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Chicken Fajita Marinade

by Matt Kennard

An overnight marinade built for thighs, finished with Meat Church Fajita or Blanco off the heat so the rub actually sticks.

Serves
6-8
Active
15 min
Total
overnight plus 20 minutes
SearedGrilledGluten-freePoultryDinnerWeeknightEntertainingMake-ahead

Ingredients

6-8

Method

  1. Prep combined

    Whisk the marinade. Oil, lime, orange, soy, Worcestershire and honey first, then the garlic, spices, cilantro stems and jalapeno. No added salt: the soy brings it, and the rub brings more at the end.

  2. Rest 8-12 hours · overnight

    Marinate overnight. Bag the thighs with the marinade, press the air out, and refrigerate 8 to 12 hours. Up to 24 is fine for thighs; past that the citrus starts working on the texture even with the oil buffering it.

  3. Rest 30 min · off the fridge chill

    Pull them out 30 minutes before cooking and let them come up off the fridge chill.

  4. Prep properly dry

    Pat them dry. Properly dry. Wet chicken steams, and everything the marinade did is wasted on a grey exterior.

  5. Heat 4-5 min a side · deeply browned and charred at the edges

    Cook them hot. Grill over direct heat, or sear in a heavy pan, 4 to 5 minutes a side until deeply browned and charred at the edges.

  6. Heat 175-185F / 79-85C

    Take them past safe. Thighs are better at 175 to 185F than at 165F: the connective tissue renders and they go tender rather than rubbery. This is the opposite of the rule for breasts.

  7. Rest 5 min · rested

    Rest 5 minutes, then slice across the grain into strips.

  8. Finish dusted while damp

    Dust with Meat Church Fajita or Blanco right off the heat, while the surface is still damp, so it grabs rather than falling into the pan. Fajita leans smoky and chile-forward; Blanco is lighter and more savory, and it lets the lime and orange come through.

If it's not right

What you seeWhyWhat to do
Mushy or chalky texture It sat too long, or it was breast meat. Cap it at 24 hours and use thighs.
Too salty The rub went on too heavily on top of the soy. Dust lightly; you can always add more at the table.
No char The chicken went on wet, or the heat was too low. Dry it hard and get the pan or grill properly hot before anything touches it.
Tough Pulled at 165F. Take thighs further, to 175-185F.
Rub falling off It went on after the chicken had cooled and dried. Dust straight off the heat.

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