Recipe#12246

Title: Citrus

Newsgroups: rec.food.recipes 
 From: bang@rain.org (Steve Bang) 
 Subject: Citrus Marinade with Achiote 
 Message-ID: <2snrrs$eip@rain.org> 
 Organization: Regional Access Information Network 
 References: <2sgltt$g21@search01.news.aol.com> 
 Date: 3 Jun 1994 11:13:16 -0700 

Annatto seeds (or achiote) come from the fruit of the tree, Bixia 
 orellana, which is native to South and Central America and the 
 West Indies.  According to The World Encyclopedia of Food, the seed
 is crushed and packaged as a condiment in Latin America and India.
 The rusty colored powder has a delicate flavor which gives a deep
 golden, orange color to the dishes it flavors.  Interestingly, the
 encyclopedia says that American Indians have used annatto to color
 their bodies, but now it is used to color butter, margarine, and 
 candy.  Also, in England, red cheshire and leicester cheese are
 colored with annatto.
 I was able to find the seeds in the Mexican spices selection of
 a large supermarket, Lucky, but it doesn't even show up in another
 Lucky store nearby.  I live in Southern California, though.  Someone
 else may be able to tell you where they could be mail ordered.
 A very popular fast food (?) item in some chains and independent
 restaurants in this area is halved or quartered chicken, charbroiled
 on mesquite (or other charcoal).  Most of these places use annatto
 in their marinade.  I found a recipe for a citrus marinade for chicken
 that is purportedly the one used by Pollo Loco chain.  Regardless
 of its authenticity, it is a great marinade (non-fat, too).  If you
 don't have annatto seeds, it is still a great marinade.
 Citrus Marinade
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 Juice of 2 limes
 Juice of 1 lemon
 Juice of 2 small oranges
 Water
 2 large garlic cloves, crushed
 1 tsp. annatto seeds, crushed
 1/2 tsp. oregano, crushed
 1/2 tsp. ground cumin seeds
 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
 1/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce
 1 tsp. salt or to taste
 Mix citrus juices together and add enough water, if needed, to
 make 1 cup.  Mix in remaining ingredients.
 The recipe suggested using a 3.5 to 4 pound chicken, but feel
 free to use chicken breasts or any other chicken parts, boneless
 or not.  Marinate for 4 to 24 hours in the refrigerator.  Like
 the person who originally posted this on Compuserve, I find it
 best to make the marinade in the morning (or the night before)
 and marinate the chicken during the day.  Then grill you can
 grill it for dinner.  I'd be careful about marinating for too
 long in a citrus marinade since it might have an adverse effect
 on the texture of the chicken.
 Steve Bang
 bang@rain.org