Cajun Chicken Melt
Have you ever cooked a chicken breast that turned out dry? Think most of us have and it’s my #1 reason to order dark meat at unknown joints. Today my friend is the day we aim to break dry or tough grill chicken dinner disasters. Keep reading
Most the time you’ll see me lighting up chicken tenders which come with their own set of fixable problems. This recipe is about the chicken breast. The breast come in all different sizes pretty much small (young bird), medium (youngish bird), large (old bird), and too huge (pterodactyl bird). There are vast differences from chicken farmer to farmer. Try not to pick the huge breast, its often a tough old bird. I do my quick brine a little weak, and you can add any flavoring you like. Of course, this is for the Cottonmouth. Most brine calls for 1/4 cup (4 tbs) of salt. Mine is usually a frog's hair lower at three tbs.
Servings 6
Calories 719kcal
Ingredients
Brine
- 3 tbs salt
- 3 cup water
- 1 tbs Cottonmouth
Sandwich
- 2.5 lb chicken breast (2 to 4 lbs)
- 18 oz ciabatta bread (6 in a pack from Walmart)
- 8 oz cheese (Swiss or your call)
- .25 lb bell pepper (green sliced)
- .25 lb bell pepper (red sliced)
- 6 oz mushroom (sliced fresh)
- 6 oz lettuce (butterhead)
- 2 tsp garlic (crushed)
- 6 tbs mayonnaise
- 2 tbs butter
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
Chicken Prep
- Mix the brine ingredients (water, salt, Cottonmouth)well in large enough bowl to also accommodate the chicken.
- Cut your chicken breast in half long ways.
- On a solid surface lay a piece of handi-wrap out, put 2 pieces of chicken on the wrap, and add another piece of wrap over the top. Ziplock bags work too.
- With a meat cleaver pound out the chicken breast mostly on the thick side to match the thins thickness.
- Add the pounded chicken to the brine, cover, and set in the fridge.
Remainder Steps
- Get your grill going to medium-high heat (375° to 400°).
- In a saucepan at medium heat (325° to 350°) add the 2 tbs butter, bell peppers, garlic, and salt.
- When peppers begin to sweat, add in the mushrooms until they are at your desired doneness.
- Set veggies to the side or make them with the chickens next steps.
- Drain brine from chicken. Pat dry to prevent raw chicken drips.
- Add all the breast pieces to grill off the heat. Add as many ciabatta rolls you can
- Keeping an eye on the grill each side for 6 minutes (safe) or 5 minutes if you know your grill. Six minutes usually guarantee grill marks.
- Don't let the ciabatta bread burn.
- Start stacking what you want! This one is lettuce, chicken, peppers, mushrooms, cheese. I like wilted lettuce if you don't, lay it on top.
- This sandwich is all yours. Enjoy it your way.
➕ Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Cajun Chicken Melt
Amount Per Serving (355 g)
Calories 719
Calories from Fat 288
% Daily Value*
Fat 32g49%
Saturated Fat 13g81%
Cholesterol 176mg59%
Sodium 4691mg204%
Potassium 977mg28%
Carbohydrates 45g15%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 3g3%
Protein 58g116%
Vitamin A 2170IU43%
Vitamin C 52.2mg63%
Calcium 299mg30%
Iron 1.6mg9%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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If you don’t have any Texas Butter I guess we’ll overlook it if you use what’s in your pantry. Be sure to ask how something turned out or you have questions. Expect grammar errors, these are not checked much other than what my browser flags. Well, in general I can’t spell worth a crap. Thanks – Shawn