Description
A summer must-have! Perfectly grilled pickle chicken with grilled onion, grilled pickles and an amazing sauce over rice!
Ingredients
Scale
Pickle Brine Chicken:
- Approx. 1 cup pickle juice*
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- kosher salt
- ground black pepper
Pickle Chicken Sauce:
- 1/3 cup mayo
- 1/3 cup sour cream (reg. or dairy-free)
- 1/3 cup dill pickles, chopped (remove seeds)
- 2–3 tablespoons fresh dill, minced
- 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons white onion, minced
- 1 tablespoon pickle juice
- 1/8 teaspoons ground black pepper
Other Bowl Ingredients:
- 8 pickle spears
- 4–8 slices white onion
- extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper
- fresh dill
- fresh cracked pepper
- 4 cups rice of your choice, cooked
Instructions
- Brine Chicken (optional: see Notes): Place chicken thighs in a medium bowl. Pour pickle juice over top. Cover and place in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight.
- Prep Sauce: Be sure to remove the seeds from the pickles prior to chopping (otherwise the sauce will be too runny). Combine Sauce ingredients in small bowl. Stir and taste – add additional pickles, dill, etc. – as desired. Set aside (or cover and store in the refrigerator until later).
- Prep Onion + Pickles: While the chicken marinates, place the sliced onion and pickle spears on a plate. Brush both lightly with olive oil. Season the onion with a little salt and pepper (the pickle has enough flavor already and doesn’t need anymore salt/pepper).
- Grill Chicken: Remove chicken from brine (discard brine) and place on plate. Pat dry with clean paper towel. Season with kosher salt and ground black pepper. Bring grill up to high heat (about 450 degrees F). Place chicken skin-side down on clean grill grates over direct heat (directly over flame) for 3-5 minutes and then flip. Cook on other side until internal temp reaches 165 degrees F. (use a meat thermometer). Remove from grill and let rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
- Grill Onion + Pickles: While the chicken thighs rest, clean off your grill quick, and keep it at a medium-high temp. Sear the onion and pickles over direct heat for approx. 2 minutes or until they are charred on one side. You can flip the onion if you desire, but you only need char marks on one side of the pickles, otherwise they will dry out too much. Transfer both to a plate and set aside.
- Build Bowl: Divide rice between 4 bowls. Top with grilled chicken, grilled onions, grilled pickles, plenty of sauce, and garnish with more fresh dill and some fresh cracked pepper. Enjoy!
Notes
- Brining Optional: you can just skip the brining process if you want to cut down on prep time! If you do skip it, just make sure you season the chicken with salt and pepper, per your liking. It will still taste amazing – the brining process just results in an even juicier, more flavorful chicken.
- *Pickle Juice Recs: I recommend the juice from these Refrigerator Pickles or a high-quality brand like Claussen. You want the pickle juice to be pretty clear, not yellow.
- Chicken Breasts: you can also use chicken breasts, boneless chicken thighs, etc. – this will work with any cut of chicken, but I prefer using bone-in chicken thighs. Adjust cook time if you use something else other than bone-in chicken thighs.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6oz
- Calories: 323
- Sugar: 0.8 g
- Sodium: 791.1 mg
- Fat: 13.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 31 g
- Protein: 18.2 g
- Cholesterol: 77.2 mg