Page 24 | THE LAKER July 4, 2022
‘Cue The Grill
Awesome Grilled Chicken Recipes
Hello All! Happy 4th of July to everyone, especially to our country, and Welcome to Summer. It’s official now, although everyone has their own definition on when summer actually begins, but it’s a no-brainer at this point. Schools are out, the area is flooded with vacationers, and traffic is the way us locals are used to this time of year. Our businesses are drooling with the excitement of tons of incoming cash flow, the Lakes are busy with boaters and swimmers and the campgrounds are chock full of families loving life. It really doesn’t get much better than that. Some of my favorite memories growing up was camping most of the summer with my folks and siblings and I loved every minute of it. It was truly the best of times. I find this time of year to be a win/win for locals and tourists alike. It’s now time to get back to our next chapter in delicious food. So, I need to make a confession. I am a pretty big guy and have always loved good food, and since I have cooked for a living for almost 40 years, I look like the stereotypical chef and although I do know some skinny chefs, most I seem to know are
built like the Pillsbury Doughboy, just like myself. As the old line goes, “Never trust a skinny chef”, and if that’s truly the case, I am as trustworthy as they come I have joked many times that I may make fun of many people in jest, but nobody more than myself. Well, we all know how almost everyone are weight and diet conscious nowadays, especially in how Covid has had a tendency of putting extra pounds on many of us. With that in mind, today’s theme is healthy grilling as we can all use a little assistance when it comes to finding some healthy, but delicious ideas to focus on for this summer’s grilling season. Our theme will be chicken off the grill, and although sometimes a sauce can make a healthy item not quite as healthy, in the big scheme of things, it’s still a much healthier option than so many things out there. Today, I’m going to share a kicker salad, a pita pocket sandwich, a very untraditional taco recipe, and some very awesome dinner entrees. So, Let’s Do This! First off, let’s attack the sandwich, which is a Greek chicken kabob to start with, and then we stuff the goodies from the skewer into a warm pita pocket for “Brand Name Family Footwear for Less” One of the Lakes Region’s largest selections of sandals and footwear!
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a very fun lunch option. The kabobs contain marinated chicken skewered with an array of fresh veggies and once popped into the pocket, they are topped with crumbled feta cheese and fresh dill as well as a dressing. Prep is quick and easy, I suggest letting the chicken marinate for a couple of hours, and then grilling is also quick. This recipe is for 4 pita pockets. You can either split the ingredients onto 4 smaller skewers or do so with 2 large ones as once cooked, I generally slide all ingredients of the skewers onto a platter and then evenly stuff the 4 pitas, so it’s not mandatory to give each pita their individual skewer. The choice is yours on the grilling process as what is most important is evenly divide the ingredients into the sandwiches. Greek Chicken Kabobs in a Pita 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided 3 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tbsp dried oregano Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes 2 large zucchinis, cut into half moons 1 cup chopped red onion cut into 1-inch squares 4 pitas ½- ¾ cup crumbled feta ¼ cup torn fresh dill For the marinade, whisk together ¾ cup olive oil, the vinegar and oregano and season with salt and pepper in a large bowl and whisk together. Reserve half and set aside to use later. Add the cubed chicken to the marinade and toss until combined, cover and re-
frigerate for a minimum of 2 hours and up to overnight. Once ready to cook, preheat your oiled, clean grill to medium-high. Skewer chicken with zucchini and red onion and/or whatever veggies you might want. Drizzle skewers with remaining ¼ cup olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until charred and cooked through, 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a serving platter. Grill pita 15-20 seconds per side on low. Push the grilled goodies off the skewers and with a set of tongs, stuff the ingredients evenly into the 4 warm pockets, top with feta, dill and drizzle the reserved marinade into each. These are very savory and incredibly appealing to the pallet. A few of today’s recipes can be used as an appetizer or main course, and this is a classic example. This recipe works great whether using bone-in chicken of choice, boneless breasts or thighs, or chicken tenders, which allows you versatility to grill skewers of chicken fingers, make boneless chicken sandwiches, put over a salad, or if you want to use bone-in chicken, there is your dinner main course. Regardless how you decide to approach this recipe, the taste has an Asian-Thai theme to it with a scrumptious spicy sauce, whether to dip or to lather right on the chicken. Although most sauces or marinades will last for days or weeks under refrigeration, this sauce really should be used the day of making as it will lose its freshness quickly. The marinade includes coconut milk, which • ‘Cue the Grill continued on page 25
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