Yogurt Marinated Chicken in a Food Saver

Am I the last person to buy a FoodSaver? Everyone seems to assume I've had one for years somehow, but I'm not generally a big fan of gadgets. But I broke down and bought one a few weeks ago and have been enjoying freezing meats and sealing up cheese to avoid spoilage. So far, so good! If you don't have one yet, here's a link to Save $10 off any FoodSaver.com order of $80 or more! Offer Expires 06-30-06.

Yesterday at Target I found a marinader. Supposedly the act of being under the vacuum pressure causes the food to absorbs the marinade faster. The canister is not cheap ($20 at Target for a 9" square one) but if it helps me get a flavorful dinner on the table in a hurry some nights, I'm all for trying it. If I avoid one delivered pizza I've paid for it!

I have a few yogurt marinades I've used on chicken but decided to try the one on the FoodSaver site itself, which is also full of FoodSaver Uses and Tips. It turned out quite good.

1 Tbs oil
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp coriander
1/4 cup diced onion (I used about an 1/8 cup dried onion flakes)
1/2 cup yogurt
2 Tbs lime juice
1/4 tsp salt
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Heat the oil in a small skillet and stir in the cumin, paprika, and coriander. Cook, stirring, for a minute or two, then let cool. In a small bowl mix together the diced onion, yogurt, lime juice, salt, and oil/spice mixture. Put the chicken into a container or a bag or whatever dish you want to use, then pour the marinade on and turn the chicken so it's evenly coated.

If you're using a FoodSaver thingy, you can vacuum seal it and then let it marinade for 15-20 minutes. Otherwise I would do this in the morning and let it sit in the frig all day marinating. I have to say, I used the FoodSaver thingy and marinated it about half an hour and it was very flavorful!

You could, of course, bake the chicken at 350 for 10 minutes or so. I chose to grill it, along with my skewered marinated vegetables from the last post. I didn't actually time it. Probably about 10 minutes total, turning halfway through. I always cut into chicken to ensure it's done.

The kids each picked out their favorite vegetables, of course, but they did eat them willingly enough. I was told by my oldest, however, that I could cook green beans every night and she'd much rather eat those. Youngest loved the mushrooms though. And I've got just enough chicken, rice, and vegetables to make myself a nice lunch one day!