Grillin' and Chillin'

Janet here: I've said it before, and I'll probably say it again after this post, one of my favorite parts of summer is sitting on the porch or patio with family and friends, and just relaxing with some good food and drink. It's a cheap form of escapism, sitting on your patio, pretending the work world doesn't exist for even just a few hours.

So I am always on the lookout for new sauces to try for barbecuing and was excited to try this one from Ellie Krieger's The Food You Crave. I've made it twice now and can say with confidence it's wonderful. The mango/jalapeno pepper combo is the perfect sweet/hot combo. If you've got a favorite barbecue sauce, we'd love to hear about it. Enjoy the long weekend!



Mango Barbecue Sauce
will amply marinate and cover 8 pieces of chicken

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced, about 1 cup
1 medium red pepper, seeded and diced, about 1 cup
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped, about 1 tablespoon
1 teaspoon salt
pepper to taste
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1 medium ripe mango, peeled and pitted and diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
2-3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

Method
Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring a few times, until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the bell pepper, garlic, salt, pepper, and allspice and cook, stirring for 2 more minutes. Stir in the vinegar, molasses, Worcestershire, lime juice and tomato sauce and cook for 1 minute more. Transfer mixture to a blend, add the mango and jalapenos and blend until smooth.

Put 2 cups of the barbecue sauce in a large resealable plastic bag with the chicken and marinate at least one hour. Reserve the rest of the sauce to serve on the side with the cooked chicken.

When ready to grill the chicken, remove it from the sauce and toss that sauce away. Grill the chicken the way you like and serve with reserved sauce.