Tamarind is my new food crush. When I ate sea bass in a tamarind sauce at a restaurant in Costa Rica a year ago, I fell in love. This Grilled Chicken with Tamarind Glaze can be cooked on an outdoor grill or baked in the oven, either way, it is terrific.
Tamarind comes from a tree native to Africa but also grows in Pakistan, India and other tropical regions. The bean-like pods have seeds surrounded by a pulp that is quite sour but sweetens as the pods ripen. You can find Tamarind Pulp or Tamarind Pods on Amazon or at other specialty markets that carry Asian or Indian food products. I recommend buying the pulp because it is a lot of work to open the pods and extract all of the pulp – I’d rather save my time and energy to work out or go for a long walk.
The flavor of the Tamarind pulp is tangy, sour and a little sweet, kind of citrusy but thick and syrupy like molasses. For the glaze or marinade, I mix the tamarind with lime, garlic, a touch of sugar, balsamic vinegar and olive oil, then baste the chicken as it cooks on the grill.
By the way, this sauce is terrific on salmon and shrimp as well.
PrintGrilled Chicken with Tamarind Glaze
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 5 servings 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This is a delicious and easy grilled or oven-baked chicken. Serve with a bowl of Jasmine or Basmati Rice and you’re done!
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1/4 cup tamarind paste
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Juice from 1 lime
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2–3 teaspoons red chili paste (one !important; margin:0px !important;" />”>sambal olek)
- 1/3 cup olive oil plus 1/4 cup for chicken
- 2 pounds boneless chicken
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
Shishito peppers
- 1 pound shishito peppers
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
Instructions
Grilling Method
- Whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl then set aside.
- Place chicken in a medium bowl with 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and ground pepper.
- Pour about 1/3 cup of marinade onto chicken and mix.
- Heat grill (oven alternate recipe below).
- When hot, lift chicken from bowl and place onto grill, after 6 minutes or so, flip chicken to the other side and brush on additional marinade. Let cook 5 more minutes. Flip once more brushing additional glaze. Test for doneness, remove from grill to a large platter.
Grilled Shishito Preparation
- place shishito peppers into a medium bowl and mix with other ingredients along with a pinch of salt and ground pepper.
- Place a large piece of foil on the grill while chicken is cooking, put the shishito peppers on the foil in a single layer and close the lid of grill.
- When you turn the chicken over, do the same to the shishitos and brush on a little of the marinade.
- Continue to cook until the peppers are blistered and soft (15 minutes), remove to the platter.
Oven Method
- Preheat oven to 400º.
- Place chicken on 2/3 of large baking sheet and shishito peppers on other side.
- Place into oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until done.
- Halfway through baking toss the peppers then continue to cook until done.
Notes
There is enough marinade in the recipe that you will have some left over. When you are brushing it on the chicken, place half of the marinade in another bowl so you do not contaminate the marinade with the chicken.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Grill or oven
- Cuisine: Healthy
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