Grilled Chicken with Middle Eastern Spice Rub and Baby Greens
Curtis Stone's Middle Eastern style grilled chicken lunch will satisfy all of your taste buds. The spice rub seasoning gives the chicken a hot flavor, and the cooling yogurt topping sauce is made with real cucumbers.
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For more recipes that incorporate chicken, see 24 Clean Chicken Recipes.
Serves: 2
Hands-on Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
Chicken:
- 1/4 tsp each of coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
- 4 tsp olive oil
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/4-in thickness
Yogurt Sauce:
- 1/2 English hothouse cucumber, peeled, seeded, thinly sliced
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lemon
- 3 tbs chopped fresh cilantro
- 4 cups mixed baby salad greens
INSTRUCTIONS:
MAKE-AHEAD TIP: Pounded chicken, spice rub, and yogurt sauce can be prepared 1 day ahead, covered separately. Refrigerate chicken and yogurt sauce. Store spice mixture at room temperature.
To prepare spice rub:
- In a heavy small frying pan, toast coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and fennel seeds over medium-high heat until spices begin to pop, shaking pan gently to jostle spices in skillet, about 2 mins.
- Using Curtis Stone ‘Bump and Grind’ Mortar and Pestle or another mortar and pestle, grind toasted spices into a powder. Mix in cayenne pepper and turmeric.
To cook chicken:
Curtis Stone recommends preparing this dish with his Curtis Stone Indoor Grill over medium-high heat.
- Season 1 side of each chicken breast generously with spice mixture and sprinkle with salt. Drizzle with some of oil and rub spice mixture to coat entire top surface of chicken.
- Lay chicken, spiced side down, on Grill. Immediately sprinkle second side of chicken breasts with remaining spices and salt. Drizzle with remaining oil and rub spice mixture over top of each chicken breast. Grill until brown grill marks form and chicken is just cooked through, about 2 mins per side. Transfer chicken to 2 plates and let rest for 2 mins.
Meanwhile, to make yogurt sauce:
In a small bowl, combine cucumber, yogurt, and garlic. Finely grate peel from half of lemon into yogurt mixture, then squeeze about 2 tsp of lemon juice into yogurt mixture. Stir in cilantro. Season with salt and pepper.
To serve:
Mound greens alongside chicken on plates. Drizzle sauce over chicken and serve.