Smoky Pineapple Chicken

Hey you guys!

Great, that you are back. So I am a week into my high protein / low carb nutrition plan and I realized that I make chicken the exact same way.

It is time for something new!

Here is my very smoky and a little spicey recipe for pineapple chicken. It’s awesome on the grill, but you can make it in the oven as well. (Grilling outside is only possible for a couple of months here…after all were still in Germany…it rains almost every day…)

Let’s start with making the rub itself. The base is reduced tomato paste. Here we can buy it in a metal squeeze tube (I know it looks like toothpaste...). To make it smoky, smoked paprika does the trick. Besides that, you add Chili Panca, Chili Ancho and Cayenne Pepper.

I always add some garlic, but this is completely optional. You will get the comfy, subtle burn without it. For people who eat regularly spicey, this meal will not appear very spicey. For people who never eat spicey food, it can be a bit of a challenge.

Make a nice rub out of these ingredients. I use a teaspoon of each of the spices and five times the amount of tomato paste. If it’s still crumbly I add more tomato paste or a little olive oil.

Get some chicken pieces that you like. I like chicken breast without any skin. But you can do legs or breast with skin - whatever you prefer. Now it is time to marinade your chicken. I cut mine in some smaller pieces and put them in a plastic bag – together with the marinade. Time to “rub it in” …I roll the bag around till the marinade is everywhere and leave it like this in the fridge. You can do this overnight or just for some hours (spoiler alert: the longer the better). I usually make more servings than I need right away and freeze some chicken with the marinade.

The other main ingredient that you need is a pineapple. Try to get a fresh one. Canned ones are often very watery and fall apart easily. Cut the top and the skin off, as well as the hard center. I like to have bigger chunks. You can arrange the chicken and the pineapple just like you want in the dish. I usually make a bed with those pineapple pieces and lay the chicken on top.

I put it in the oven for 30 Minutes, but it really depends on how big your chicken pieces are. Mine were small. You might need more oven time if yours are thicker. Just make sure the chicken is thoroughly cooked.

You can enjoy this dish with rice (if you are not riding the low-carb-train) or like I did with a nice side of salad.

I hope you enjoy this recipe!

Nathalie