Balsamic Chicken & Strawberry Relish

Balsamic Glaze + Strawberries + Chicken = HEAVEN

Seriously it makes SCRUMPTIOUS!

I wanted to make something special and I absolutely love my balsamic glaze, so I decided to marinate the chicken pieces before grilling.     

To serve along with the chicken I created this fresh strawberry salsa, which complimented perfectly.     This dish is as good as you will find in a 5 star restaurant at a fraction of the cost.  The meat is flavorful and moist and the strawberry salsa adds a dimension, that do I dare say, is gourmet, rock-star AMAZING! 

 Balsamic Glazed Marinated Chicken with Strawberry Relish

Ingredients:

Balsamic BBQ Sauce:

1 cup balsamic vinegar

¾ cup ketchup

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tbl. Worchestershire sauce

1 Tbl. Dijon mustard

½ tsp. Montreal Steak Seasoning  

4# chicken boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenderloins (*See end of post for safe chicken handling practices)

Strawberry Salsa – recipe follows  

Directions: Combine all the Balsamic BBQ Sauce ingredients in a fry pan

Stir until all the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is smooth.

 Simmer over medium heat

Simmer until reduced by 1/3, about 15-20 minutes.

It is done when you can coat a spoon with the mixture

And when running your finger (BE careful NOT to burn yourself!) it leaves an open trail.

Cool completely before combining with raw meat.  *Store any extra marinade in the refrigerator and warm when ready to use.

Cut the chicken breasts into pieces.  You could use tenderloins and leave intact.

To marinate meat, place chicken into a zip lock baggie and pour just enough cooled marinade to coat well.

Squish the meat and marinade around to cover completely. 

Marinate for at least 1 hour to overnight in the refrigerator.  The longer, the better the flavor.  Over 24 hours though will begin to break down the tissue of the meat.

Grill until the meat is cooked through.

                  After chicken is grilled and cooked through allow meat to rest for 5 minutes.  Cover with foil to keep warm

Now prepare the Strawberry Salsa

Strawberry Salsa

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh strawberries, diced

1 Tbl. minced green onion

1 lime zested  

1 Tbl. lime juice

1/4 tsp. Montreal Steak Seasoning

1 Tbl. brown sugar

Directions:

To grate the lime, use the smallest holes on the grater.  Be careful to get only the very top green layer for flavor; avoiding the white which is bitter.

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.   It is best to serve soon after preparing for taste and look

To serve dish, place chicken on serving plate and spoon strawberry salsa over the meat. 

*Safety Tips for handling chicken: 

• Keep meat cold

• After handling or cutting chicken, clean hands, utensils and area thoroughly with a very good antibacterial cleaner such as a vinegar and water or a clorox and water solution.  Use the cleaner on counter, sink and other surfaces also.

• After turning the chicken on the grill, when the chicken is almost cooked through, use clean tongs to turn the meat so as not to contaminate the now cooked meat with any residue from the raw meat.

Discard any marinade that the raw chicken soaked in. Do NOT use or taste marinade or anything that has been exposed to raw chicken.

Cook chicken thoroughly using a digital thermometer.

Carrie’s recipes, Copyright Carrie Groneman, A Mother’s Shadow, 2014

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