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Greek-Style Grilled Chicken

Whole chicken seasoned with Greek herbs and grilled.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Thyme and rosemary match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,340 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-one, which smells mushroom, metallic. The science ↓

Greek-Style Grilled Chicken

Time10 minutes rest

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Brush chicken pieces with olive oil. Set aside.

  2. Combine all remaining ingredients and rub into chicken. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Grill

  1. Heat about 28 charcoal briquets in a large chimney starter. Disperse evenly around bottom of grill and reapply the grate.

  2. Add chicken and cook, turning often, until internal temperature of the breast is 165°F and the thigh is 170°F.

  3. Remove to a plate and cover with foil. Let rest 10 minutes before serving warm.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

309Calories
32 gProtein
18 gFat
6 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Chicken100g cooked165
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Oregano1 tsp dried (1.8g)5
Thyme1 tsp dried (1.4g)4
Rosemary1 tsp dried (1.2g)4
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Mint2 tbsp fresh (3g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Thyme + rosemarytop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,340 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).

  2. Oregano + rosemarytop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together344 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  3. Oregano + thymetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together791 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Oregano + garlictop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,756 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Garlic + olivetop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Broiler/fryer chicken
Provides the meat that is cooked over the coals and served warm.
Olive oil
Adds moisture and helps the herb rub cling to the chicken.
Dried herbs
Oregano, thyme, mint and rosemary add aroma and savory flavor to the rub.
Garlic powder
Adds savory, aromatic flavor to the rub.

The step that matters

Cook until both breast and thigh reach their target temperatures. Breast and thigh cook at different rates, and dark meat needs a higher internal temperature to become tender. Checking with a thermometer in each piece prevents both dry breast meat and undercooked thigh meat.

Swap the mint

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, oregano, thyme, rosemary, pepper, garlic, olive):

  1. Basilfits better
  2. Marjoramfits better
  3. Cuminfits better
  4. Mintthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, oregano, thyme, rosemary, pepper, garlic, olive. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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