For about a year and a half I worked for Applebee's, and fell in love with this chicken. It is the only thing I eat when I go there. So imagine my surprise when I stumbled across this recipe and it turned out to be awesome! They have since changed the name to "Fiesta Lime Chicken". I don't know whether they use tequila in the marinade still or not, but I know they used to. If you are worried about the alcohol, don't be. It will burn off in the cooking and only leave behind a mild flavor. This is perfectly safe to give to people of all ages!

Step 1: The Ingredients...

MARINADE
1 cup water
⅓ cup teriyaki sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon liquid mesquite smoke
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon tequila
4 skinless chicken breast fillets

You will also need:
Ranch Dressing
One can Herdez Salsa
Tortilla strips (from the salad section)
Shredded cheddar jack cheese
Rice for a side (I like to use plain rice, but at the restaurant they use mexi rice)

Step 2: The Marinade

Combine the marinade ingredients. I used Ziplock bags, so I could easily put them in the fridge for a few hours. But I have also used air tight containers in the past.

Place the chicken breasts in the marinade and let marinate for between 2 and 3 hours. Try not to go much past this, because the citric acid from the juice will cause the chicken to toughen.

Try to squeeze as much air out of the bag/container as possible. This insures the chicken is evenly covered.

Step 3: Mexi Ranch

Ok, so i only have a picture of the completed product, but it is really simple.

While the chicken is marinating, make the mexi ranch and put it in the fridge to chill.

Drain a small amount of the liquid from the salsa. This keeps the mix from being too soupy.

Pour the salsa into a dish and mix with ranch dressing. you want the consistency of ranch dressing so be careful of how much you use.

Cover and put in the fridge until ready to use.

Step 4: Cook the Chicken

Once the marinade has had time to work, grill your chicken until done.

Step 5: Plate It Up!

Put a bed of tortilla strips on one half of the plate

Put the chicken on the strips

Spoon mexi ranch over the chicken

cover chicken with shredded cheese and melt.. (we use a microwave, but you can also use the oven or grill)

Put rice on as a side and enjoy!

When i eat this, i use a little extra cheese. The cheese that falls over the side, mexi ranch and the tortilla strips get mixed in with the rice. It is Yummy!

Step 6: Finishing Up!

We really enjoy this recipe and hope you will too. Not including the marinade, the whole thing takes about half an hour to make, so it qualifies as quick and easy!

Special thanks to Todd Wilbur for providing the recipe for us to try!