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Whole Grilled Chicken with Peaches and Basil Vinaigrette. Here’s a chicken dinner that everyone will love and crave. Perfectly grilled chicken with peaches and fresh basil vinaigrette makes for an easy summer dinner that’s equally great for a family meal or entertaining. Try making this for Sunday dinner and using the leftover chicken and vinaigrette in salads for easy lunches throughout the week.
And just like that, it is officially summer today! It’s definitely felt like summer the entire month of June, but I am excited it’s truly summer today and kicking things off with a very summery recipe that is perfect for warm nights and grilling out.
I have teamed up with my friends at Grill Mates to bring you this easy grilled chicken using some of my favorite Grill Mates seasoning blend. You guys know me and usually I am all about mixing up my own blends, but I cannot resist using Grill Mates’ Montreal Chicken Seasoning blend. It has been my favorite for many years now and it’s certainly a staple in my house.
My dad has been using the Montreal seasoning since I was a kid and would use a generous amount on our grilled chicken during the hot summer nights when we lived in Cleveland. Twelve years later, I am still using it in my kitchen and could not love it any more. It’s the perfect blend to use on chicken and pairs so well with many different types of food.
Clearly, I really love this seasoning blend.
Something I have really gotten into this year is using a whole chicken as opposed to just the breast. There is so much more flavor when you use all of the chicken and creates a chicken that is tender and juicy throughout instead of dry.
No one likes dry chicken.
If you have never cooked a whole chicken on the grill, let explain just how this works.
First, we will need to spatchcocked the chicken. A spatchcocked chicken is when you take a whole chicken, remove its backbone, and then flatten it slightly. Back in the day, this was just something I never thought I wanted to mess with. But when I tried it out for a cookbook recipe I was hooked. Promise it’s not as scary as it may seem, and all you need is a good pair of chicken scissors. I found this how-to really helpful.
Of course, if you’re not into cutting up a whole bird, you can certainly use chicken breasts and or thighs. The key to this recipe is marinating the chicken in Montreal seasoningChicken Seasoning. I like to let the chicken sit in the marinade overnight. I’ll typically start the recipe the day before I plan on grilling the chicken. If you forget, don’t worry, even an hour in the marinade will still make for a great tasting chicken.
Once the chicken has marinated, all that’s left to do is grill, pretty simple, right?
While the chicken is grilling, I also like to grill up fresh peaches to serve alongside the chicken as a nice summer side. I love grilling peaches so much. They caramelize and become sweet, buttery, and delicious.
I take things a step further by topping the peaches with crumbled cheese and balsamic.
Oh my gosh. SO GOOD.
Also, grilling peaches is great to do when your peaches are not quite ripe yet. As the peaches grill, their sugars are released and they become that soft and sweet peach you desire.
To finish the chicken off, I love serving it with a homemade basil vinaigrette. As you guys know, our garden is bursting with fresh basil (and all herbs), so I’m consistently looking for ways to use it up. I love making vinaigrettes and using them on chicken, salads, sandwiches, and even for dipping toasted bread.
My favorite thing to do with this recipe is make is for Sunday night dinner and then use the leftovers to create salads and pastas to eat throughout the week. This is the perfect recipe to challenge your inner griller and truly grill your best!
I love when I can make one dinner and then use leftovers for multiple meal after!
If you make this grilled chicken, please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I love hearing from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every one of you. Oh, and of course, if you do make this easy, summery chicken recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram so I can see! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Whole Grilled Chicken with Peaches and Basil Vinaigrette
Servings: 4 servings
Calories Per Serving: 401 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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Ingredients
- 1 (3 1/2 to 4 pounds) whole chicken or chicken pieces
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons MCCORMICK® GRILL MATES® MONTREAL CHICKEN SEASONING
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- zest of 1 lemon
- 3 peaches halved and pitted
- 1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese or goat cheese
- balsamic glaze, for serving
Basil Vinaigrette
- 1 cup fresh basil, chopped
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakesMcCormick Red Pepper, Crushed
- juice of 1 lemon
- kosher salt
Instructions
- 1. If using a whole chicken, remove the chicken giblets. Pat the outside dry. Place the chicken on a cutting board, breast side down, so that the chicken's back is facing up. Using a pair of sharp kitchen scissors, cut closely along either side of the backbone. Remove the bone and discard. Turn the chicken over so the breast is now facing up. Press down firmly on the breast and flatten the chicken. Place the chicken in a resealable bag.2. In small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, Montreal seasoning, thyme, and lemon zest. Pour the marinade over chicken, rubbing the marinade all over the chickens skin. Seal the bag and place in the fridge for 1-2 hours or preferably over night.3. Preheat an outdoor grill or large grill pan to medium high. 5. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper. Grill, breast side down, covered for 10-15 minutes, or until the chicken has a nice char, flip and grill another 10-15 minutes. Flip once more and grill until cooked through and the chicken registers 160 degrees F. on a thermometer. Let rest 10 minutes. 6. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, add the peach halves to the grill and grill 5 minutes per side or until light char marks appear. Remove from the grill, top with the cheese. Drizzle the peaches with the balsamic glaze.
7. Serve the chicken topped with basil vinaigrette (recipe follows) and along side the peaches. Enjoy!
Basil Vinaigrette
- 1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Keep stored in the fridge for up to 1 week.
{This post is sponsored by McCormick Spice. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Half Baked Harvest cooking!}
ok.. so I spatchocked a chicken for the first time! Something I have wanted to do for some time now…and it was pretty easy. I am making this recipe tonight as it not only caught my eye… I did a double take! I will post it tonight @autoimmunestyle_natalies. Not only does this look absolutely amazing.. it is all the way gluten free…even down to the MicCormick Montreal Chicken seasoning.
Your recipes are very inspiring… thank you for doing what you do.
Thanks Natalie, I hope you love the recipe, let me know how it turns out!! xT
O.M.G. This was BEYOND delicious!!! I made it into a salad and used cantaloupe instead of peaches because they weren’t in season (even though I’m patiently waiting to make these other HBH peach recipes). SO delicious! Don’t skip the basil vinaigrette or the balsamic glaze! The goat cheese with the fruit and the chicken marinade?? TO DIE FOR. Homerun.
Hey there,
Happy Monday! I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it! xTieghan