This is a very simple marinade but really delicious thanks to an unusual secret ingredient. Everyone who tastes it can get a kind of smokey sweetness but never guesses what…… Tequila, that’s what!. Try it and see, it adds a lovely flavour to chicken and works very well with the beans. I like to use thighs for this – apart from being cheaper, they do have more flavour to start with then the breast. I brown these well on a griddle pan and finish off in the oven, for any last days of summertime e barbeq would work well too. These are great with some fajitas and sweet potato chips on the side. We are off on holidays and this meal is perfect for a busy evening as I’m still finishing off a work report and packing in between… Just enought time to stop and enjoy this before hitting the desk again.

Serves 4
4 chicken Thighs skin on, excess trimmed;
zest of 1 lime
60mls lime juice
60mls tequila
2 cloves garlic peeled,crushed and mashed
2 large handfuls coriander chopped

Oven at 180C
Mix all the ingredients for the marinade and tip the chicken into it.
Cover it and put it into the fridge for at least an hour.
Heat the griddle pan until it’s smoking and brown the chicken on both sides.
Place onto a heat proof dish and finish cooking in the oven – about 15 minutes.
Serve with the beans, below and some fajitas and roasted sweet potatoes.

Bean salad
1 can Black eyed beans
3 medium tomatoes deseeded and chopped Into small dice
1 red onion chopped very finely into dice
Juice of half a lime
2 fl oz extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp tabasco
2 tbsp chopped coriander.
Tip all the indredients into a bowl, stir well, season and leave for about 30 minutes to infuse.