Sacramento Chicken

This chicken. I can not take credit for it at all. I didn’t write the recipe and I didn’t find the recipe. But I NEED to share the recipe, it is just that good!

My brother texted me proclaiming that he had found the best chicken recipe ever and I needed to make it… like soon. He did not say this lightly… he is a grilled chicken expert. And, he is right, this just may be the best chicken ever. I think the three most important parts of the recipe are the cooking method, the kind of skewers* and of course, the mayonnaise. I think it keeps the chicken from drying out.

This recipe makes A LOT of chicken, BUT, I scaled it back the first time I made it and we were immediately disappointed we didn’t have seconds (or thirds) or leftovers. My kids LOVED this. Besides, if you are going to make the effort you might as well make extra! Leftovers are fantastic in a salad as pictures above! Another note, this is a great main for entertaining (you know, when we can do that again), because all the prep work is done the day before. All you have to do is grill and serve and wait for the compliments!

* A note on the skewers. We use flat Persian skewers, they keep the meat from rotating when you turn them over. Totally awesome and worth the Amazon purchase! You can buy them right here: Persian Skewers.

Sacramento Chicken

Ingredients:

6 to 8 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into 1 inch strips
2 Cups Hellman’s Mayonnaise
1 Jar grainy mustard
10 Swirls of Sriracha (more or less depending on your heat preference, this is not too spicy.)
2 inches of fresh ginger root rough chopped or grated
1 Red onion diced
3 Bunches of cilantro rough chopped
1/4 Cup of avocado or grapeseed oil
1 Tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
1 Tablespoon lemon pepper
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
Juice of 6 to 8 lemons

Instructions:

Combine all marinade ingredients into large Ziploc bag or large bowl. Mix well to incorporate.
Cut chicken thighs into long strips (horizontally) and place into the marinade. This makes it so much easier to thread on skewers.
Marinate overnight or all day long could work too!
Evenly thread the chicken on to the 7 skewers, packing the chicken in. The marinade gets stuck in the folds and keeps the chicken tender!
Now, prepare the grill. You will want to have these skewers not directly on the grates. You can take bricks, sticks or 2×4’s and wrap them in foil at both ends of your grill. Believe me, this is worth it! IT keeps the chicken from drying out.
Heat the grill to high heat and place skewers on grill, ends on the foil wrapped sticks (see photo).
Cook for 10-15 minutes, turning the skewers over every 2 to 3 minutes. (This is where the flat skewer comes in handy!)
When they are golden brown in color they are done! If it is really cold out it can take longer, even up to 25-30 minutes!
Remove from grill and on to a platter. Bonus points if you line the platter with tortillas, bread or pita (I did cassava tortillas!)
Enjoy!!!!

Threaded chicken on skewers.

Foil wrapped sticks on grill.

Chicken skewers on grill balanced on foil wrapped sticks. Chicken is just about to come off the grill and is done here!

Also, here is the original recipe!

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