Rosemary Barbeque Chicken & Salsa Verde
There’s something special about sitting outside in the dwindling sun and enjoying a flavourful dinner and now that Spring is upon us we can do just that and more often!
Here’s an idea for a simple and delicious Spring time dinner platter that’s best enjoyed outside. The platter plays host to the Rosemary Barbeque Chicken and Salsa Verde along with a garden fresh salad with corn and soft boiled eggs, baked kale and polenta chips. The best bit is that you can prepare most of it ahead of time and then simply cook it on the barbeque later. That means more time for you to enjoy that sun!
Rosemary Barbeque Chicken
8 Rosemary stalks
8 free-range chicken thighs
1 Tbspn honey
1 Tbspn olive oil
1 Tbspn wholegrain mustard
Freshly ground black pepper
To prepare the chicken, pierce each thigh through the middle with a rosemary skewer so that the skewer crosses through the widest part of the chicken (like a very large kebab!)
Place all of the rosemary skewered chicken thighs into a dish and pour over the honey, olive oil, mustard and pepper and using your hands, rub the marinade over each piece. Set aside in the fridge to marinade for at least 2-3 hours. Meanwhile prepare the Salsa Verde.
Salsa Verde – Recipe adapted from Donna Hay’s ‘No Time to Cook’
1 cup flatleaf parsley leaves
1 cup mint leaves
¼ cup olive oil
1 Tbspn Dijon mustard
1 Tbspn lemon juice
Cracked pepper
Place all of the ingredients into a food processor (I used my Nutri-bullet!) and process until you have a creamy green mixture. Taste and adjust any seasonings if need be.
Pour into a small serving bowl and set aside in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
When you are almost ready to cook the meal, bring the chicken to room temperature before cooking on the barbeque until golden, crunchy and cooked through.
Serve the Rosemary Barbequed Chicken skewers with the Salsa Verde, a garden fresh salad with soft boiled eggs, baked kale and polenta chips. I like to pile everything onto a large serving platter and then let everyone help themselves. It’s more fun!
I have popped my garden fresh salad recipe (pictured here) below if you’re looking for inspiration.
Garden salad with corn and soft boiled eggs
6 cups fresh garden greens (i.e. lettuce, spinach), washed and dried
1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels– I just place the frozen corn in a bowl covered with freshly boiled water for a few minutes and then drain and cool under cold running water. For fresh corn, simply steam the cobs and them remove the corn once cooled slightly.
3 soft-boiled eggs, sliced in half (can be cooked ahead of time if you like)
1 Tbspn olive oil
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
Iodised salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Juice from ½ lemon
Place the greens into a large bowl along with the corn and toss through the olive oil, wholegrain mustard, salt, pepper and lemon juice. Pile onto your serving platter and top with the halved eggs.
