Spicy Chimichurri with Chicken Thighs

This will knock your socks off – it is spicy! And I mean it. I mean, I like spicy….but this was way spicy! Ha.

I saw this recipe from Food and Wine Magazine and thought – wow, have to try it. Turns out it is very similar to a spicy cilantro chutney you’d get an Indian restaurant, but still very good. I slightly adjusted the recipe to increase the cilantro and garlic cloves….but that’s about it.

This was one of the last meals I cooked at my old apartment – so happy to be out of that place! OK, but back to this recipe.

Here’s what you’ll need: cilantro, garlic cloves, jalapeno, lime juice, extra virgin olive oil, boneless skinless chicken thighs, and salt and pepper.

And here’s all you have to do – preheat oven to 425 and line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Line the blsl chicken thighs onto the pan and sprinkle over salt and pepper, about 1 t. salt and ½ t. pepper. Place into oven and allow the thighs to get crispy and nicely browned on the top and bottom – about 45 minutes. I love crispy chicken thighs….and you can get boneless skinless chicken thighs crispy by baking at high heat for a longer time – but if you don’t like your meat so crispy, the thighs can be adjusted to be baked at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes.

While chicken is baking you can start making the chimichurri. Here’s all you need to do – In a blender, pulse the cilantro, garlic, and jalapeño until smooth. Add in the lime juice and olive oil and process until a nice smooth sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Warning – I took the lid off the food processor to smell the sauce and started coughing b/c of the heat! It was pretty comical. I think I must have used a super-hot jalapeno.

Once chicken is cooked, sprinkle over some of the chimichurri. I served this with couscous….warning….this is hot! If you don’t like heat but you like flavor – remove the seeds and ribs from the jalapeno prior to throwing into the food processor. This sauce would be amazing served with a flank steak or used as a dip for samosas. Yum.

Spicy Chimichurri with Chicken Thighs
Serves 3-4
Click here for recipe.

Ingredients:
8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 c. cilantro
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 jalapeño, with seeds, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper, divided

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 and line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Line the blsl chicken thighs onto the pan and sprinkle over salt and pepper, about 1 t. salt and ½ t. pepper. Place into oven and allow the thighs to get crispy and nicely browned on the top and bottom – about 45 minutes.
2. In a food processor, pulse the cilantro, garlic, and jalapeño until smooth.
3. Add in the lime juice and olive oil and process until a nice smooth sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Drizzle chicken thighs with the chimichurri sauce, and serve with couscous or rice for a complete meal.

Enjoy!