Fire Up the Grill for Chicken and Vegetables
Summer holiday weekends seem to be when everyone fires up their grill and this Labor Day weekend should be no exception. This week at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market pick up a fresh or frozen whole chicken and some fresh vegetables to cook on your grill. If you buy a frozen chicken the best way to thaw it is to defrost it slowly in the refrigerator. Allow about 24 hours for a 4-5 pound chicken, most chickens at the Farmers’ Market are smaller than that.
Many recipes for whole chicken call for cutting the chicken in half to “butterfly” it. This does reduce the time for cooking, but if you’re not confident with a knife, you can leave the chicken whole.
Preheat your barbecue to medium heat. If you have a 2-burner gas grill, light 1 burner to medium, if you have a 3-burner gas grill, do not light the center burner. This will give you good indirect heat for cooking the chicken.
While the barbeque is heating prepare the chicken by brushing it with olive oil and seasoning inside and out with salt and pepper. Using butchers twine tie the drum sticks together and fold the wings behind the chicken’s back.
Place the chicken breast-side up in the grill not directly over the heat. Close the lid and grill for one to one and a half hours, depending on the weight of the chicken. The chicken is done when a thermometer placed in the thickest part of the breast reads at least 165 degrees. Allow the chicken to cool for 10 minutes before slicing.
During the last half hour of cooking, place the vegetables in foil (see recipe below) on the grill directly over the heat source on either side of the chicken. Your entire un-official end of summer meal can be served grill side.
Vegetables Grilled in Foil
1 quart new potatoes*
1 large sweet potato*
1 large onion*
2 bell peppers*
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 sprig fresh thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Cut potatoes, onion and pepper into bite-sized pieces. Toss vegetables with olive oil in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Tear 6 square pieces of foil and divide vegetables onto foil, put some fresh rosemary and thyme in each, fold up foil to cover vegetables and seal. Place on a grill on medium heat and cook for about 30 minutes. Makes 6 servings.
Per Serving: 140 calories; 5 g fat (0.5 g sat); 0 mg cholesterol; 19 g carbohydrate; 3 g protein; 4 g fiber; 45 mg sodium. Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (190% daily value),Vitamin C (60% daily value).
Ingredients marked with an asterisk (*) are available at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market on High Rock Avenue. The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open on Wednesdays from 3-6 pm and Saturdays from 9-1 pm. For information about food and nutrition contact Diane Whitten at Cornell Cooperative Extension at 885-8995or dwhitten@cornell.edu.
