I recently shared this grilled chicken recipe with People magazine, and it’s a big winner.
This grilled chicken recipe highlights all the flavors: sour, salty, bitter, sweet and spicy. It’s a big-flavor dish amplified by the char of the grill and soothed by the tart, acidic chill of the yogurt sauce. Serve it with homemade pita and a salad of sliced tomatoes, herbs and onion (something like this would be fantastic).
Cooking over indirect heat keeps the chicken juicy and adds an unbeatable smoky grill flavor. Finishing it over direct heat crisps and chars the skin to add maximum texture contrast.
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Grilled Deviled Chicken Thighs With Mint-Yogurt Sauce Recipe
By Andrew Zimmern
Ingredients
- 12 oz. plain Greek yogurt (1½ cups)
- ½ cup chopped fresh mint
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
- 1 tablespoons honey
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- ¼ cup plus 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice (from 3 limes), divided
- 2½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- 4 medium shallots, chopped
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- ⅓ cup fish sauce
- ⅓ cup Sriracha sauce or sambal oelek
- ¼ cup peanut oil or canola oil
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 4 large garlic cloves, smashed
- 1 (2-in.) piece of fresh ginger, smashed
- 12 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 5 lbs. total)
Instructions
Stir together yogurt, mint, onion, honey, oregano, 2 tablespoons lime juice and 2 teaspoons salt in a medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Place shallots, brown sugar, fish sauce, Sriracha, peanut oil, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and ¼ cup lime juice in a blender. Process until smooth, about 30 seconds. Set aside ¼ cup of mixture in the fridge.
Place chicken in a large ziplock bag; pour in brown sugar mixture. Seal bag, and massage thighs with marinade to coat. Chill overnight or up to 24 hours.
Preheat a gas grill to medium-high (400° to 450°) on one side, or push hot coals to one side of a charcoal grill. Remove thighs from marinade; discard marinade. Place thighs, skin-side up, on oiled grates over the unlit side of the grill. Grill, covered, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest portion registers 160°, 40 to 45 minutes. Reduce temperature to medium (350° to 400°). Flip thighs, and place on oiled grates over the lit side of grill. Baste with reserved marinade. Grill, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest portion registers 165° and skin is charred and crisp, 5 to 10 minutes.
Transfer chicken to a platter; sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt. Serve with yogurt sauce.