tastes vary. This one contains olive oil, mustard, bay leaves, garlic, grated onion, hot chilli pepper, dried Greek oregano and salt and pepper.
I always add the ingredients in a zip-lock bag and adjust seasoning to the taste. If the marinade finally tastes good, chances are you’ll have a wonderful and delicious result.
To accompany this char-grilled chicken, I’ve been playing with (and enjoying) grilled potatoes. They are wonderfully easy and all one has to do is par-boil the potatoes, add your flavours of choice while they are still warm and simply skewer and grill on sides of the potatoes. Again, this is another way to beat the heat in the kitchen, I parboil the potatoes the night before and bring them to room temperature when I’m ready to grill.
The final component of today’s Greek grill are the vegetables. This aspect is free-flowing. Use what’s fresh and cheap at the market, in season. On the day I grilled these vegetables, I was in the mood for fennel, zucchini, eggplant, peppers and onions. I simply toss the vegetables in olive oil, season with salt, pepper and garlic powder and grill for a few minutes on each side.
All they need is a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, a splash of good balsamic vinegar and some salt & pepper to finish off.
Entertaining this weekend? Grab that package of chicken pieces or segment a chicken or two. Parboil some spuds and throw those on the grill too! Don’t forget your veggies…no one will snort at them when they are served hot off the grill!
Chargrilled Chicken With Potatoes and Vegetables
(serves 4-6)
2 chickens, segmented or 12 chicken pieces
1/4 cup olive oil
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp. of Dijon mustard
1 medium onion, passed through the box grater
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
2 red chillis, crushed
1 Tbsp. dried Greek oregano
salt and pepper to taste
- Place all of your marinade ingredients inside a large zip-lock bag and squish the contents to blend. Have a taste and adjust the ingredients according to taste.
- Now add your chicken pieces to the marinade, squish the marinade around the pieces, seal and place in the fridge. Marinade for at least 5 hours, overnight would be best.
- Pre-heat your gas or charcoal grill. Brush/clean the grill surface of any residue. You want your grill to be a medium-high heat. Your chicken should be returned to room temperature before grilling.
- Take the chicken out of the zip-lock back and wipe away excess marinade (discard the bag and marinade). Season your chicken with some salt and pepper and place on the grill. Grill your chicken over medium-high heat, about 10-12 minutes per side. You can check for doneness by poking a fork into the meat. The juices should run clear.
- Allow the chicken to rest for a few minutes before seerving. Sprinkle some dried Greek oregano on top and serve with wedges of lemon.
Skewered Potatoes
16-20 new potatoes (or other potato cut into small uniform size)
salt and pepper
olive oil
sweet paprika
- Place your potatoes in salted water and bring to a boil. When they water starts to boil, cook them for 12 minutes.
- Carefully remove the potatoes from the water and immediately toss in olive oil, some sweet paprika and some salt and pepper to taste.
- Keep on tossing so that the potatoes can absorb the olive oil and seasonings. Allow the potatoes to come to room temperature.
- Place on metal skewers (or wooden ones soaked overnight in water) and place on your grill for about 12-15 minutes, turning frequently.
If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at https://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.
© 2007-2009 Peter Minakis
32 Responses
Mmm bay leaves! Did you use fresh ones? I have finally just found a bay plant but it isn’t ready to harvest yet.
I love any meal where everything is prepared on the grill. Your skewered potatoes are so cute!
Those spuds are fantastic! I love the idea of skewering them! “Barbies” (and I’m not talking about the doll!) are great! How I envy you right now. Thanks for sharing another great idea Peter!
this weather is all about grilling! I’m excited about your Greek tweets, lol.
So far my vocabulary is, herete, karpouzi… and of course kalofagas!
baby steps :)
Now, I’m hungry! That looks so delicious and flavorful!
Cheers,
Rosa
I don’t know what appeals to me more…the meat or the lovely veggies!!! Those tatties look lovely, Peter!!
Everything looks delicious but those potatoes are the star of your bbq :)
All grilled meals are perfect for me and I absolute adore the roasted vegetables but I am veeeeery jealous of the potatoes! I wish I had some right now!!!
Looks like you had a perfect BBQ!
I love it all! Peter, you could make even a tennis ball look tasty!
I’ve been making greek marinade for years now for my chicken but never added Dijon. What a great idea. Peter if you are living in an appartement in Toronto your neighbors must go nuts with all the great flavors of your BBQ.
I’d take that for dinner tonight if you had any leftover to ship my way.
This is a great grilled meal! All my favorites are here. Great tip about par-boiling the potatoes the night before.
everything looks cooked to perfection – well done
now you’re talking, peter! all that char, all those spices–this is truly fabulous and i would LOVE it!
this looks SO good. now im wishing someoone would just cook me this. sigh….
a very satisfying my kinda meal.
That looks dynamite! Summer was made for grilling, Greek grilling that is!
Grilling the potatoes with the chicken is a grand idea! Keeping the flavors in the same family must make it great.
I love grilled chicken and veggies! looks fantastic!
oh those grill marks. crunch chicken skin. bring it.
Peter .. I LUV crunchy chicken skin, luv luv luv! This dish looks and sounds perfect! Wondering what to make next week, this is going to have to be added to our menu list!
looks so delicious. I have a weakness for grilled and nicely charred foods hehe
Now this all looks delish – but those potatoes….YUM!
Lovely looking crispy chicken too Mmmmm!!
Sounds like a really wonderful marinade. I’m so glad to see someone else grilling fennel
Great marinade. While my grill pan isn’t a good choice for grilling whole chicken pieces, I can see using the marinade for boneless chicken and cooking it on the grill pan – or using it on bone-in chicken and cooking it in the oven. Either way, it’s all the flavors that go with chicken.
Potatoes are wonderful grilled. Definitely a keeper idea.
You make me want to go out and buy a grill!
Luscious!
Beautiful combination of simple pleasures here Peter. Since it is 35C in the shade the barbecue needs to be in use 24/7.
It’s almost 2am, and the chicken is marinating for tomorrow’s dinner. Also on tap is baked feta; I’m going to try it on the bbq.
Love the flavors and simplicity. Also, a huge fan of adding heat to every dish.
Great grill marks!!!
Yum yum yum. I always love simple flavors like these and the charring looks fantastic. I am really drooling over those potatoes, which are nice and crispy on the outside and probably super fluffy inside. Mmm.
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