Grilled Mojo Chicken
By Jeremy SauerPublished on April 23, 2018
Time
1¾ hours, plus 1 hour marinating
Yield
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil 6 garlic cloves, minced⅓ cup pineapple juice 1 tablespoon yellow mustard 2 teaspoons grated orange zest plus ⅓ cup juice2 teaspoons lime zest plus ⅓ cup juice (3 limes)1 ¼ teaspoons ground cumin ¾ teaspoon dried oregano Salt and pepper 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro 1 tablespoon minced jalapeño chile 6 (10-ounce) chicken leg quarters, trimmed
Before You Begin
Canned and bottled pineapple juices are both great in this recipe, but when it comes to the citrus, we highly recommend using freshly squeezed juice.
Instructions
- Heat oil and garlic in small saucepan over low heat, stirring often, until tiny bubbles appear and garlic is fragrant and straw-colored, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool for at least 5 minutes.
- Whisk pineapple juice, mustard, orange zest and juice, lime zest and juice, cumin, oregano, and ¾ teaspoon pepper together in medium bowl. Slowly whisk in cooled garlic oil until emulsified.
- Transfer half of mojo mixture to small bowl and stir in cilantro, jalapeño, 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper; set aside mojo sauce.
- Whisk 1 tablespoon salt into remaining mojo mixture until dissolved. Transfer mojo marinade to 1-gallon zipper-lock bag.
- Place chicken, skin side up, on cutting board and pat dry with paper towels. Leaving drumsticks and thighs attached, make 4 parallel diagonal slashes in each piece of chicken: 1 across drumstick, 1 across leg-thigh joint, and 2 across thigh (slashes should reach bone). Flip chicken and make 1 more diagonal slash across back of each drumstick. Transfer chicken to bag with mojo marinade. Seal bag, turn to coat chicken, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
- FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (6 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour two-thirds evenly over half of grill, then pour remaining coals over other half of grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Turn primary burner to medium and turn other burner(s) to low. (Adjust primary burner as needed to maintain grill temperature between 400 and 425 degrees.)
- Clean and oil cooking grate. Divide reserved mojo sauce equally between 2 bowls. Remove chicken from zipper-lock bag and place on cooler side of grill, skin side up; discard marinade. Cover and cook until underside of chicken is lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Using first bowl of mojo, baste chicken, then flip chicken and baste second side (use all of first bowl). Cover and continue to cook until leg-thigh joint registers 165 degrees, about 15 minutes longer.
- Slide chicken to hotter side of grill, keeping skin side down, and cook (covered if using gas) until skin is well browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip chicken and continue to cook until leg-thigh joint registers 175 degrees, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to platter and spoon remaining mojo sauce from second bowl over top. Tent with aluminum foil and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve.
Time
1¾ hours, plus 1 hour marinatingYield
Serves 4 to 6Ingredients
⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
⅓ cup pineapple juice
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
2 teaspoons grated orange zest plus ⅓ cup juice
2 teaspoons lime zest plus ⅓ cup juice (3 limes)
1 ¼ teaspoons ground cumin
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon minced jalapeño chile
6 (10-ounce) chicken leg quarters, trimmed
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
⅓ cup pineapple juice
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
2 teaspoons grated orange zest plus ⅓ cup juice
2 teaspoons lime zest plus ⅓ cup juice (3 limes)
1 ¼ teaspoons ground cumin
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon minced jalapeño chile
6 (10-ounce) chicken leg quarters, trimmed
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 garlic cloves, minced
⅓ cup pineapple juice
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
2 teaspoons grated orange zest plus ⅓ cup juice
2 teaspoons lime zest plus ⅓ cup juice (3 limes)
1 ¼ teaspoons ground cumin
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon minced jalapeño chile
6 (10-ounce) chicken leg quarters, trimmed
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Mojo chicken is all about the citrusy, garlicky mojo marinade. So we built our version piece by piece. To mimic the juice of sour oranges, we used a combination of orange and lime juices as well as their zests. To take the raw edge off the garlic, we toasted it in extra-virgin olive oil. Pineapple juice added balancing sweetness while oregano, black pepper, and ground cumin provided a spicy backbone. Our bone-in chicken leg quarters stayed juicy on the grill and soaked up marinade well, especially when we slashed them to allow the marinade access to the meat. Basting the meat with the marinade multiple times as it grilled gave the chicken a fresh, extra-powerful dose of mojo flavor.
Before You Begin
Canned and bottled pineapple juices are both great in this recipe, but when it comes to the citrus, we highly recommend using freshly squeezed juice.
Instructions
- Heat oil and garlic in small saucepan over low heat, stirring often, until tiny bubbles appear and garlic is fragrant and straw-colored, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool for at least 5 minutes.
- Whisk pineapple juice, mustard, orange zest and juice, lime zest and juice, cumin, oregano, and ¾ teaspoon pepper together in medium bowl. Slowly whisk in cooled garlic oil until emulsified.
- Transfer half of mojo mixture to small bowl and stir in cilantro, jalapeño, 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper; set aside mojo sauce.
- Whisk 1 tablespoon salt into remaining mojo mixture until dissolved. Transfer mojo marinade to 1-gallon zipper-lock bag.
- Place chicken, skin side up, on cutting board and pat dry with paper towels. Leaving drumsticks and thighs attached, make 4 parallel diagonal slashes in each piece of chicken: 1 across drumstick, 1 across leg-thigh joint, and 2 across thigh (slashes should reach bone). Flip chicken and make 1 more diagonal slash across back of each drumstick. Transfer chicken to bag with mojo marinade. Seal bag, turn to coat chicken, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
- FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent completely. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (6 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour two-thirds evenly over half of grill, then pour remaining coals over other half of grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Turn primary burner to medium and turn other burner(s) to low. (Adjust primary burner as needed to maintain grill temperature between 400 and 425 degrees.)
- Clean and oil cooking grate. Divide reserved mojo sauce equally between 2 bowls. Remove chicken from zipper-lock bag and place on cooler side of grill, skin side up; discard marinade. Cover and cook until underside of chicken is lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Using first bowl of mojo, baste chicken, then flip chicken and baste second side (use all of first bowl). Cover and continue to cook until leg-thigh joint registers 165 degrees, about 15 minutes longer.
- Slide chicken to hotter side of grill, keeping skin side down, and cook (covered if using gas) until skin is well browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip chicken and continue to cook until leg-thigh joint registers 175 degrees, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to platter and spoon remaining mojo sauce from second bowl over top. Tent with aluminum foil and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve.
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