Yummy Mexican Grilled Chicken

Mexican Grilled Chicken

The yummy marinade

A couple of things are going on here with this recipe: 1. I love, love, love the Cheesecake Factory White Chicken Chili that I make (but it's pretty involved to make, AND I don't want to burn out on it) and 2. I just signed up to bring a crock pot full of chicken for tacos for the teachers at my son's school. I made up a marinade tonight based on most of the flavorful ingredients of the white chicken chili and gave it a run through tonight. All three of us who ate it LOVED it. It might become a regular for our chicken nachos, which is the way my boys enjoyed it tonight. I, on the other hand, enjoyed the chicken with homemade flour tortillas and Mexican rice. It was very satisfying. I wanted to eat more, but decided I'd save the last chicken tender either for my husband to try when he gets home later, or for my lunch tomorrow. (I'm rooting for lunch tomorrow.) 
Next time I make this, I might add some salsa verde, though, to give it even more of a kick. I left it out tonight because I don't want to mess with teachers' digestive systems too much during parent-teacher conferences. I'm a teacher too, and I know I would NOT appreciate an upset tummy particularly in that situation.
So, for now, this is what I have. It's pretty easy, especially if you already have the ingredients for the Cheesecake Factory White Chicken Chili. Have I mentioned how much I love that chili...?

Yummy Mexican Grilled Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1/2 medium sized yellow onion
• 2 large garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/4 cup canola (vegetable) oil
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon chili garlic paste 
• 1 tablespoon chipotle Tobasco 
• 1 4-oz. can diced green chiles (I used Ortega Fire Roasted)
• 4-5 pounds chicken breast/chicken breast tenders (You can portion out enough to coat a smaller amount and refrigerate/freeze leftover marinade for later.)

Instructions:

Place the first eleven ingredients (everything BUT the chicken) in a blender or food processor, or in a tall cup if you have an immersion blender. Blend until smooth and the texture of a loose natural peanut butter.

Place chicken in a plastic zip-top bag and put enough marinade on the chicken to thoroughly coat all over, but it should not be swimming in the marinade. (That might be wasteful.) Zip the bag and refrigerate 1-2 hours. 

Preheat grill to about 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Place chicken on grill, turning every 4-5 minutes until chicken is done/juices run clear, or a meat thermometer reads 160-165 degrees Fahrenheit (there will be a little carryover cooking, and most placed I've looked recommend 165 degrees for chicken).

You can either serve pieces of grilled chicken, or you can cut the chicken into bite-size pieces for people to spoon into tacos or burritos.

Makes enough marinade for 5 pounds of chicken