herbed grilled chicken
breasts
This could be the easiest—and juiciest—
chicken you grill all summer. Pounding
boneless chicken breasts into paillards
minimizes cooking time so the chicken
doesn’t stay on the grill very long and
thus doesn’t have time to dry out. When
making paillards, keep the seasonings
simple: salt, pepper or hot chile flakes,
garlic, herbs, a squeeze of fresh lemon
juice, and most important, olive oil,
which adds flavor and moistness and
keeps the chicken from sticking to the
grill. Serves 4
4 boneless skinless chicken breast
halves (6 to 8 oz. each), trimmed
and rinsed
Kosher salt and freshly ground
black pepper
Crushed red chile flakes
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbs. chopped fresh rosemary, flat-leaf
parsley, or other fresh herb
¼ cup fresh lemon juice, plus 4 lemon
wedges for serving
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil;
more for drizzling
Lightly wet a chicken breast with cold water
and set it between two sheets of plastic wrap.
Pound it into a broad, flat sheet about ¼ inch
thick (called a paillard), using a meat pounder,
the side of a heavy cleaver, or a skillet. Pound
the other breasts into paillards the same way
and arrange them on a baking sheet.
Generously season each paillard on both
sides with salt and pepper and a pinch or two
of chile flakes. Sprinkle both sides with the
garlic and rosemary. Drizzle both sides with
the lemon juice and olive oil and pat into the
meat with your fingertips. Refrigerate the
paillards for 20 minutes while you prepare
the grill.
Heat a gas grill to high or prepare a hot
charcoal fire. Brush and oil the grill grate.
Arrange the paillards on the grill grate and
grill until cooked and firm to the touch, 1 to
2 minutes per side. (Use a long, wide spatula
to move and turn the paillards.) Transfer the
paillards to a platter or plates. Drizzle with
olive oil and serve immediately with lemon
wedges for squeezing.
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