“Chamorro Chicken & Finnadene”
Have you ever been to Guam? Don’t worry Neither have I. But having been with my husband who is half Guam /half Philipino for over 12 years, I have had the pleasure of trying the delicious, refreshing and spicy flavors of what Guam has to offer! This particular recipe was actually taught to me by my husband’s cousin John, who has a lot of tasty secrets from growing up on the island as a child!
This chicken is spicy, sweet, tangy and salty, those happen to be all of my favorite flavors ..so when I saw that this recipe had everything I love all rolled into one, I was an immediate fan. Just the smell of the marinated chicken was making me drool and once it was being grilled in front of my eyes and the smoke flavors flowed through the air and hit my nose, I was pretty much in heaven! I have cooked this dish for a few of my friends and every single one of them have told me it is hands-down the best chicken they have ever had! It’s addicting to say the least. I probably made it about 8 times in the first month after I learned the recipe lol. The “Finnadene” dipping sauce, which is pretty much the “Guam Ketchup” (they put it on everything!) makes the dish! I could almost drink it! It’s a very simple recipe to follow, even the unexperienced cook could pull this off blindfolded!
This dish is typically served with white rice, I also like to serve steamed veggies with it. The next day I like to serve the leftovers right on top of some mixed greens, pouring the Finnadenne all over it like a dressing and eat it as a spicy salty refreshing chicken salad. One time I couldn’t even wait for lunch I ended up eating it for breakfast!
For the chicken:
I use about 1 to 2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast sliced into “tender” like pieces. Once you have it cut up, put it in a container then start layering in the components of the marinade.
The Chamorro Marinade:
1/2 Cup Soy Sauce
Juice of 3-4 Lemons
1 tablespoon fresh Garlic
2 diced green onions
1/2 sliced yellow onion
4-6 chopped red Thai chilies (or 1 sliced Jalepeno)
1 tablespoon of honey
1 teaspoon of both salt and pepper
1 healthy squirt of Sriracha hot sauce
Put the lid on your container, give it a good shake making sure the chicken and all of the ingredients are well mixed together, then stick it in your fridge until dinner time, I usually let this sit for at least 4-6 hours.
For the Finnadene sauce:
Use a small container with a lid.
1/3 cup Soy Sauce
Juice of 1 lemon
3-4 diced red Thai chilies
Dash of pepper
1 diced green onion
1 teaspoon fresh garlic
(1/4 cup diced cucumber & a
Small Handful of halved cherry or grape Tomatoes) This is optional, but I think it is almost necessary, I love getting the chunks of fresh cucumber and tomato in my sauce …they marinate so well and soak up alllll the flavor!
I make the sauce the same time I marinate the chicken, that way they both have time to sit and all their flavors can marry together deliciously.
(The chicken and sauce can tend to be a little spicy so if you’re not into “too” much spice, just cut down on some of the chilies or hot sauce. The lemon and honey are a good balance but it is definitely more on the spicy side just FYI!)
Grill the chicken on medium-high heat with olive oil, since you cut it into nice thin pieces it should only take about 3-4 minutes on each side depending on how thick it is. You really want to see those nice charred grill marks on the chicken. Place your chicken on a clean cutting board after it is finished cooking, let it sit for about 1 to 2 minutes then go ahead and slice it up into 1 inch bite sized pieces.
I truly hope you enjoy this dish as much as I do! Bon appetitè
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