Grilled Chicken and Vegetables with Indian Spices
Here, a quick and easy curry mixture perfumes chicken and vegetables, transforming their taste. A simple yogurt sauce highlights the Indian flavors. Accompany the meal with steamed rice and end with fresh mango slices.
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup plain yogurt
- 3 Tbs. minced fresh cilantro
- 3 green onions, white and light green portions, minced
- Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 2 tsp. Madras curry powder
- 2 tsp. chili powder
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, each 5 to 6 oz.
- 4 Asian eggplant, each cut lengthwise into 3 pieces
- 4 zucchini, each cut lengthwise into 3 pieces
- Olive oil for brushing
Directions:
In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, cilantro and green onions and stir to blend. Season the yogurt sauce with salt and pepper.
Prepare a hot fire in a grill.
In another small bowl, combine the curry powder, chili powder, cumin and coriander and stir to blend. Working with 1 chicken breast half at a time, place on a sheet of waxed paper and then cover with a second sheet of waxed paper. Using a rolling pin, hit the chicken a few times to flatten slightly to an even thickness. Transfer the chicken to a rimmed baking sheet.
Place the eggplant and zucchini on another baking sheet. Brush the top side of the chicken and vegetables with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the top of each chicken breast with 1/4 tsp. of the spice mixture, and then lightly sprinkle the vegetables with the spice mixture. Turn the chicken and vegetables over and repeat brushing with the oil and seasoning the ingredients (reserve any remaining spice mixture for another use).
Place the chicken and vegetables on the grill. Cover the grill and cook until the chicken and vegetables are just cooked through, about 5 minutes per side for the chicken and eggplant, and about 6 minutes per side for the zucchini.
Transfer the chicken and vegetables to a platter. Serve immediately with the yogurt sauce. Serves 4.
Quick tips: Madras curry powder, found in the spice section of supermarkets, is a convenient way to add lots of flavor quickly. Use any leftover spice mixture to season poultry, fish or vegetables, or make a quick sauce by stirring it into yogurt. For a change of pace, turkey cutlets or fish could stand in for the chicken; bell peppers and potatoes could replace the eggplant and zucchini.
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Weeknight Fresh & Fast, by Kristine Kidd (Williams-Sonoma, 2011).