Island Chicken Sandwiches

One of the things we're really trying to cut back on is our sodium intake.  Salt, bacon, any kind of processed food, we love them all.  So when we were talking about making chicken marinaded in teriyaki sauce, we figured we could cut out a lot of the sodium in the sauce if we made it ourselves.  It's not sodium free, but a step in the right direction.
We also got the mini sammi buns, they're about half the size of a regular burger bun.  We had been on a roll with them a year ago when we were eating a lot of salmon burgers (oh we have to post that one sometime too!) but we thought they'd be the perfect complement to this dish.

The sandwich turned out all kinds of yummy.  The chicken was flavorful with just a hint of sweetness from the grilled pineapples and the just shy of caramelized onions.  Lee put a little slice of Swiss on top to mellow the Asian flavors out.  The bun had a nice graininess that rounded out the sandwich. We also threw on handful of left over Pickled Tomato and Avocado Salsa which gave it some heat and delicious avocado creaminess.

You can stick to the recipe at the end and it will turn out perfectly, I substituted a couple things because it's what we had on hand.  I used white onions instead of red and used our leftover Pickled Tomato and Avocado Salsa instead of the pickled jalapenos. 




Here's what you need: (I forgot about the Swiss Cheese so it's not pictured here but will be later).

Preheat oven to 400 degrees


In a heavy pan, melt a little butter and grill your pineapple on both sides.

Here's what it should look like when it's ready to flip.

Slice your onions and grill them after the pineapple is finished and set aside.

Drain your chicken from the marinade and pat dry with a paper towel. Reserve marinade for a glaze while cooking.  In the same heavy pan, place a tablespoon of olive oil and saute the chicken breast on medium high for about 8 minutes on each side.

If your pan is oven proof you can now brush the extra marinade on the chicken and place in the oven for about 15 minutes.  If your pan isn't ovenproof, just transfer to an baking dish and continue with this step.

After 15 min's pull the chicken out and place one slice of Swiss on each chicken breast and go back in the oven for 5 min's.  Finally pull your chicken out and place on a cutting board to rest before slicing. 

Slice the chicken and assembled the sandwiches with the chicken on the bottom then pineapple, onions, and the Salsa or Jalapenos.






Ingredients: 


4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (4-6 oz each)
Teriyaki sauce
4 slices Swiss cheese
4 pineapple slices (1/2" thick)
4 whole-wheat buns
1 red onion, thinly sliced


How to Make It:
* Combine the chicken and enough teriyaki sauce to cover in a resealable plastic bag and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 12 hours.

* Heat a grill until hot (you shouldn't be able to hold your hand above the grates for more than 5 seconds). Remove the chicken from the marinade and place on the grill; discard any remaining marinade. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes on the first side; flip and immediately add the cheese to each breast. Continue cooking until the cheese is melted and the chicken is lightly charred and firm to the touch. Remove and set aside.

* While the chicken rests, add the pineapple and the buns to the grill. Cook the buns until they're lightly toasted and the pineapple until it's soft and caramelized, about 2 minutes per side. Top each bun with chicken, red onion, jalapeno slices, and pineapple. If you like, drizzle the chicken with a bit more teriyaki sauce.