This Roasted Yucatan Chicken Breast is one of my favorite things to serve once fresh tomatoes arrive. Not that tomatoes are the flavor star of this dish, but they make such a beautiful platform for this golden roasted chicken and bright broth.
This roasted Yucatan Chicken Breast is one of my favorite things to serve once fresh tomatoes arrive.
Not that tomatoes are the flavor star of this dish, but they make such a beautiful platform for this golden roasted chicken and bright broth. You can also grill the chicken breasts for this recipe, but for me, I find roasting is easier and foolproof.
You’ll find the recipe for this fabulous Yucatan main dish below, but first let’s talk about getting those chicken breasts roasted perfectly…every time.
Perfect Crispy Roasted Chicken Breasts Every time
Using this technique, the sky is the limit for the spices you use. For instance rosemary, lemon zest and garlic are a fabulous combo. Add room temperature butter and you’ve got a beautiful flavorful and crispy piece of chicken.
Simple:
- Bone in, skin on chicken breasts. Brined in salt water for a few hours and then patted very dry with paper towels.
- Gently separate the skin from the meat and slide seasonings mixed with butter inside.
- Oven temperature at 450 degrees. Line pan with foil. Place chicken on roaster fitted with rack. Place pan on middle rack in the oven.
- Roast until thermometer reads 160 degrees in the thickest part of the breast. About 35 – 40 minutes.
- When done, remove the chicken to a cutting board, tent with foil and allow to rest about five minutes.
All you need is a broiler pan fitted with a wire rack. And if you don’t have one, use a sheet pan, being careful not to crowd the breasts. They won’t brown and crisp properly if crowded.
Recipe for Roasted Yucatan Chicken Breast
Getting back to this wonderful Rick Bayless inspired Yucatan Chicken dish.
The chicken breasts were brined and then patted dry. I mixed it with the marinade ingredients in the recipe and then slid a tablespoon of room temperature butter under the skin. Next I pushed in a dollop of Roasted Hatch Chile Sauce. I roasted the chicken breasts per the instructions above. It was plated on top of fresh sliced tomatoes, bathed in a flavorful broth and served along with the spicy green sauce.
With a bite of chicken which has been drenched in the broth and then dipped in the green salsa, you’ve got a wonderful combination of flavors.
The Yucatán, which sits at the end of Mexico’s curling peninsula, is often described as Mayan, and it was a vital cog in the old empire. The state is home to a proudly defiant people, who, despite the devastation of disease, resisted the Spanish long after other cultures collapsed. To read more about the ancient food culture from the Yucatan area, I like this New York Times article.
Are you green chile crazed? Take a look at the most popular and most classic chile recipe on my site, How to Make Hatch Green Chili, Colorado Style.
Roasted Yucatan Chicken
Ingredients
- For the Marinade:
- 1 head garlic roasted
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 6 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- pinch ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon ground
- 1 teaspoon Oregano dried, Mexican
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- salt
- For the chicken:
- 4 tablespoons butter room temperature
- 4 teaspoons Roasted Hatch Chile Salsa
- 2 chicken breasts halves skin and bones intact
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 cups tomatoes medium, ripe, sliced
- 1/2 cup Hatch Chile Salsa
Instructions
- Brine chicken in salt for about 3 hours. Remove from brine and continue.
- Cut a slit in the side of each garlic clove. Place them in a microwavable bowl, cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Cool until easy to handle, then slip off the papery husks. One by one, drop them into a running blender or food processor, letting each get thoroughly chopped before adding the next. Stop the machine, remove lid and add the remaining marinade ingredients along with 1/2 teaspoon salt and process until smooth.
- Scrape half the marinade into a medium bowl. Add the chicken and toss with your hands to coat evenly. Scrape the remaining marinade into a small saucepan. Add the broth and about 1/4 teaspoon salt and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place chicken with marinade on a roast pan fitted with wire rack. Line pan with foil for easier clean up. Loosen the skin and slide 1 tablespoon butter under in between the meat and and skin. Then push in the teaspoon of chile salsa.
- Roast until thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast reads 160 degrees, about 35 - 40 minutes.
- While the chicken is cooking, bring the broth mixture to a boil. Taste and season with salt if necessary.
- To plate, Place slices of tomato on the bottom of the plate. Top with a piece of the chicken and douse with a quarter of the broth mixture. Pass around the Chile salsa to spice things up.
Nutrition
We had some of Roasted Hatch Chile Sauce left over. So I simply grilled a salt and peppered flank steak for about five minutes per side. Slicing the steak against the grain I sprinkled it with some of the spicy chile sauce. Served this alongside some Yukon Gold Potatoes that had been quartered, parboiled and then grilled in the grill pan with the steak. Since the sauce was already made, this was such an easy meal.
Looking for more tingy tangy Mexican Themed main course chicken dinners? You won’t want to miss:
Chicken in Tangy Escabeche
Roasted Yucatan Chicken Breast and Fresh Roasted Hatch Chile Sauce …It’s what’s for Dinner.
