Global Grilled Chicken Recipes for the Olympics

Inspired by the Olympics, F&W selected five chefs representing five different countries and asked them to compete for grilling supremacy. The rules: Provide an incredible grilled-chicken recipe, plus a second, freestyle dish of their own choosing.

Representing South Korea in our grilling games is chef Bill Kim of Chicago’s Belly Shack and UrbanBelly. Kim’s recipes reveal what Korean barbecue is all about: salty-sweet, sticky, delectably charred meat. Kim uses sugar, chiles (in a paste or powder) and sesame oil in both his dishes.

Grill Technique Pounding slices of pork tenderizes the meat, making it thin enough to take on the flavor of the marinade and allowing it to cook fast enough to stay moist.

Silvena Rowe, author of Purple Citrus & Sweet Perfume, grew up in Bulgaria, but is easily qualified to represent Turkey in the F&W grilling games: The daughter of an avid Turkish cook, she has expanded her repertoire of family dishes as chef at Quince in London’s May Fair hotel. Turkish grilling, she says, relies on fragrant spices like cumin, coriander and paprika; cool yogurt sauces; and red-pepper pastes for heat.

Grill Technique Rubbing a spice paste into slits in the meat before grilling adds deep flavor.

Stepping up to the grill to represent Italy is Cesare Casella, the chef and owner of New York City’s Salumeria Rosi Parmacotto. Casella says that Italian grillers don’t generally use sauces. Instead, they might rely on olive oil or lemon to flavor food. Sometimes they drizzle the oil on; other times they brush it on, perhaps with a rosemary sprig.

Grill Technique Italian grillers have mastered the method of searing vegetables to impart a smoky flavor, then grilling them in packets to cook slowly until tender.

Mexico’s representative in F&W’s grilling games is chef Jose Garces. Garces owns restaurants all over the US, but at his Distrito in Scottsdale, Arizona, he focuses on barbacoa dishes: meats cooked over an open fire or in a pit, many of them coated with intense spice mixes and served with sauces and glazes.

Grill Technique The secret to creating a terrific crust on a well-marbled cut of beef: rubbing on a salty-sweet spice mix and letting the meat air dry before grilling.

Adam Perry Lang, founder of NYC’s Daisy May’s BBQ and author of Charred & Scruffed, does the USA proud with Southern-style chicken wings and grilled kale.

Grill Technique The smartest way to prepare kale for grilling is blanching it so it becomes tender and doesn’t burn.

Incredible grilled chicken recipes inspired by Korea, Turkey, Italy and more cuisines. © John Kernick

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