Grilled Pesto Chicken
By America's Test KitchenPublished on June 6, 2013
Time
1½ hours, plus 1 hour marinating
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 cups fresh basil leaves ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil 5 garlic cloves, peeled1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice Salt and pepper 2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup)4 (12-ounce) split bone-in chicken breasts, trimmed
Before You Begin
Note that the pesto base is divided into three separate mixtures for marinating, stuffing, and saucing the grilled chicken.
Instructions
- Process basil, ½ cup oil, garlic, lemon juice, and ¾ teaspoon salt in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute, scraping down bowl as needed. Remove ¼ cup pesto from processor and reserve for marinating chicken. Add Parmesan to pesto in processor and pulse until incorporated, about 3 pulses. Remove ¼ cup Parmesan pesto from processor and reserve for stuffing chicken. Add remaining ¼ cup oil to Parmesan pesto in processor and pulse until combined, about 3 pulses; set aside for saucing cooked chicken.
- Starting on thick side of breast, closest to breastbone, cut horizontal pocket in each breast, stopping ½ inch from edge so halves remain attached. Season chicken, inside and out, with salt and pepper. Place 1 tablespoon of Parmesan pesto reserved for stuffing in pocket of each breast. Evenly space 2 pieces of kitchen twine (each 12 inches long) beneath each breast and tie to secure breast, trimming any excess twine. Place stuffed breasts in bowl and add pesto reserved for marinating. Rub pesto all over chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- 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 evenly over 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 all burners to medium-low. (Adjust burners as needed to maintain grill temperature of 350 degrees.)
- Clean and oil cooking grate. Place chicken, skin side up, on grill (over cool side if using charcoal). Cover and cook until chicken registers 155 degrees, 25 to 35 minutes.
- Flip chicken skin side down. If using charcoal, slide chicken to hot part of grill. If using gas, turn all burners to medium-high. Cover and cook until well browned and chicken registers 160 degrees, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer chicken to platter, tent loosely with foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Remove twine from chicken and carve meat from bone. Serve, passing Parmesan pesto sauce separately.
Time
1½ hours, plus 1 hour marinatingYield
Serves 4Ingredients
4 cups fresh basil leaves
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
5 garlic cloves, peeled
1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and pepper
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup)
4 (12-ounce) split bone-in chicken breasts, trimmed
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
4 cups fresh basil leaves
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
5 garlic cloves, peeled
1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and pepper
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup)
4 (12-ounce) split bone-in chicken breasts, trimmed
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
4 cups fresh basil leaves
¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
5 garlic cloves, peeled
1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and pepper
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup)
4 (12-ounce) split bone-in chicken breasts, trimmed
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
To make our pesto chicken actually taste like pesto, it took a three-pronged approach. Starting with a batch of homemade pesto, we thicken a portion with extra Parmesan cheese to make a stuffing for bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts that wouldn’t leak out. A cheese-less portion of the pesto functions as a marinade, flavoring the outside of the meat. Finally, cheesy pesto, thinned out to sauce consistency, is served with the chicken for one last hit of fresh basil flavor.
Before You Begin
Note that the pesto base is divided into three separate mixtures for marinating, stuffing, and saucing the grilled chicken.
Instructions
- Process basil, ½ cup oil, garlic, lemon juice, and ¾ teaspoon salt in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute, scraping down bowl as needed. Remove ¼ cup pesto from processor and reserve for marinating chicken. Add Parmesan to pesto in processor and pulse until incorporated, about 3 pulses. Remove ¼ cup Parmesan pesto from processor and reserve for stuffing chicken. Add remaining ¼ cup oil to Parmesan pesto in processor and pulse until combined, about 3 pulses; set aside for saucing cooked chicken.
- Starting on thick side of breast, closest to breastbone, cut horizontal pocket in each breast, stopping ½ inch from edge so halves remain attached. Season chicken, inside and out, with salt and pepper. Place 1 tablespoon of Parmesan pesto reserved for stuffing in pocket of each breast. Evenly space 2 pieces of kitchen twine (each 12 inches long) beneath each breast and tie to secure breast, trimming any excess twine. Place stuffed breasts in bowl and add pesto reserved for marinating. Rub pesto all over chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- 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 evenly over 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 all burners to medium-low. (Adjust burners as needed to maintain grill temperature of 350 degrees.)
- Clean and oil cooking grate. Place chicken, skin side up, on grill (over cool side if using charcoal). Cover and cook until chicken registers 155 degrees, 25 to 35 minutes.
- Flip chicken skin side down. If using charcoal, slide chicken to hot part of grill. If using gas, turn all burners to medium-high. Cover and cook until well browned and chicken registers 160 degrees, 5 to 10 minutes. Transfer chicken to platter, tent loosely with foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Remove twine from chicken and carve meat from bone. Serve, passing Parmesan pesto sauce separately.
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