Excellent recipe. Like other reviewers I added 2 cloves of garlic and left out the cinnamon. A couple tips if you're new to grilling chicken that I have found useful: 1) Trim the chicken breasts to remove fat and tendons then pound the chicken breasts so they are the same thickness throughout. This will help it cook evenly. 2) Cut small crosswise slits the length of the breast to help the marinade penetrate the meat. Make sure you don't cut all the way through. Update 9/2008 - I've made this recipe a few times now and I still love it. Since I'm only cooking for two and this marinade makes quite a bit when I make it I buy the family pack of chicken breasts. I marinate the two I'm cooking that night and then put the others in zip lock freezer bags in the marinade (in packs of two). That way the next time I want grilled chicken I just have to pull it out of the freezer and let it thaw and it's already marinated.
Excellent recipe. Like other reviewers I added 2 cloves of garlic and left out the cinnamon. A couple tips if you're new to grilling chicken that I have found useful: 1) Trim the chicken breasts to remove fat and tendons then pound the chicken breasts so they are the same thickness throughout. This will help it cook evenly. 2) Cut small crosswise slits the length of the breast to help the marinade penetrate the meat. Make sure you don't cut all the way through. Update 9/2008 - I've made this recipe a few times now and I still love it. Since I'm only cooking for two and this marinade makes quite a bit when I make it I buy the family pack of chicken breasts. I marinate the two I'm cooking that night and then put the others in zip lock freezer bags in the marinade (in packs of two). That way the next time I want grilled chicken I just have to pull it out of the freezer and let it thaw and it's already marinated.
My family loved this recipe. I did make a few changes due to our personal tastes. I added a couple cloves of fresh garlic. I omitted the cinnamon. I added about a quarter tsp. more cumin and about a half tsp of coriander. I knew that my intent was to use this chicken for fajitas so I was looking for spices that would boost the southwest flavor. I marinated it for about 20 hours. It was quite spicy so next time I might lighten up on the cayenne but then I probably got more than a pinch in there. Overall it was a hit and will definately go in our rotation. My teenager loved using the leftovers for a sandwich.
Both my boyfriend and mom say this is the BEST chicken they've ever had! I made a few changes and took a short cut time wise. Starting with Aaron's kosher chicken from Trader Joe's (Breasts Thighs only) I removed the skin but left the bones in. Then I substituted mango/lemonade for the OJ (because I was out) fresh ginger for the powdered and one canned chipotle (chopped) and added some fresh garlic. I also ommitted the cayenne pepper because I thought the chipotle would be spicy enough. TIME SAVER TIP: I didn't marinate at all just poured everything over the chicken and baked it covered with foil for 30min at 375 degrees before grilling 5-8 min per side while basting. I ended up with the juiciest most flavorful chicken ever. Great with brown saffron rice. Enjoy!
This is a keeper! As other readers suggested we substituted fresh garlic and eliminated the cinnamon. After marinading for 8 hours we thought they had the perfect amount of flavor. My husband competes in local barbeque contests so when he says "this is really" good I know it's a winner. 1/4/2009...I've started to combine all of the spices and measure out 3 batches at once. I put each batch in a separate baggie. It is easy to put the spices in with the other marinade ingredients and let the chicken marinde during the day while we're at work. It's ready to grill for a quick dinner when we get home.
We grilled this last night for dinner. I cut this in half for three chicken breasts and used fresh garlic for the garlic powder and followed it exactly. I let it marinate for 8 hours. I guess I have to say "less is more" with this recipe. There are just too many spices competing with one another and in the end the chili flavor won. Sometimes the simplest marinades make for the best dishes in the end. You don't have to mix so many things together to get a great tasting piece of meat. It was worth a try but I won't be making this again.
I enjoyed this recipe but only marinated for 5 hours next time I will do overnight at least. I added some minced garlic because I am a garlic lover and next time I will reduce the cinnamon (personal preference). Hubby and I ate it the first night and I sliced up two more breasts the following day and used them in fajitas. YUM! I have 2 left and will slice them up and make a salad for tomorrow. It has provided several meals with only some initial effort (only difficult because I had kids underfoot - next time I'll do it the night before while they are in bed). I will make this again thanks for the recipe!
The flavor was fantastic. It's a keeper. 3/28/08-I made this again and it is still fantastic!
I was a little skeptical when I started to put the many ingredients of this marinade together but I was quite pleasantly surprised at the wonderful smell once it started to grill. The chicken was perfectly tender and very tasty. I can't wait to make this again!
I thought this recipe was amazing....even my picky boyfriend enjoyed it. I do think it would be better on a rack of ribs rather then chicken.
