This is a light dish full of colour and flavour. The spicy miso mayonnaise goes well with grilled meat and fish.
I find it best if you can marinate the chicken overnight. Chicken thighs are more affordable than chicken breasts. I like to serve this dish with rice mixed with corn, tomatoes, black beans and cilantro.
Grilled chicken with yuzu, papaya, avocado and spicy miso mayonnaise (serves 4)
Ingredients
For the marinade:
1 yellow pepper
1½ inch piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
5 garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 cup kosho/yuzu paste
2 stalks of fresh lemongrass, tender inner white parts only, chopped
1/4 cup yuzu juice
1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 cup canola oil, plus more for greasing
8 boneless skin-on chicken thighs
1 ripe avocado
1 ripe papaya
For the mayonnaise
1/3 cup Japanese style mayonnaise
2 teaspoons miso
2 teaspoon sriracha sauce
Thinly sliced scallions
Salt
Method:
Roast the bell pepper under a broiler on high heat until charred all over.
Place the pepper in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let steam for about 15 minutes, peel the pepper seed and roughly chop.
Make the marinade in a blender; combine the bell pepper with ginger, garlic, lemongrass, yuzu juice and cilantro and blend. Add the canola oil and blend for one minute. Pour the remaining marinade into a bowl and add the chicken and mix. Then cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for a couple of hours.
Meanwhile, make the mayonnaise, combining the miso and sriracha.
Place a grill pan over a medium heat and remove the chicken from the marinade. Grill the chicken until skin is crispy, turning occasionally and the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.
Let the chicken rest in a warm place for about five minutes. Slice the chicken and transfer to a serving platter. Place the sliced avocado and papaya on the bottom of the plate and garnish with the green onions and the miso mayonnaise.
Ben Kiely is a Burnaby resident and instructor at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts.
