Grilled Chicken with Pesto
from Mark Bittman
“This basic recipe begins with pesto. But as you can see, it is almost infinitely variable… you can broil or grill chicken with almost any compound butter or flavored oil, or many of the other sauces.”
1/2 to 1 cup basic pesto
1 whole chicken, cut up (legs cut in two), trimmed of excess fat, then rinsed and patted dry with paper towels
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Lemon wedges
1. Start a charcoal or wood fire or preheat a gas grill or broiler. The fire should not be too hot, and the rack should be at least 6 inches from the heat source.
2. If you’re broiling, spread a tablespoon or so of the pesto on a non-stick broiling or baking pan; place the chicken pieces on top and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Spread a little more of the pesto on the chicken. If you’re grilling, spread some of the pesto all over the chicken.
3. Broil or grill the chicken, turning and basting frequently with the pesto, until nicely browned all over and cooked through (the juices will run clear if you make a small cut in the meat near the bone), 20 to 30 minutes. Brush once more with the pesto and serve hot or at room temperature with lemon wedges.