Whole Chicken Recipes

No More Dry Chicken!

I have traveled all over the world, studied eating habits, cultures, herbs and spices which resulted in writing 4 cookbooks. After I went to the Art Institute of Philadelphia to get my degree in Culinary Science, I worked as a private chef, catering chef, and as a foodstyling chef at QVC, but grilling chicken was something I didn't like to do, because it always came out as dry as a turkey left-overs without mayonnaise.

John and I ate fried chicken probably twice in the last 10 years, and I use chicken in chicken enchiladas, quesadilla and stir-fry, but that was it. Can you imagine our surprise when we bought a whole chicken, cut it open, marinated it, grilling it and loved the result of our own Mexican grilled chicken.

Believe me, we were nervous, so after about 30 minutes of grilling, we checked the temperature with a meat thermometer every 10 minutes, got into an small argument about the temperature. Because when it was 150F, I told John we had to take it off and let it rest. He insisted on having it on the grill until it reached 155F, but he listened to me, and after 10 minutes of resting the chicken was 155F, juicy and delicious.

So here is the secret: the chicken is cut through the center of the back, seasoned with Taco or other Mexican seasoning, then marinated laying flat in a large glass bowl for at least 4 hours. The marinade used is a combination of hot sauce and a tomato or tomatillo based (salsa verde) sauce.

Heat the grill, and grill the chicken starting with the back down. Turn over and bast with the marinade every 15 minutes. After 45-
50 minutes you have to check the temperature. When it reads 150F remove the chicken from the grill and let rest for 10-15 minutes. The temperature will rise, but chicken will not get too dry.

Here in Mexico, the chicken is being served with a stack of tortillas, roasted onions and tomatoes. They cut the chicken into pieces after it has rested, and believe me this is the only way I ever had juicy, grilled chicken, so try it out.