Thirty-five minutes, thirteen ingredients, and a grill that does two jobs one after the other: chicken for five to seven minutes a side, then zucchini for two to three.
The sauce is not made from anything that touched the heat. Greek yogurt and mayonnaise with parsley, dill and chives, lemon and a grated garlic clove — whisked cold, kept cold, spooned over hot chicken.
Why This Recipe Works
- Tossing the chicken and zucchini separately keeps their seasoning proportional to very different weights.
- Strong direct heat gives the grill marks that a covered pan cannot.
- Two to three minutes a side chars zucchini before it has time to go soft.
- Yogurt with a little mayonnaise makes a sauce thick enough to sit on grilled meat rather than run off it.
- Grating the garlic rather than mincing it means no raw pieces in a sauce that is never cooked.
Ingredient Notes
- Three fresh herbs
- Two tablespoons of parsley, one of dill and one of chives. Together they are what makes the sauce pale green; any one of them alone would not.
- Greek yogurt and mayonnaise
- Half a cup and two tablespoons. The mayonnaise is a small proportion and it is there for body, so the sauce holds its shape on the chicken.
- Zucchini
- Two medium, cut into thick half-moons. Thick on purpose — thin slices go soft before they char.
- Olive oil and salt, divided
- Two tablespoons of oil and a teaspoon of salt, split between the chicken and the zucchini because step 1 seasons them separately.
How to Make It
Season them separately
Heat grill to medium-high. Toss chicken and zucchini separately with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
Chicken first, to 165F
Grill chicken 5 to 7 minutes per side until strong grill marks form and the center reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Zucchini, charred not mushy
Grill zucchini 2 to 3 minutes per side until charred but not mushy.
Whisk the cold sauce
Whisk yogurt, mayonnaise, parsley, dill, chives, lemon juice, and grated garlic into a pale green creamy herb sauce.
Rest the chicken
Rest chicken 5 minutes.
Plate and spoon over
Plate grilled chicken with charred zucchini and spoon the cool herb sauce over the chicken.
Five Points on a Thirty-Five-Minute Plate
Two of these are about heat and three are about restraint. Every one of them is visible in the finished plate, which is unusual for a recipe this short.
Step 1 - the seasoning
Chicken and zucchini are tossed SEPARATELY.
1 1/2 lb of chicken and 2 medium zucchini are very different weights, and 2 tbsp of oil and 1 tsp of salt are divided between them. Tossed together, the zucchini takes most of both.
Step 2 - the marks
Strong grill marks, and 165F in the centre.
Both, and they arrive at roughly the same time on breast meat over medium-high. The marks need direct heat, and nothing covered or braised produces them.
Step 3 - the zucchini
Charred, but not mushy. 2 to 3 minutes per side.
A quarter of the chicken's time. Thick half-moons and a short window is the only way to get colour on courgette before the structure goes.
Step 4 - the sauce
Whisked cold, and kept cold.
1/2 cup Greek yogurt, 2 tbsp mayonnaise, 2 tbsp parsley, 1 tbsp dill, 1 tbsp chives, 1 tbsp lemon juice and 1 grated garlic clove. The sauce is pale green and creamy, NOT a pan gravy. Nothing in it is cooked and it never meets the grill - which is also why the yogurt has to stay refrigerated until it is served.
Step 5 - the rest
Five minutes before anything is spooned over it.
Sauce onto chicken straight off the grill sits in juices that should still be in the meat.
Success Tips
- Leave the chicken undisturbed long enough for the marks to set before turning.
- Give the zucchini its own short window; it needs a quarter of the chicken's time.
- Make the sauce while the grill works and keep it in the fridge until it is spooned over.
Serving Ideas
Four servings on white plates, the griddle-marked chicken under the pale green herb sauce with the charred zucchini half-moons alongside it rather than under it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make the sauce in the pan?
No. It is a cold yogurt sauce, not a pan gravy — nothing in it is cooked, and it is kept chilled until it goes over the chicken.
Why does it have to be grilled?
The grill marks are part of what the dish is. They need direct heat; a braise would cook the chicken through and leave it unmarked.
My zucchini went mushy. What happened?
Usually too long on the heat or slices cut too thin. Thick half-moons, two to three minutes a side, charred rather than collapsed.
