cilantro lime chicken pasta

by tijuana, 03/02/2013

when i think of cilantro lime, i think of summer. flip flops, tank tops and beaches. yes...i know it is winter. but sometimes, i get in the mood for summer food. today was one of those days. i had some cilantro in the fridge that was going to go bad any day. as some of ya'll know from my facebook page, i used some of the cilantro in my spicy cilantro pesto with roasted asparagus recipe. wondering what to do with the rest of the cilantro, i quickly thought about cilantro lime. i'm very glad i did! this pasta is very quick but the complexity of flavors that come with cilantro lime makes it tastes like it took hours! it's very delicious. travel to the summer with me, ya'll. even if it is snowing outside. 🙂

total Time: 45 minutes
prep time: 30 minutes
cook time: 15 minutes
yield: 6 servings

ingredients:

3 chicken breasts -
1/4 cup rice vinegar -
2 limes -
3 cloves garlic -
1/3 cup cilantro -
1/2 teaspoon salt - pepper to taste
1/2 cup canola oil - or olive oil
1 cup frozen corn - defrosted
1 tomato - chopped
1/2 cup black beans - drained, rinsed off
1 pound angel hair pasta -

instructions:

preheat a grill over medium high heat. lightly oil the grate.
season the chicken breasts with salt/pepper to taste.

place the chicken breasts into a large ziploc bag. set aside.
in a blender, add the rice vinegar, juice of the 2 limes, garlic, cilantro and salt/pepper.

blend until combined. stream in the canola oil slowly through the top of the blender.

pour half of the cilantro lime mixture into the bag with the chicken breasts.

seal the bag, place in a bowl and allow to marinate in the fridge for at least an hour. pour the other half of the cilantro lime dressing into a container. set aside.

add the chicken breasts to the grill.

cook about 3-4 minutes per side (depending on the size of the chicken breasts) until cooked through.

move to a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 minutes. slices into strips.

bring a large pot of water to a boil. salt the water generously and cook the pasta according to the package instructions. drain the pasta well. add the pasta to a large bowl. add the corn, tomato and black beans to the bowl, as well. pour the reserved cilantro lime dressing over the pasta and toss. taste, season with salt/pepper, if needed.