With farmers' markets, fruit stands and groceries filling up with displays of ripe, juicy watermelon, now is the time to fire up the grill and try this tangy glaze. Believe me when I tell you it is grilled chicken's perfect complement!
Adapted from a recipe found on Better Homes & Gardens, there's a few things you should know about the following glaze:
- It is super easy to make,
- It's zippy flavor is an enticing combination of both spicy and sweet, and
- It adds great color to chicken as it cooks.
While you won't find directions for grilling chicken with this post (you can find those here or here), I will be sharing the glaze recipe with a few ideas on how you can adapt it to suit your own tastes & needs.
Cherry-Watermelon Glaze (for Grilling Chicken)
(adapted from Better Homes & Gardens)
The following recipe will glaze 1 whole chicken or approximately 3 & 1/2 pounds of cut-up chicken (with skin)
- 4 cups chopped, fresh watermelon
- 1 (12 ounce) jar cherry jelly (may substitute apple jelly if desired)
- 1 small lime (needed for both it's zest & juice)
- 2 teaspoons aleppo pepper (may substitute red chile flakes)
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce (Franks or Tabasco, may substutitue your favorite peper sauce)
- pinch of salt
Place 4 cups of chopped watermelon in a blender, food processor or juicer to collect the juice; blend until smooth, discard any solids (push through fine sieve if necessary). Reserve 1 cup of this juice; drink or freeze the rest. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt cherry jelly stirring often so as not to burn. As the jelly melts, stir in reserved cup of watermelon juice, as well as the zest and juice of 1 lime. Add 2 teaspoons of aleppo pepper (or red chile flakes if substituting), 1 teaspoon hot sauce, and a pinch of salt. Mix and taste; adjust seasoning as desired. Remove from heat; use warm, or let cool and transfer to a clean jar. Covered tightly and refrigerated, glaze will keep up to 2 days.
For Use During Grilling: Reserve 1/3 cup of prepared glaze to brush on chicken prior to serving. During grilling, use remaining 2/3 cup glaze to brush on chicken skin at least 3 times during the last 25 minutes of grilling. When chicken is fully cooked (thickest part of thigh registers 180 degrees F), brush skin with reserved 1/3 cup glaze and let chicken rest for approximately 10 minutes before serving.
Serving suggestion: Garnish glazed, grilled chicken chpped, fresh herbs and serve with watermelon wedges. Enjoy!
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: )
Posted by: Michelle | 09/01/2010 at 05:32 PM