# Cobb-grilled sweet-potato dinner (picky-kid friendly)

A multi-dish grilled dinner off the **Cobb**, built to use up the purple sweet
potatoes (bb today) plus celery that needs eating. Everything is grilled or
served separately on the plate so a picky 12-year-old can pick and choose:
familiar grilled "chips", plain grilled chicken, and raw celery sticks with a
mild dip (celery cooked/grilled only as an adult side).

Serves 2 (one adult + one child), easy to scale.

## Ingredients

**From inventory:**
- [ ] 2 purple sweet potatoes `ID:sweet-potato-purple-2026-06-16` (location: pantry-fridge, bb:2026-07-15) ⚠️ expired — quality check before use
- [ ] 3–4 pink tomatoes `ID:tomatoes-pink-2026-07-08` (location: pantry-behind-stove, bb:2026-07-15) ⚠️ expired — quality check before use
- [ ] 3–4 tbsp yogurt `ID:yogurt-pilos-2026-07-02` (location: pantry-fridge, bb:2026-07-29) — for the dip
- [ ] 1 small clove garlic `ID:garlic-2026-07-08` (location: pantry-behind-stove, bb:2026-09)
- [ ] olive oil `ID:olive-oil-peristera-2026-07-08` (location: food-storage, bb:2028-03-16) — for brushing
- [ ] 1 tsp honey `ID:honey-bulgarian-cream` (location: food-storage, bb:2027-10) — chicken marinade
- [ ] ½ tsp mild mustard `ID:mustard-hryan-2026-06-18` (location: food-storage, bb:2026-11-05) — chicken marinade (it has horseradish, so go light for the kid)
- [ ] sweet paprika `ID:paprika-sweet-2026-05-16` (location: food-storage, bb:2028-04)
- [ ] smoked paprika `ID:paprika-smoked-2026-06-21` (location: food-storage, bb:2028-03-06) — optional, for the sweet-potato planks
- [ ] salt `ID:F-03` (location: pantry-foodbox)

**Needs shopping:**
- [ ] 🛒 2 chicken thighs or breast fillets (expected location: fridge) — the picky-kid protein
- [ ] 🛒 1 head of celery — *you said you already have this; buy more only if the stalks on board are limp* (expected location: pantry-behind-stove)
- [ ] 🛒 1 lemon (expected location: pantry-behind-stove) — a wedge for the grilled celery / dip (the lime on board is 2 weeks past bb)

**On-hand alternative to shopping the protein:**
- [ ] Панагюрска lukanka `ID:panagyurska-lukanka-2026-06-18` (location: pantry-fridge, bb:2026-07-15) ⚠️ expired — grill the slices instead of/alongside chicken
- [ ] Bacon `ID:bacon-orehite-2026-07-08` (location: pantry-fridge, bb:2026-09-17)

**Preparation needed:**
- [ ] ⏰ Rub/marinate the chicken 15–30 min ahead (can be done while the Cobb heats up)
- [ ] No pre-cooking — the sweet potato is grilled directly, either as thin slices or whole in foil (see step 2)

## Equipment

- **Cobb grill** — the star. Use the grill grid for the sweet potato, tomatoes
  and celery; put the **dome on** for the chicken so it roasts through without
  charring.
- No pressure cooker / no microwave needed — both sweet-potato methods here cook
  straight on the Cobb.
- Boat adaptation: only one grill surface, so cook in sequence and hold in the
  small gas oven on lowest heat to keep warm.

## Instructions

**Prep (while the Cobb comes up to heat):**

1. Light the Cobb (one Cobblestone / small load of briquettes is plenty — this
   is a low-fuel cook). Mix the chicken marinade: 1 tsp honey, ½ tsp mustard,
   1 tbsp olive oil, ½ tsp sweet paprika, a pinch of salt. Coat 2 chicken
   fillets and set aside 15–30 min.

2. **Prep the sweet potato — pick one (or do both):** scrub the 2 purple sweet
   potatoes.
   - **Thin slices (fast, "grilled chips"):** cut into ~1 cm rounds or planks —
     thin enough to cook through before the outside burns. Brush both sides with
     olive oil, dust with smoked paprika + salt. Grilled in step 6.
   - **Whole in foil (hands-off):** prick all over with a fork, rub with a little
     olive oil + salt, wrap tightly in foil. These go on early (step 5a) because
     they need ~30–40 min — start them when the chicken goes on.

