The Best Grilled Chicken, Ever.

Take one whole chicken, butterfly it, marinate it overnight, and cook it long and slow on the grill (about 20 - 25 minutes per side). Hack it into pieces and serve. Result: Awesomeness on a plate.

The Man is the author of this super chicken, which varies slightly every time he cooks it. In this house we're very much about using whatever is on hand, which means that the marinade is practically guaranteed to have different ingredients each time it's pulled together. The base ingredients are oil, vinegar (or citrus juice), soy sauce, and whatever else strikes the fancy: rosemary, cilantro, peppers, fish sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce... whatever.

Here are rule of thumb proportions:

• 1/4 cup acidic (e.g., citrus juice, vinegar, or wine)
• 1/2 cup oil (olive is my favorite, but sesame or nut oils are good, too)
• 1 - 2 tablespoons flavor punch (e.g. soy sauce, Worcestershire, mustard, chili sauce)
• 2 -3 cloves chopped garlic
• 1 tablespoon fresh herbs (whatever's on hand)

Of course you can always use prepared marinade; I like Trader Joe's Soyaki and Lawry's Mesquite Lime (with a little extra lime juice and some chopped fresh garlic). Another quick marinade is any kind of oil-and-vinegar-based salad dressing - excellent when griling asparagus or other veggies.