Palestinian Chicken

Submitted by GaylaJ

"From Steven Raichlen (The Barbecue Bible). Although I think the bone and skin add much to the flavor of grilled chicken, I used boneless, skinless breasts as that is what I had on hand and ordinarily use. I sliced them, and served wrapped in warm, homemade pita bread. Delicious! If you use boneless, skinless breasts, the cooking time will be less than stated. Prep time includes time to marinate."

 

• Ready In: 4hrs 30mins
• Ingredients: 9
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 4 chicken breast halves (bone-in with skin, 6-8 ounces each)
• 1 cup plain yogurt (whole milk)
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1⁄8 teaspoon ground cloves

directions

1. Rinse chicken under cold running water, drain and blot dry with paper towels; arrange breasts in a non-reactive baking dish large enough to hold them in one layer and set aside (I use a large, heavy-duty ziploc bag to marinate them).
2. Combine the yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, salt, cinnamon, pepper, cardamom, and cloves in a small bowl and whisk to blend; pour over chicken and spread over breasts to cover completely.
3. Cover and let marinate, refrigerated, 4-12 hours (the longer the better).
4. Preheat the grill using indirect heat. See note below.
5. When ready to cook, oil the grill grate; remove the chicken from the marinade and arrange, skin side down, on the hotter section of the grill. Cook until the skin starts to brown (3-5 minutes). Move to the cooler section of the grill and continue grilling until the skin is thoroughly browned (5-7 more minutes). Watch carefully and use tongs to move pieces away from flare-ups.
6. Turn the breasts and move them back to the hotter section of the grill. Brown the second side well (3-5 minutes), then move them back to the cooler side of the grill to finish cooking. The juices will run clear when the meat is pierced.
7. Note: If you are using boneless, skinless breasts, cook on direct med-high heat 4-6 minutes per side.

Reviews

[COOKGIRl]

I made this using boneless chicken thighs. The chicken marinated for close to 18 hours. I used whole milk plain yogurt, too. The recipe was very easy and the chicken delicious over<br/>a bed of basmati rice. Served with a side of steamed green beans, asparagus and carrots.. We used our stove top grill pan. All of my favorite spices in one bite! Made for the Come With Us to Palestine game in the NA*ME forum. Come play!

 

[Bonnie G #2]

Made this as directed and DH and I enjoyed it. Really differant flavors that blended nicely. Made recipe#393238 then chopped up the chicken and stuffed the pitas. Served with steamed rice on the side. Made for PARTY - 2010

 

[Husker Fan]

Oh my goodness, I made this awhile ago and forgot to give my opinion. So sorry, my family enjoyed this a lot. I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts otherwise everything else followed to a "T". This was wonderful!

 

[yogiclarebear]

Holy cow was this good! I made this for one serving, using boneless skinless chicken breast, and non-fat yogurt. I also used just a pinch of cardamom, but everything else as written. I ate this in pita with spinach, tomato, cucumber, and sprouts. But I'm making this again today and will eat it plain, because it is so delicious by itself! I think this woud be wonderful over couscous as well. Thank you Gayla!

 

[winkki]

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! I marinated this for approx 8 hrs but then the rain came up and grilling was not an option so I broiled it instead. It worked well but I will watch the time more closely if I have to go that way again. The only change I made was to sub allspice for the cardamom and cloves as I didn't have time this morning to grind them and didn't have powdered on hand. Hubby and the kids all raved about it, even the toddler had seconds on the 'chickie.' :) We had these with pita, feta, Ghassan's Tabbouleh #18782, Lebanese Lentil/Rice Pilaf with Blackened Onions #78824, Labneh #88089, Hummus #22060 and Tzatziki #51983, and then finished off with Harissah #78772. It's been moved into permanent rotation on our menu, and I can't wait to try it on the grill this summer. Thanks SO much for posting!