| Grilled
Chicken Cobb Salad
Adapted
from Chef Bobby Flay
Yield: 8 servings
This
updated version of California's famous salad makes one of
Mesa Grill's most popular lunch dishes. Chicken breast rubbed
with barbecue sauce and grilled is a terrific foundation for
all the different flavors that combine in a Cobb salad, and
chiles jump-start the creamy, tart dressing.
Balsamic-Mustard
Vinaigrette
Yield: About 1 1/2 cups
- 6
Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1
teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2
Tablespoons finely chopped red onion
- 1
Tablespoon light brown sugar
- 3/4
cup olive oil
- Kosher
salt and freshly ground pepper
Combine
the vinegar, mustard, onion, and sugar in a blender and purée.
With the motor running, slowly add the oil until emulsified.
Season with salt and pepper. May be refrigerated for 1 day;
serve at room temperature.
Smoked Chile-Buttermilk Dressing
Yield: About 1 1/4 cups
- 1/4
cup sour cream
- 1
cup buttermilk
- 2
cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2
Tablespoons finely chopped red onion
- 1
Tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 2
teaspoons chipotle purée (see Note)
- Kosher
salt and freshly ground pepper
Combine
the sour cream, buttermilk, garlic, onion, lime juice, and
chipotle purée
in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Pour into
a squeeze bottle. May be refrigerated for 1 day; serve at
room temperature.
Salad
- 4
chicken breasts, skin on and bone in, French cut (wings
left on)
- 1
1/4 cups Mesa Barbecue Sauce (can be bought in gourmet markets
and recipe is in Boy
meets Grill)
- 2
large red onions, sliced 1/4 inch thick
- Olive
oil for brushing the onions
- 8
cups mixed greens, washed and dried
- 8
plum tomatoes, quartered
- 8
hard-boiled eggs, quartered
- 4
avocados, peeled, halved, and thinly sliced
- 8
ounces Cabrales blue cheese, crumbled
- Smoked
Chile-Buttermilk Dressing
- Balsamic-Mustard
Vinaigrette
- Kosher
salt and freshly ground pepper
Preheat
a gas or charcoal grill to medium high.
Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper and
brush with barbecue sauce. Grill, basting continuously with
barbecue sauce, until golden brown and cooked through, 7 to
8 minutes on each side. Remove from the grill and let rest
for 10 minutes.
Brush
the onion slices with olive oil and grill until golden brown
and slightly softened, 2 to 3 minutes on each side. In a large
bowl, lightly toss the greens with the Balsamic-Mustard Vinaigrette
and place on a large platter. Cut the chicken breasts in half
and cut each half on the bias into 1/2-inch slices. Arrange
the chicken in the center of the platter, resting on the greens.
Arrange the tomatoes, eggs, onion slices, and avocado slices
around the chicken. Sprinkle with the crumbled Cabrales blue
cheese and drizzle with the Smoked Chile-Buttermilk Dressing.
NOTE:
Canned chipotle peppers in adobo are available at Latino or
gourmet markets or from Kitchen Market, 218 Eighth Avenue,
New York, NY 10011, 212-243 4433, which has a mail-order list.
To make chipotle purée, process canned chipotles in
a blender or food processor, along with a little of their
liquid.
Wine suggestion
This
is a salad that needs a big wine which will stand up to the
richness of the blue cheese and the fatiness of the bacon.
So, for one time in my life, I will recommend a California
Chardonnay, which is too typically all of those things.
more
grilling recipes
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