Yucatan grilled chicken. A little bit of sunshine next time you grill. Big, bold, bright tastes. Citrus. Achiote. Chili. Mustard. Garlic. What’s not to love?
It’s dead easy as well. Just combine all the ingredients in the blender. Marinate the chicken. Grill. Smile.
This is the stuff of roadside Mom and Pop grills in Southern California. El Pollo this or El Pollo that. If you’ve been, you know what I’m talking about.
If you haven’t – just make this. It’ll be like you were there. It is absolutely addictive stuff. Even when it’s bad, it’s pretty good. And when it’s good, it’s awesome.
Achiote makes Yucatan grilled chicken special
If you don’t live close to Mexico you will need to make a trip to a latin market. The secret ingredient is a paste called Achiote. It’s pronounced “achot” so if you have to ask for it try to say it that way. So they won’t look at you like you are crazy.
It has annatto seed in it. That’s the stuff they use to colour cheese. You think turmeric stains? Watch out. Don’t say you weren’t warned.
Grab a pure chili powder like New Mexican while you are there. Grab lots. Not just for this recipe. Pure chili powders are just so much better than the crap called “chili powder” in grocery stores. That’s a blend of spices. Doesn’t matter what you cook with it. It all winds up tasting the same. Just not good.
yucatan grilled chicken
Ingredients
- 6-7 cloves garlic
- 2 Tbsp yellow prepared mustard
- 1 Tbsp achiote paste
- Juice of a large lime
- 2 Tbsp mild pure chili powder - like New Mexican or Ancho
- 1 Tbsp salt
- enough water to make a smooth paste - roughly 3/4-1 cup
- 1 chicken - cut into 8-10 pieces (or individual parts to your taste)
Instructions
Prepare the chicken
- Combine all the ingredients except the chicken in a blender. Puree until smooth.
- Place the chicken and marinade in a non-reactive dish and let stand 1-3 hours.
Grill the chicken
- Prepare your grill for medium-high indirect heat. Place a drip pan over the portion of the grill not heated to catch the drippings. If you are using a gas grill, place some pre-soaked wood chips in a foil packet and pierce. Place the foil packet over a lit burner.
- If using charcoal build a banked fire on one side of the grill. Place the drip pan on the other side.
- Grill, indirect, until an instant read thermometer reads about 155-160F.
- Start rotating pieces over the direct heat (2 or 3 pieces at a time) to get a bit of colour or char. Once they have coloured up, return them to the indirect area. Repeat until all the pieces are done. Pay close attention when you do this.
- Continue cooking until an instant read thermometer reads 165F in the thickest part of the chicken pieces.
- Serve with pinto beans, tortillas, and pico.
Notes
Nutrition
This is my riff on kimchi jjigae. It’s a salty, spicy, porky bowl of cabbage and broth goodness. Korean pork stew really. Easier and a bit more approachable than absolutely authentic kimchi jjigae.
I took the Korean fish stock out of the recipe. No pulling the guts out of dried anchovies here. Just some simple chicken stock instead. Pork belly I kept. The world needs more pork belly. It’s a bit fatty so it adds a wonderful richness to the stew.
Tofu is a traditional ingredient. I like it because it adds another texture. Don’t like tofu? Just leave it out.
Kimchi jjigae is a little bit spicy
This recipe is a bit spicier than traditional kimchi jjigae. It doesn’t have to be. Stick with the lower quantities of Korean chili powder (gochugaru) and chili paste (gochujang) and it’s zingy.
Go at the high end of the recommendation and it’s into Thai or Indian curry heat. The heat builds so don’t base it entirely on one little taste as you are cooking it.
