Grilled Chicken with Green Chile Sauce

More rain, and another long commute home. Today I really wanted to sit on the couch, but once again the kitchen won. While I prepped for this meal, I wolfed down another serving of last night's Mexican Chicken Casserole because I always get home hungry and I have to eat a little something before dinner or I get irritable. And, you know, no one wants that.

Grilled Chicken with Green Chile Sauce

Yield: 4 servings
Serving size: 1 breast

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
¼ cup olive oil
¼ tsp oregano
½ tsp black pepper
¼ cup water
10 to 12 tomatillos, husks removed and cut in half
½ medium onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 serrano or jalapeno peppers
2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
¼ tsp salt
¼ cup low fat sour cream
Juice of 2 limes

Combine the oil, juice from one lime, oregano, and black pepper in a shallow glass baking dish. Stir. Place the chicken breasts in the baking dish and turn to coat each side. Cover the dish and refrigerate overnight. Turn the chicken periodically to marinate chicken on both sides.

Put water, tomatillos, and onion into a saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil and cook uncovered for 10 minutes or until the tomatillos are tender. In a blender, place the cooked onion, tomatillos, and any remaining water. Add the garlic, peppers, cilantro, salt, and the remaining lime juice. Blend until all the ingredients are smooth. Place the sauce in a bowl and refrigerate.

Place the chicken breasts on a hot grill and cook until done. Place the chicken on a serving platter.

Spoon a tablespoon of low fat sour cream over each chicken breast. Pour the sauce over the sour cream.

I was really hoping to like this. It sounded good, and it was another healthy recipe I found. I also halved this recipe, but I only cooked one chicken breast instead of two. I used halved measurements of the marinade and did that in the fridge last night, but the chicken didn't take on much of the flavor. There was a little taste of the lime in the chicken, but overall it was weak. Before I grilled the chicken, I pounded it and salted and peppered both sides. The chicken looked to be drying out a little on the grill, so I actually brushed the chicken with the green chile sauce that I made in the blender. I think that helped to keep the chicken a little more moist than it would have been. I also had a lot of leftover green chile sauce when I put the desired amount on my chicken breast, and I discovered it was pretty good as a salsa with tortilla chips. Who knew? However, I think the sauce was the only redeemable part of this dish. I just wasn't impressed. I think it was the lack of flavor in the marinade, which could be pumped up easily, and while it says to blend the sauce until smooth, I think I would have liked it more with a few small chunks in it.

So, overall, not a huge fan of this recipe. I'll hold onto it, though, because I think it can be tweaked.