On Sunday, before settling down to watch “Mad Men,” I made Grill Pan Chicken with Fiery Mango-Ginger Salsa. I chose this recipe because the name made it sound very spicy. In fact, it is not spicy at all, but delicious nonetheless.
Since I don’t have very much experience cooking chicken (or any meat, for that matter), this was all relatively new. After I combined the ingredients for the marinade, I poured it into a resealable plastic bag, added the chicken and threw it into my refrigerator.
Things went a little haywire when I was making the salsa. I didn’t correctly read the amount of each ingredient and accidentally added 3 tablespoons of grated fresh ginger instead of 1 teaspoon. Luckily, that extra kick of ginger didn’t ruin the recipe and even added great flavor.
After I let the chicken marinate for about 15 minutes, I coated the pan with canola oil cooking spray. This was not in the directions, but it helped since I wasn’t using a nonstick pan. I also didn’t pound the chicken flat, so I grilled it for about 7 minutes on each side instead of the suggested 4-5 minutes. Once they were finished, I placed the chicken breasts on a plate, scooped my gingery salsa over the top, and voila! The recipe was complete in about 30 minutes. This is a quick, easy and tasty dinner, even for a novice cook.
Grill Pan Chicken with Fiery Mango-Ginger Salsa
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each), rinsed, patted dry, and flattened to ½-inch thickness
Canola oil cooking spray
1 lemon, cut into quarters
Salsa
1 cup finely chopped mango
2–3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
½ teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon canola oil
1. Combine 1 tablespoon canola oil, curry powder, sugar, pepper, and salt. Brush over chicken and let marinate for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, stir together salsa ingredients in a small bowl.
3. Coat a grill pan with canola oil cooking spray and place over medium-high heat until hot. Add chicken, discarding any marinade. Cook chicken 4 minutes on each side or until no longer pink inside and juices run clear. Transfer to a serving platter. Squeeze lemon juice over chicken; serve with salsa.
Yield: 4 servings. Serving size: 1 chicken breast and ¼ cup salsa.















