Grilled Chicken Breast Strips

Grilled Chicken Breast Strips, originally uploaded by Sweet Sugarplums.

We enjoy the convenience of ready-cooked chicken breast strips for salads and for a quick protein snack. The cost of the packaged breast strips they sell at Costco is the same as two whole chickens. I tried my hand at making my own strips and was much more satisfied with the result - the breasts were tender, less salty, and meatier.

GRILLED CHICKEN BREAST STRIPS IN HERB MARINADE
Serves 8

8 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 cup fresh parsley
1/3 cup fresh oregano, chopped, or 1 1/2 tablespoons dried oregano
1/4 cup fresh chives, or 1 scallion, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh rosemary, or 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup dry vermouth, preferably Martini and Rossi
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Rinse the chicken under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Place in a large bowl.

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, combine basil, parsley, oregano, chives, rosemary, and garlic; pulse to chop. Add mustard, lemon juice, vermouth, salt and red pepper flakes. With the machine running, slowly pour oil through feed tube until marinade is smooth. You can also combine all of the ingredients in a blender, in batches, and run until smooth. (The marinade can be prepared up to 3 days ahead, covered and refrigerated.) Add to chicken and mix well until coated. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours and up to 8 hours.

Build a hot fire in a charcoal grill. Lightly oil grill rack. Grill chicken in center area of grill, turning once, until barely beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Arrange chicken in a circle around outside edges of grill. Cover with grill lid (or fashion a dome out of a double thickness of heavy-duty aluminum foil) and cook, turning once, until the juices run clear yellow when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife, about 15 minutes. Don't overcook, especially if planning to freeze as reheating will cook meat further.

Allow chicken to rest at least 15 minutes. Cut diagonally into 1/2-inch wide strips. Arrange on foil-lined baking tray in a single layer. Flash-freeze for about an hour. Place about 6 ounces of strips in a sandwich-size plastic bag and return to freezer. I've also simply used dry-rub.

Recipe by Rick Rodgers

Per Serving: 215 Calories; 9g Fat (38.8% calories from fat); 28g Protein; 3g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 68mg Cholesterol; 252mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 4 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.