Pollo Asado {Grilled Yucatecan Chicken) (4 of 150)

Holy Guacamole! This recipe was amazing. The flavor! This Pollo Asado recipe is derived from the flavors on the Yucatecan Peninsula. I've only been to Cancun there and, frankly, I don't remember this as an option - but I was younger and not yet food savvy. 

I speak Spanish and I know the word for delicious is delicioso, but I think you could sub in Pollo Asado to mean the same thing. 

What makes this marinade so special? Besides the wonderful citrus in it, the achiote paste adds such an amazingly warm, and comforting flavor to it. 

Not to be confused with achiote powder (which is ground annatto seeds without any additional spices added), achiote paste is soft brick of spices from Mexico like Mexican oregano, annatto seed, vinegar and coriander. It's a beautiful rust color and smells a little sweet with a savory after note.  And also, it stains things like dish towels. I'm just saying.

This paste is used primarily in the Yucatecan peninsula, but it can also be found in foods in parts of the Caribbean (do you say Care A Be an or Cah rib e n?)

So all that jibber jabber to say, make this recipe. I will be making it again. Because, after all, I have all this achiote paste that needs to be used. 

Pollo Asado {Grilled Yucatecan Chicken}

Recipe from Hola Jalapeno

Serves 4

• 1 whole 3-4 pound chicken or 3 pounds of bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces
• 1 medium white onion, sliced
• 1 c cilantro leaves and tender stems
• 1/3 c orange juice
• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 T lime juice
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 T achiote paste
• 1 T kosher salt
• 1 tsp ground cumin

Cut chicken. If using a whole chicken, cut into 10 pieces. Save the back bone for stock. Place chicken in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.

Blend marinade. Combine all the remaining ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Marinate. Pour marinade over chicken and turn to coat it in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate preferably overnight but for at least 30 minutes.

Heat grill. Heat gas or charcoal grill to medium-high heat but only put charcoal in about half of the grill. If using a gas grill, leave one of the burners off. Remove chicken from the refrigerator while you wait for the grill to heat.

Grill chicken. Once the grill is hot, clean the grates and oil them then place the chicken, skin-side down and cover with the lid (but make sure the top and bottom air vents are open all the way) for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes check the chicken to see if any pieces are in an area of the grill that is too hot and they are burning. If so, move them to a cooler area of the grill.

Close the lid (again, make sure your vents are open) and let cook, undisturbed for 20 minutes. Flip chicken, putting any pieces that are cooking too quickly to the cooler side of the grill, and cook with the lid closed for another 20 minutes or until they are cooked through, the meat and skin is starting to pull away from the bone and the chicken is firm to the touch. If you want to be really sure, insert a meat thermometer or an instant read thermometer into the thickest piece, it should have an internal temperature of 165°F.