Football season is almost here and it’s not too early to think about your catering needs for game day. Here in our Studio 41 Kitchen with some ideas for your game day spread and a recipe for ‘Butterflied Chicken Legs’ – Meza Grill’s Luis Meza.

Instagram: @Mezagrill

Butterflied CGH Chicken Legs

Serves (6-8)

Mojo (Marinade) Ingredients – All ingredients will be ground with mortar & pestle

1 whole head of garlic (aprox. 8-10 cloves)

1 cup orange juice (3 oranges)

½ cup lime juice (3 limes)

½ cup of lemon juice (3 lemons)

¼ cup white minced onion

2 ts Kosher salt

1 ts black pepper

⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 ts ground cumin

Basting Sauce

1/4 cup of clarified butter (Ghee)

1/4 cup of lime juice

1 tbs dried oregano

1 tbs dried oregano

¼ cup Olive oil

Start by getting a sharp knife and  find the bone of the chicken drumstick.

Make your first cut. Gently make one parallel cut down the leg, in the center, touching the bone. This first cut will help open up the chicken leg meat for the next step.

Make two more cuts, One on each side of the chicken leg bone. You’ll want to use one hand to pull back the leg meat while the other hand makes the cuts.

 spread open as much as possible without tearing meat. and flatten them gently.

Place meat into an airtight container, pour in marinade and mix.

Place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. i prefer to leave overnight 12-18 hours

preheat your grill to 500 degrees fahrenheit

Once grill temp is reached, place chicken on the grates and close the lid for 5 mins.

continuously flip every 5 minutes until internal temp reads 165F

(approx. 15-20 minutes)

Once the internal temp reads 165 baste with basting sauce listed in recipe above. be sure to baste both sides and let cook for additional 3 mins each side.

Remove from grill and let rest for 5 mins