First Things First, Then Peruvian Chicken

Just because it's June, June, June!

And if you are looking for something easy and delicious for a beautiful June day, I can't recommend this highly enough. It is easy, can be mostly prepared ahead of time, and did I mention that it is delicious?

Peruvian Chicken with Green Sauce

Green sauce:

1 bunch cilantro, washed and torn in pieces, stems and all

10 mint leaves

1 jalapeno seeded and ribs removed

2 garlic cloves, peeled

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 tablespoons oil

salt to taste

Make early in the day or the day before.

Put all the ingredients in a blended container. Pulse several times to get things all mixed together then let 'er rip until everything is pureed. Scrape the sides of the blender to make sure no lumpy bits are still there. If you find any pulse a couple of times. Scrape all the deliciousness from the blender and store in a sealed refrigerator container until right before time to use.

Pickled onions

Make this in the morning before hand also.

1 small onion thinly sliced

lime juice equivalent to 2 limes (I used the bottled stuff ,it was delicious, and the world was still spinning despite the fact that I did not juice 2 fresh limes) 

salt to taste. I probably used 1/2 teaspoon

(I also pickled tomato slices and bell peppers. It was overkill and I will only use onions going forward

I had a clean empty salsa jar so I just put everything in the jar, shook it well, then put it in the fridge. During the day anytime I walked by the fridge (and remembered) I would just give it a good shake.

The actual Peruvian Chicken

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons Peruvian spice blend

(if you don't want to make it make your own blend, simply use cumin, oregano, paprika, salt, black pepper. It should work perfectly fine. I have them in order of most to least but do not have the measurements )

2 tablespoons olive oil

The Juice of two limes (or bottled lime juice equivalent, totally your choice, but I used the bottled stuff)

4 boneless skinless chicken thighs.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. while the oven is heating up put the lime juice in a shallow bowl and dip the chicken in the juice, turning to make sure all sides are covered.

Mix the garlic and spice blend in a small bowl. Add the olive oil. It will be like a loose paste. Then coat  the bottom of the chicken with  the paste and put it in an oven safe pan. Brush the remaining "paste' on the top of the chicken. Pop those puppies in the oven and bake until done. It took them a little under 30 minutes in my oven.

Plate the chicken topped with the pickled onions and serve the green sauce on the side.

This dish is delicious and fully keto. My non-Keto husband loved this and it is something we are going to have all through the summer, though I am most likely going to grill the chicken outside.

The green sauce is in a league all by itself. I am going to keep it in the refrigerator all the time. I can't think of any protein it would not taste good with, so this is my new staple. I had some over steamed cauliflower with a dollop of sour cream and it was unbelievable. I imagine it would be outstanding on a baked potato also, and it works well with a tad more oil as a different and delicious salad dressing.

Try it, you might like it!