Chicken & sweet potatoes with shooting stars

Twinkle twinkle

When I first started recipe-developing, I was paralyzed with fear that I wouldn’t know when a recipe was “done.” (Well, let’s be honest, I still get the feeling every single time I start working on a recipe.) It just seemed like such an arbitrary stopping point.

Recipes are finite, sealed up in steps, period—and cooking is anything but. You can always add, swap, flip it, and reverse it. Who am I to say when someone’s cooking is complete? (The answer is when you’re so hungry/over it that you don’t want to wait anymore.)

I started noticing that when I tasted some dishes, they would transcend the recipe’s individual elements to the point where I couldn’t necessarily pick each ingredient out. The food would fill my mouth with a tingly, indescribable feeling. Ti esrever dna ti pilf. Salivary glands were working, yes, but if you told me shooting stars were in my mouth, I’d believe you. This is probably called something scientifically, or maybe it’s just what cooking should be, but sometimes it’s nice to believe in magic.

Magic?

When this happens, I have no choice but to be done with a recipe because I can’t isolate any element to tweak or fuss over. It’s thrilling and relieving, but describing that sensation in a headnote? It just works. It’s delicious….blah blah boring.

So I’ll get out of the way and say that this grilled chicken with sweet potatoes and avocado and soy sauce—I don’t even know what to call it—will make your mouth twinkle. Just will.

Recipes make grilling sound more involved than the process really is. This is all we're doing here (visiting with nearby toads optional).

Sesame-lemon grilled chicken & sweet potatoes

Serves 4

• 1 ½ to 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

• ¼ cup soy sauce

• 1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (3 medium)

• Salt 

• Extra-virgin olive oil, for greasing

• 3 scallions

• 1 avocado 

• 2 lemons

• 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

1. Pat 1 ½ to 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs dry, then transfer to a plate, drizzle with 2 tablespoons soy sauce, and toss to coat.¹ You can marinate the chicken up to 2 hours ahead. If you’re ready to cook now, go ahead and heat a grill to medium-high.

2. Peel 1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (3 medium), then halve lengthwise (from pole to pole). Place the sweet potatoes on their cut sides, then slice lengthwise (again pole to pole) into ¼-inch-thick long, flat spears. On a large plate or platter, toss the sweet potatoes with salt and enough olive oil to coat. 

3. Thinly slice 3 scallions and add to a medium bowl. Cut 1 avocado into thick wedges and transfer to the bowl. Squeeze ¼ cup juice from 2 lemons over the avocado. Add 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds and the remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce.² Stir gently to combine. (If you find this mixture too puckery, add a little more soy sauce.) Let’s go outside now! Bring your chicken, sweet potatoes, sauce, tongs and a paper towel lightly greased with olive oil (a sheet pan makes a great tray). 

4. Clean and grease the grates with the paper towel. Add the sweet potatoes, cover the grill, and cook until charred underneath, 5 to 7 minutes. (Hold onto the plate.) Flip the sweet potatoes and add the chicken, shaking any drippy sauce off first. Grill until the chicken is browned underneath, 5 to 7 minutes (covered if using a gas grill).

5. Flip the chicken and press on the sweet potatoes. If any are tender, transfer them to the reserved plate. Keep grilling until all the sweet potatoes are tender and the chicken is cooked through, another 2 to 5 minutes. As ingredients finish, transfer them to the plate. Drizzle with some of the avocado and sauce, then serve with the remaining.

P.S. This dish is not stunning. A food stylist-friend said it’s a toughie trifecta: boneless thighs (ambiguous shape), sweet potatoes (so orange), and avocado (fragile)—but in this newsletter deliciousness trumps beauty contests.

Sesame Lemon Grilled Chicken Ali Slagle's 40 Ingredients Forever

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SWAPS

• Grill: Roast the chicken and sweet potatoes at 425°F for about 30 minutes, flipping halfway through. If more crispy bits, broil for a few minutes after roasting.

• Chicken: Use 1-inch-cubes of tofu, or Korean short ribs, shrimp, or pork chops or shoulder steaks; timing may vary.

• Soy sauce: If you have ponzu, use that and skip the lemon. You could also use liquid aminos (but keep the lemon).

• Sweet potatoes: Truly any vegetable that you like to grill; timing may vary.

• Scallions: Omit or use thinly sliced shallots or grated ginger or garlic.

• Avocado: Omit—it’s very optional but makes things luxurious.

• Lemon: Use lime or rice vinegar.

• Toasted sesame seeds: Add crunch with toasted, raw quinoa or furikake. 

THINGS TO ADD

• Herbs: Add cilantro or mint to the sauce.

• Grill more vegetables: Bok choy, asparagus, green beans, corn, so on.

• Raw vegetables: Add juicy, crunchy vegetables to the scallion sauce, like cucumbers, celery, or radishes. Or eat over salad greens dressed with the scallion sauce. 

• Heat: Add shichimi togarashi, yuzu kosho, hot sauce, or fresh chopped chile to the sauce.

• Rice: This whole dish would be great over white or brown rice.

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Editing and recipe testing by Caroline Lange

Brand design: Linda Huang

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1. Idea for this chicken came from Yasuo Yamamoto on Samin’s Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat Netflix show.

2. The refreshing but rich combination of lemon juice and soy sauce is ponzu-like/ponzu-lite.