3. **Celery, two ways:** wash the celery. For the kid, cut 3–4 stalks into
   finger-length **raw sticks**. For the adults, halve 2–3 stalks lengthwise for
   grilling later. Make the dip: stir 3–4 tbsp yogurt with 1 small crushed garlic
   clove, a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon.

4. Halve the pink tomatoes; brush cut sides with a little olive oil and salt.

**Grill in sequence (one surface):**

5. **Chicken first** — it takes longest. Grid on, **dome on**, medium heat.
   Grill the marinated fillets ~12–18 min total, turning once, until cooked
   through (juices run clear / 74 °C). Move to the gas oven on low to rest/keep
   warm.

   **5a. Foil sweet potatoes (if using):** put the foil-wrapped whole potatoes
   on at the same time as the chicken — tuck them near the hottest part / against
   the Cobb's centre moat. ~30–40 min, turning once or twice; done when a skewer
   slides in easily. Unwrap and split open to serve.

6. **Thin sweet-potato slices (if using)** — dome off, **medium** heat (not
   high — thin raw slices scorch fast). Grill ~4–6 min a side, turning once,
   until grill-marked and tender through. Hold warm with the chicken.

7. **Tomatoes** — cut-side down first ~2 min, flip ~2 min until blistered and
   soft. These go fast; watch them.

8. **Grilled celery (adult side, optional)** — brush the halved stalks with
   olive oil, grill 3–5 min turning until charred and softened, finish with a
   squeeze of lemon. Leave the kid's celery raw with the dip.

**Plate:** grilled chicken + grilled sweet potato (foil-baked and/or crispy slices) + a couple of tomato
halves, celery sticks + yogurt dip on the side for the child; grilled celery for
the adult. If you skipped shopping, grill the lukanka slices / bacon in place of
(or alongside) the chicken.

## Variations

> **Note:** The mustard on board is *горчица с хрян* (mustard **with
> horseradish**) — fine for adults but a bit sharp for a picky kid, so use only
> ½ tsp in the marinade and let the honey dominate. Plain mustard or just honey +
> paprika is a safer kid marinade if you'd rather.

> **Note:** Purple sweet potato is starchier and firmer than orange, so grilling
> it raw is the one thing to get right: keep **thin slices thin (~1 cm) and the
> heat only medium** so they cook through before charring, or go **whole in foil**
> and give them the full 30–40 min. Thick raw planks over high heat are the trap —
> black outside, hard inside. The two methods also pair well: foil potatoes as the
> soft "baked" option, thin slices as the crispy "chip" option on the same plate.

> Ginger/sesame-oil twist: a grated thumb of the fresh ginger `ID:ginger-2026-06-21`
> and a few drops of the Greek sesame oil in the marinade makes a more
> grown-up, slightly Asian chicken — but keep the kid's portion plain.

## Items used from inventory

| Item | ID | Location | Status |
|------|-----|----------|--------|
| Purple sweet potatoes | sweet-potato-purple-2026-06-16 | pantry-fridge | bb:2026-07-15 (today) ⚠️ |
| Pink tomatoes | tomatoes-pink-2026-07-08 | pantry-behind-stove | bb:2026-07-15 (today) ⚠️ |
| Yogurt (Pilos) | yogurt-pilos-2026-07-02 | pantry-fridge | bb:2026-07-29 |
| Garlic | garlic-2026-07-08 | pantry-behind-stove | bb:2026-09 |
| Olive oil (Peristera) | olive-oil-peristera-2026-07-08 | food-storage | bb:2028-03-16 |
| Honey | honey-bulgarian-cream | food-storage | bb:2027-10 |
| Mustard w/ horseradish | mustard-hryan-2026-06-18 | food-storage | bb:2026-11-05 |
| Sweet paprika | paprika-sweet-2026-05-16 | food-storage | bb:2028-04 |
| Smoked paprika | paprika-smoked-2026-06-21 | food-storage | bb:2028-03-06 |
| Панагюрска lukanka (alt protein) | panagyurska-lukanka-2026-06-18 | pantry-fridge | bb:2026-07-15 (today) ⚠️ |
| Bacon (alt protein) | bacon-orehite-2026-07-08 | pantry-fridge | bb:2026-09-17 |

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*Generated 2026-07-15 to use up purple sweet potatoes + pink tomatoes + Панагюрска lukanka (all bb today) and celery that needs eating, cooked on the Cobb grill.*