Peruvian Chicken and Green Sauce

I am always looking for new chicken recipes when my go-to recipes seem to start boring my family. This recipe is it! Once you make this - you may never marinate your chicken any other way. I found a good recipe online that served as the baseline for me. Like every other recipe I find - I always tweak it to turn up the volume as Ina Garten would say. The ones I have come across online - are a little bland in my opinion. If you like flavor - and I mean REAL flavor, follow what I put together below. The great thing about this recipe is you can customize the heat level to your liking with the amount of cayenne used in the marinate and the amount of jalapenos (heat lives in the seeds) used in the green sauce. Live a little - make it spicy!  I can guarantee it'll be a hit with your family or next dinner party! Enjoy!

Butterflied Chicken Roasted and Grilled

Ingredients

For the Chicken (*recipe for one whole chicken )

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup lime juice, from 2 limes
• 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar 
• 6 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika (Spanish paprika if you can find some)

• 1 teaspoon course black pepper
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoons cayenne pepper (if you like it really spicy, add in a little more)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 4 pound whole chicken

For the Green Sauce

• 3 jalapeño chili peppers, seeded if desired (I use about half the seeds for a medium-hot sauce), and roughly chopped
• 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise, go with a named brand for best quality 
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, from one lime
• 1/3 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

For the Chicken [for roasting a whole chicken. If you grill - scroll down to Grilling Method]

Combine all of the ingredients except the chicken in a blender or mini food processor, and blend until smooth. Remove the giblets from the inside of the chicken and pat the outside of the chicken dry with paper towels place in a bowl, breast side up with the legs facing you. Using the handle of a wooden spoon or your fingers, loosen the skin from the flesh over the breasts and legs, being careful not to tear the skin or push all the way through (you want the marinade to stay inside the bird). Spoon about 2/3 of the marinade evenly underneath the skin, and spread the remaining 1/3 evenly over the skin. Marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight. Longer marination results in better tasting chicken.

1. Roasting Method [chicken is cooked in oven from start to finish]. Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position, and preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil for easy clean-up. Spray a rack (preferably a v-shape) with non-stick cooking spray and place the chicken on top. Tie the legs together with kitchen string. Roast for 20 minutes, until the skin is golden. Turn the heat down to 375 degrees, and continue to roast for about an hour and ten minutes more, or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and thigh. (Keep an eye on it -- if it's browning too quickly, cover it loosely with foil.) Tent the chicken with foil and let rest for about 20 minutes. Tilt the chicken over the roasting pan to release the juices, then transfer to a cutting board. Carve the chicken and serve with green sauce.
2. Grilling Method. [chicken can be grilled from start to finish, or start out roasting in your oven and finish off on the grill] For me, I like big flavors and my philosophy - everything tastes better grilled. For better contact on your grill, I take a whole chicken and I butterfly it. I'll even go a step further and place a foiled wrapped brick on top of the chicken to really get some good grill marks. You get that char taste from the grill and the skin gets crispy. For me, there is no other way. I've made this chicken grilling it from start to finish - and it was great but its really easy to burn your chicken, since the grease from the chicken causes the fire from your grill to flair up. You have to play around with your temp. dials so that you don't end up with a chicken that is charred on the outside and raw in the inside. So what I like to do is roast the butterflied chicken in a roasting pan (cover with foil) for about 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven, and then transfer it to a really hot grill for another 15-20 mins.  This results in moist chicken and a nice char flavor from the grill. If your not sure if your chicken is done use a meat thermometer. Chicken is done when your thermometer reads 165 F. Are you thinking, why didn't she just use a thermometer? yeah me too, lets move on. ;)

Can't forget the green sauce! 

For the Green Sauce

1. Combine all of the ingredients except the olive oil in a blender or food processor and blend into a smooth sauce. With the motor running, open lid and slowly drizzle in olive oil. It will seem very runny at this point but, don't worry, it will thicken up as it sits. Transfer the sauce to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. This sauce holds up pretty well in the fridge for about a week. Once you make this sauce - there is no turning back. This will become your favorite condiment to your fries, onion rings, burgers and so much more. I say go ahead and double up when you make this sauce because it will go quick!