Grilled Spice-Crusted Chicken Breasts with Mixed Potatoes and Grilled Veggies

During summer, the Evanston Farmer’s Market is a fantastic weekend treat. What makes it interesting are the various varieties you can see of your regular veggies. Potatoes for example. By color - blue, purple, pink, white. By shape - fingerling, baby, long, round. By purpose – bakers, mashed, boiler. By country – Peruvian, Australian, Finnish. By State. By Harvest Time. By Popularity. The categorization is endless and so are the potatoes!

I love potatoes and apparently, I am in good company! The US consumes more than 41 billion pounds of potatoes each year! Though usually known for the carbs they have, potatoes can actually be good for you - one medium potato (5.3 ounces) with the skin is packed with essential vitamins and minerals including potassium, and provides 45 percent of the recommended daily value of vitamin C. It is also fat, sodium- and cholesterol-free. Just don’t fry it!


Ingredients
To marinate:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
½ tsp cayenne pepper (or chilli powder)
1 sp black pepper
1 clove garlic, crushed
½ tsp salt
½ tbsp olive oil

To grill:
1 tbsp whole coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp whole black pepper
1 dry red chilli
½ tsp paprika
½ - 1 tsp celery salt

6 mixed, small potatoes (I used 2 blue, 2 fingerling & 2 purple)
2 heirloom tomatoes ( I used 1 green, 1 red. You can substitute with regular tomatoes)
6-8 baby red & yellow peppers (treasures from the farmer's market)
1 onion, peeled and cut in half
1 tbsp butter
½ tsp dry thyme
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Method
In a large bowl, mix all the spices, salt and garlic well. Put in the chicken and ½ tbsp oil, mix to coat chicken well with spice mix. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.

Wash potatoes – leave skin on. Boil until just tender. Drain and set aside. In a bowl, mix olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper. Add whole tomatoes, peppers and cut onions. Let sit for about 10 minutes.

Grind into a coarse mix the coriander seeds, cumin, pepper and dry red chili. You want to be able to still see the coriander seeds. Mix in the paprika and celery salt. Spread the spice mix on a flat surface. Coat each chicken breast thoroughly with the mix, patting down so it sticks.
Meanwhile, heat a grill pan until very hot. This is going to almost an indoor barbeque, so there will be plenty of smoke! Make sure the exhaust is on and windows open. Brush pan with the olive oil mix and put chicken breasts on. Maintain the heat at medium high to high. Grill for 4-5 minutes. Flip over and brush with a little olive oil. Grill for another 4-5 minutes or until cooked (internal temp of 170 F.

Put on the tomatoes, peppers and onion, brushing over the tops with the olive oil. These should get grill marks on all surfaces and usually should be done along with the chicken.

(I usually put on a lid to cover the chicken through the last 2 minutes – I find it helps keep the chicken moist.
The chicken surface will turn dark brown to black because of the spice mix. It’s OK – in fact, this is where the goodness lies! )

Meanwhile, in a small sauté pan, melt butter. Toss the potatoes adding thyme, salt and pepper. I also put in some cayenne pepper for a little more spice. These will only take a couple of minutes.

To serve, divide the chicken and veggies between two plates.

Notes:
- Just use a regular large sauté pan if don’t have a grill pan.
- For the crust, you can adjust quantities of pepper and chilli to suit your palate. In the proportion given above, you can definitely feel a little heat!
- Mix up the veggies depending on what is in season or what you in the mood for. Mushrooms and beans work well too.

Harissa

This Tunisian original is a hot sauce made with chillies, garlic and other spices, and is the traditional accompaniment to couscous. It is also used to add extra flavor to stews and soups. In my version, I add roasted red or green capsicum for a little more punch.

Ingredients

1 red capsicum (bell pepper)
1 big clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno (this will be hot! To tone down the heat, use 3-4 regular green or red chillies)
2 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
Salt to taste

Method

Rub the capsicum and jalapeno with a little oil and roast over an open flame until the outer skin is blistered and blackened. Alternatively, place the vegetables on aluminum foil and grill in the oven under the broiler/grill. Cover and set aside for 10 minutes. When cool, peel away the blackened skin and roughly chop.

Place capsicum, jalapeno or chillies, garlic and salt in a blender and whiz to a smooth paste. Add spices and olive oil and blend. The harissa will stay up in the fridge up to 4 weeks – just remember to cover the top with a little olive oil and store in an airtight container.

Israeli Couscous

This small, round semolina pasta is very different from the more familiar yellow, North African couscous. Also known as pearl couscous or maftoul, it is very similar in appearance to pearl barley and sago pearls which we use in India. It is made from crushed and steamed semolina, then shaped and rolled into small balls, which are then toasted in an open-flame oven. This process gives this couscous its distinctive nutty flavor, and its ability to absorb liquids without disintegrating. Which is exactly what makes it perfect with stews and saucy dishes.

This is the first time I tried Israeli couscous. While I love regular couscous, I have to say that the Israeli couscous definitely added more flavor and texture to the dish.

Ingredients
½ cup Israeli couscous
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup chicken stock
Salt to taste

Method
In a saucepan, heat oil. Add couscous and toast on medium-low heat for 3-5 minutes until slightly browned and aromatic. Add stock, bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed. Add salt if needed. Serve immediately.