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Grilled Chicken with Homemade Romesco Sauce

grilled sliced chicken breast topped with romesco sauce and sprinkled with parsley.
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Smoky Romesco sauce made with roasted red peppers, tomatoes, almonds, and spices is the sauce you never knew you needed to spice up weeknight dinners, like in this healthy grilled chicken with Romesco sauce! You'll be licking the plate clean! (dairy-free, gluten-free)

Ingredients

Scale

For the Romesco Sauce:

  • 1/3 cup raw almonds
  • 5 cloves garlic, unpeeled
  • 2 red bell peppers
  • 2 roma tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tbsp smoked paprika
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

For the Chicken:

  • 4 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce*
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

To Make the Romesco Sauce:

  1. Heat oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat.
  2. Place peppers, tomatoes, garlic and almonds on the baking sheet and roast for 40 minutes, checking every 10-15 minutes to rotate peppers and tomatoes so that all sides get blistered, and to remove almonds and garlic once they are done (about 10-15 minutes in).
  3. Place peppers and tomatoes in a bowl and cover with foil or plastic wrap. Let sit for 10 minutes to steam (this makes them easier to peel).
  4. Gently peel skins away from peppers and tomatoes. Discard skins and pepper seeds and stem. Squeeze garlic from the cloves.
  5. Place all ingredients for the sauce in a high powered blender, such as a Vitamix, and blend until smooth.

For the Chicken:

  1. While vegetables are roasting, marinate chicken. Make sure chicken is an even thickness so that they cook more evenly. You may have to lightly pound them into even thickness. Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt, pepper and garlic powder on both sides. Add Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil, and turn chicken to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator until you're ready to cook it.
  2. Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat (about 400°F.) Cook chicken for about 5 minutes per side, then turn heat to low and/or move chicken to top rack of the grill and continue cooking until the internal temperature reaches 165° F and juices run clear, about 10-20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken.
  3. Serve each chicken breast topped with Romesco sauce.

Notes

  • *Some brands of Worcestershire sauce are gluten-free and some are not. Check the label if you require a gluten-free version.
  • Store extra Romesco sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container up to 1 week or in the freezer up to 3 months.
  • Sauce can be made ahead, but I think it's best served warm, so heat it gently on the stove or in the microwave before serving.
  • You can substitute 2 cups jarred roasted red peppers and/or 3 canned whole tomatoes and skip roasting them. Just toast the almonds and garlic, then proceed with blending everything as written.
  • If you don't have white balsamic vinegar, use regular balsamic, or red wine vinegar in a pinch.
  • Salt the sauce to taste, though I don't think it needs any!
  • Don't substitute the smoked paprika. Just don't.
  • I highly recommend a meat thermometer to remove the guesswork and prevent dry chicken. The internal temperature of chicken should reach 165°F when it's done.

Keywords: homemade romesco sauce, chicken with romesco sauce, how to make romesco sauce

Find it online: https://livelytable.com/chicken-romesco-sauce/