INGREDIENTS

For the chicken and salsa:

• 1 habanero chili
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 scallions, trimmed, white
  and green parts thinly sliced separately
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 bone-in chicken thighs (skin off)
• Sea salt
• 1 1/2 cups rhubarb cut into
  1/4-inch cubes
• 1 cup seeded hothouse English cucumber, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
• 1/4 cup minced cilantro
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 teaspoon lime juice

For the sweet potatoes:

• 1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 scallion, trimmed, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons lime juice

Spicy Chicken Thighs with Sweet Potatoes & Cucumber-Rhubarb Salsa

Adapted from the Natural Gourmet Institute

Yield: 4 Servings

Chicken thighs are more moist and flavorful than the ubiquitous chicken breasts, and this recipe provides a really simple way of preparing them. Cucumber and rhubarb make for a zingy, summery salsa, while the lime brightens the dish.

To make chicken & salsa:

1. Pulse chili, garlic and white parts of scallions in a food processor until finely chopped. With the machine running, stream in soy sauce and olive oil. Puree until sauce is homogenous and transfer to a bowl.

2. Heat a grill pan over high heat.

3. Season chicken with salt and brush chicken with sauce on both sides and grill, 5-6 minutes per side, flipping once.

4. In the meantime, combine rhubarb, cucumber, cilantro, honey, canola oil and lime juice in a small bowl. Stir in green parts of scallions. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.

To make sweet potatoes:

1. Place potatoes in a pot, cover with cold water, and season with a generous pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and cook covered just until tender, about 20 minutes and drain.

2. When cool enough to handle, peel potatoes and slice thinly.

3. Whisk together oil, salt and cumin, and gently toss potatoes in the mixture. Grill potatoes just until grill marks appear, flipping once, about 1 minute per side. Transfer potatoes to a platter; sprinkle with scallions and lime juice.

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New York City’s Natural Gourmet Institute is the leading health-supportive culinary school that combines professional culinary technique with science-based nutrition. With their $5 Dinners recipe series, they dispel the myth that eating healthfully is inaccessible. Each of these recipes costs five dollars or less per serving, proving the same five dollars that can be spent on a fast food meal can pay for a delicious, balanced and satisfying home cooked dinner.