Margarita-Marinated Chicken with Mango Salsa

I love to people watch.  It's one of my favorite things to do because this world is filled with so many interesting people.  The gym is always a fun place to people watch, and I'm sure I've been on the other end of this as I huff and puff while jogging 4.3 mph and sweating like I just ran a marathon through Death Valley in the dead of summer.  This morning at the gym, I was in the back of the room on a stair machine, and I saw something that you don't see every day.  I saw a grown, slightly heavy, bearded hipster man in his 30's skipping on the treadmill.  Skipping!  For about ten minutes!  I'm sure I had one eyebrow raised for the duration of his ten minute skipping session on the treadmill.  When he got off, I think my heart was hoping that he would continue to skip over to the free weights to pump some iron while whistling "I'm off to see the wizard." No such luck, my friends.   Not five minutes later, I saw a guy on stair machine in his socks and then a girl that 1. must not own a padded sports bra and 2. must have been really, really cold.  Good times at the gym in the morning.

That intro has nothing to do with this recipe, but this chicken was tasty!  The margarita marinade left the chicken with great lime flavor.  The mango salsa was delicious, and I may have eaten the rest of the mango salsa single-handedly.  At least it wasn't the rest of chocolate cream pie, although I would have opted for that- given the choice.

Margarita-Marinated Chicken with Mango Salsa
source: Southern Living Big Book of BBQ, page 145

Serves: 3
1 lg lime
1 c liquid margarita mix
1/2 c vegetable oil
1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro
1 t salt
1/2 t ground red pepper
1 1/2 T tequila (optional)
3 chicken breasts
1 c uncooked long-grain rice

Mango Salsa:
1 mango, peeled
1 avocado, peeled
1/2 red bell pepper
1/4 red onion
1/2 T fresh cilantro
1/2 T vegetable oil
1/2 T lime juice

Cut lime in half and squeeze the juice into a Ziplock bag.  Add the lime halves into the bag.  Add the margarita mix, vegetable oil, cilantro, salt, and Tequila (if using).  Add the chicken and shake to mix the marinade well.  Marinate in the fridge for 2-6 hours.

Prepare the mango salsa:
Dice the mango, avocado, red bell pepper, and onion.  Mix in a bowl.  Add the cilantro, oil, and lime juice.  Stir to evenly coat and mix everything.  Cover and chill until ready to use.

Prepare the rice according to package instructions.

Preheat the grill to 300-350 degrees (medium heat).

Remove the chicken from the marinade and discard the marinade.  Grill the chicken for 6 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees.

Serve over the rice.  Top with the mango salsa.