Fresh blueberries are available everywhere these days – your local farmers market, supermarkets and yes, Costco too. As you may have noticed: I. LOVE. DESSERT! So while my first response to blueberry season is often a cobbler or cake, I figure it’s time to take advantage of peak season quality (and prices!) and prepare this versatile, savory blueberry sauce.
The tangy sauce goes well with chicken as featured here – and with pork dishes too. We have been enjoying it with everything from chops, sausages and chicken wings! It would be equally delicious over grilled polenta slices for a vegetarian route. What’s not to love about pairing corn and blueberries?!!
Say “Hello!” to your new favorite sauce for summer…
A few advance tips:
- There is w i d e latitude here. I’ve purposefully indicated ranges for a few ingredients to encourage your experimentation to suit your taste preferences. Pretty much any of the sauce and marinade ingredients may be adjusted accordingly.
- Additional spices and herbs may result in a delicious sauce, but do take care and not overly spice to the point you overwhelm the fruit’s flavor.
- The quantities can be easily doubled for the marinade and sauce if you’re cooking for a crowd.
Grilled Chicken with Tangy Blueberry Sauce
For the chicken:
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs (whole, with skin or skinless, boneless)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 to 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1/ 8 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 to 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
- 1 to 2 teaspoons fresh marjoram, minced
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1/ 2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/ 4 – 1/ 2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/ 4 – 1/ 2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
Combine the marinade ingredients in a medium bowl. Whisk to mix well. Add chicken pieces, coating all sides well with marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours, up to overnight.
Meanwhile, prepare the blueberry sauce:
Ingredients
- 1 pint fresh blueberries, about 2-1/ 2 cups
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 to 3 cloves of garlic, minced (about 1 teaspoon)
- 1/ 2 cup red onion, chopped
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded, membrane removed and minced; to taste
- 1/ 4 cup apple cider vinegar, (Substitute sherry vinegar for more tang!)
- 1/ 4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 to 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 to 3 teaspoons chipotle chile powder, to taste (See notes below)
- 1/ 2 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan on medium-low heat. Add onions, garlic and jalapeño pepper; and cook until barely softened. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer on low heat for 15 minutes.
Use an immersion blender and blend the sauce until fairly smooth. Simmer an additional 10 minutes to thicken sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings accordingly, making sure to let any additions simmer at least a minute or two before declaring the sauce ready-for-prime-time.
Cook’s notes: (1) Chipotle powder packs some heat. Substitute some/all with smoked paprika if spicy heat is not your thing. (2) Using chipotle en adobo is an alternate option to capture smoky-heat flavors in the sauce; however using chipotle powder makes it easier to control the heat.
Grill the chicken:
Prepare an outdoor or indoor grill to medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and grill the chicken until it’s nearly done. When you know you will not be turning the meat another time, and with the top side facing up, brush on a liberal amount of the tangy blueberry sauce. Complete cooking chicken and serve with additional warmed sauce.
