Hey there Honey's and New-Bees!

We’re having some beautiful weather here this week and that means it’s BBQ time!!!  Most of my friends and family love chicken breast; honestly I don’t get get it, chicken breasts always seemed dry and bland unless you added a ton of sauce to them… Needless to say chicken was rarely on the menu in our home until I discovered the game changer that converted me into a grilled chicken lover – the secret to the best grilled chicken breasts …they’re thighs lol!

Thighs are tender and juicy, quick to make, and last but not least: way more cost effective. Since switching to thighs, chicken night has become one of my favourite nights of the week, and requires only a few kitchen essential ingredients. 

Today I’m going to share with you my favorite way to grill chicken thighs, which is light, easy, and healthy. Although this recipe calls for fresh tarragon, you can substitute it for another fresh herb depending on your preferences, or what you happen to have on hand. So without further ado, let’s get grilling 😀 !

First things first, you want to salt your chicken before anything. Some recipes will call for adding salt to the marinade, however, I’ve noticed that the meat is much more tender when salting the meat directly. So salt your thighs with a coarse salt and let it sit for a couple minutes while you whip together your marinade. When salting, be generous but mindful to not be too heavy-handed – otherwise you’ll end up with super salty meat. As a general rule of thumb, you want to use about 3/4 tsp per pound of meat which will give you the perfect balance.

In a small mixing bowl add some freshly chopped garlic, a handful of tarragon (you can use any FRESH herb you have on hand such as oregano, or basil) and freshly squeezed lemon. FRESH juice is key, pre-juiced lemon that comes out of a bottle just doesn’t cut it and doesn’t compare to freshly squeezed lemon juice. The same applies to your herbs; dried herbs  are great to use when you’re in a bind but rarely ever compare to the fresh stuff.

Once you have all the above mentioned ingredients together, whisk in some good quality olive oil and continue to whisk until the oil has “emulsified”. Pour it over your chicken, cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours – or even better, over night.

Once your meat is closer to room temperature, pre-heat your BBQ. Once your BBQ has pre-heated, place your chicken on the grill, keep the temperature at a nice medium heat, and cook with the lid down for about 10-15 minutes, flipping once or twice as needs be.

When your chicken is ready, take it off the grill and let it rest for a couple of minutes before serving.

The beauty of this recipe is you can eat the chicken just like that, serve it on a Caesar salad, add it to a sandwich… basically anything you want, so when your ready dig in and buon appetito!