This Persian-spiced grilled chicken with tomatoes and lemons, served with tons of fresh herbs over fluffy jasmine rice is our new favorite al fresco meal. It's packed with flavor and texture for days.
Ingreadient
- 1 1/2 oz. plain whole-milk yogurt
- 2 tsp. kosher salt, plus more
- 1 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
- 1 tsp. finely grated lime zest or ground sumac
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper, plus more
- 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp. ground coriander
- 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 lb.)
- 4 whole chicken drumsticks (about 1 1/2 lb.)
- 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (about 2 lb.), halved crosswise
- 1 pint grape tomatoes
- 1 lemon, quartered
- Neutral oil, for brushing and grill
- Steamed jasmine rice (optional) and fresh cilantro, parsley, and mint leaves, for serving
Direction
- In a large bowl, mix yogurt, salt, turmeric, lime zest, cinnamon, cumin, black pepper, cloves, coriander, and cayenne. Add chicken and turn to coat. Transfer chicken and marinade to a resealable plastic bag. Seal bag and refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 24.
- Let chicken sit at room temperature 30 minutes before grilling. Thread tomatoes and lemon wedges onto skewers. Brush with oil; season with salt and pepper.
- Prepare a grill for medium-high heat; preheat 5 minutes. Clean and oil grates. Brush excess marinade of chicken; discard marinade.
- Grill chicken skin side down until skin is golden brown, about 15 minutes. Turn and continue to grill until skin is charred, chicken is cooked through, and an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of thighs registers 160°, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil. Let cool 10 minutes.
- Grill tomato and lemon skewers, turning occasionally, until charred in spots, 5 to 6 minutes. Using a fork, remove tomatoes and lemon wedges from skewers.
- Serve chicken and tomatoes with rice (if using). Squeeze grilled lemon wedges over. Top with cilantro, parsley, and mint.
