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Sweet and Spicy Grilled Chicken Breasts
![Sweet and Spicy Grilled Chicken Breasts](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/03/14/dining/22GRILLCHIXSWEETSOUR/22GRILLCHIXSWEETSOUR-articleLarge-v3.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
- Total Time
- 30 minutes, plus 1 hour marinating
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 4(6-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2teaspoons ground coriander
- 1½teaspoons kosher salt
- 1½teaspoons dry mustard powder
- ¼teaspoon cayenne
- 1½tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more as needed
- 4tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 2teaspoons minced fresh chives
Preparation
- Step 1
Place chicken breasts between two sheets of parchment or plastic wrap. Using a mallet or rolling pin, pound each to an even thickness of ½ inch. Do not make them any thinner or they could dry out.
- Step 2
In a small bowl, combine sugar, coriander, salt, mustard powder and cayenne. Place chicken breasts in a bowl and rub well with spice mixture. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours. Remove chicken from fridge while you heat the grill.
- Step 3
Light the grill, building a hot fire, or heat your gas grill to high. Once grill is fully heated, brush breasts lightly with olive oil and place chicken on the grill. Cook until undersides are browned and chicken is about halfway cooked, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip breasts and grill until cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes more.
- Step 4
Transfer chicken to a platter. In a small bowl, whisk together mustard and chives. Whisk in 1½ tablespoons oil. Serve chicken with mustard for dipping.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
I almost hate to point this out, but not everyone has a grill. Can some of these recipes be modified for city dwellers who don't have a back yard or a grill, or either?
Instead of doing whole chicken breasts, I cut the breasts into chunks and added the seasoning then skewered the chunks and grilled. Served with rice and grilled vegetables. Terrific, a new favorite.
use a cast iron grill pan. i get great results with mine.
Funny story- I found this recipe a few summers ago and used it over and over. However, around the 5th time I made it I pulled up the recipe once more and realized that I had been putting the Dijon, chives and olive oil in the marinade itself instead of a dipping sauce... whoops. I decided I would make it correctly and have to say I enjoyed my iteration more- the moisture and tang from the oil and Dijon are fantastic. Try it out!
I really liked this; made some substitutions -- boneless skinless thighs (not pounded), light brown sugar, prepared mustard (roughly double dry quantity), and added a 1/4 tsp tumeric. Great and easy!!
I followed the recipe for the rub, used boneless skinless chicken thighs withou pounding. I also let them marinate with the dry rub for 4+ hours. They were tender and very flavorful. Not hot but there was a hint to make it interesting. A great easy main for a lazy weekend.
Try a grill pan. A heavy enameled one like Le Cruset is very nice. Start with heat setting a bit below medium and give it time to heat up; it will get plenty hot. Cover what you are cooking as you would (should) with an outdoor grill. I use a highly arched pot lid from another pot as the cover but Le Cruset probably will sell you an expensive one.
Claire1 month ago Funny story- I found this recipe a few summers ago and used it over and over. However, around the 5th time I made it I pulled up the recipe once more and realized that I had been putting the Dijon, chives and olive oil in the marinade itself instead of a dipping sauce... whoops. I decided I would make it correctly and have to say I enjoyed my iteration more- the moisture and tang from the oil and Dijon are fantastic. Try it out!
A winner at the family dinner table. I used half the quantity of chicken breast, sliced the breasts in cutlets. Doubled the cayenne. Substituted cumin for the coriander. Served with a yogurt/onion/cucumber sauce. The meat was perfectly seasoned with a little kick from the cayenne. EASY, will make it again!
These are really, really good, and I'm not generally a fan of chicken off-the-bone. Next time I would make a bit more of the rub (with a reduced amount of cayenne) and skip the chive and dijon mix. It overpowers the taste of the chicken and rub, which already has mustard notes. The best thing about the recipe is that the every bite of cutlets, pounded to an even 1/2 inch thickness, has that sweet/savory/smoky flavor. Those juices that accumulate--pour them over the grilling chicken.
We did this as skewers instead and added mushrooms, onions, and summer squash chunks to the chicken pieces. Also added the mustard and a bit more oil to the rub, making it a thick marinade instead. I find whole chicken breasts to be dry and boring regardless of what I put on the outside. But done as skewers this was one of the best dishes we've had lately.
I cooked this, but used pork chops instead of chicken. My hubby loved it.
This was good, but the sugar overpowered the other flavors. Next time I woul cut the sugar in half and increase the mustard and cayenne.
Easy and good. We will do again. I agree it needs more pepper heat and easy to overcook.
Bar-B-Que on a stove with cast iron or fry pan with a cover. Put meat into hot pan 8 out of 10, leave space between meat to circulate heat. In 30 secs place cover over the meat. For a thick steak, med-rare is about 3-1/2 minutes per side. Only turn the meat once. Meat should spring back with a little less than the consistency that you like your meat, as it continues to cook off the heat. Let the meat sit for at least 5 minutes before cutting to keep the juices from draining out. Wonderful!
Fast, easy and tasty.
I didn't actually read the recipe and mixed the Mustard Sauce ingredients into the marinade. chicken came out great! I also did half coriander and half savory. Otherwise followed the recipe. This will definitely be in our rotation this summer!
Made this last night. Quick, easy and tasty. Only variations were a little smoked paprika and extra cayenne. Although I made the mustard sauce, preferred it with a squeeze of lime. Served with a tomato, basil, feta salad and fresh corn on the cob. Lovely summer meal. Easy peasy.
Wasn’t really all that sweet or spicy :(
Loved this but would increase the rub ingredients.
This dish doesn't work for me. The rub is too mild for the dipping sauce, which overwhelms everything. I don't understand the very good reviews. The mustard just kills the spices. Maybe if one doubled the coriander and cayenne?
Very tasty recipe. I don’t think you need to bother with the mustard sauce. It was great on the grill for about 5 minutes a side, along with grilled corn on the cob and a green salad. We’ll make this one again!
These were really good! I added some dijon mustard in my marinade. I'm not sure if it made a large difference or not but regardless, it was delicious! We had it with brown rice and grilled peppers and onions in garlic expressions dressing. SO GOOD!
Added oil to dry and marinated in the mixture. Skipped dipping sauce. Rave reviews
This was amazing. I did add the Dijon mustard and olive oil, a little bit of Greek yogurt and chives as well. I would next time reduce the Dijon mustard. Served it with roasted butternut squash with cumin cinnamon and salt. As well as roasted potatoes and sautéed broccolini Whole family liked it
Wonderful quick Sunday dinner! I served with a dino kale/roasted golden beet/goat cheese/lemon vinaigrette salad. Substitutions: I was out of cayenne, so used red pepper flakes. Riff: I ended up adding soy sauce and honey to the dipping sauce because I only had stoneground mustard, so my texture was a little off. Delicious!
If You Don’t Have A Grill You Can Try Using A Grill Pan Or George Forman !!
I used 2 chicken breasts and cut for skewers as another person noted. Used all of the spices, with a heavy hand, except for the dip. When I went to turn on the grill, it was raining and my husband suggested using the air fryer (which we never use!). Set the temp to 370, preheated for 10 mins and cooked the chicken for 15 mins. Served with rice and it was delicious! The flavor was perfect.
A cast iron grill on the stove top works pretty well. I live in a condo and do it all the time. Oil the chicken, not the grill.
Love this with chicken thighs. And I am also grill-less, so broil on a tray lined with tin foil for 10 mins or so each side and works great!
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