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Classic Barbecued Chicken for the Fourth

If you are looking for a good alternative to hamburgers, hot dogs and steak for this holiday weekend, a good option is always to do something with some chicken. You have lots options of available to you as far as just making a bunch of different chicken pieces or if you know that you have a crowd that really just wants to have thighs, legs, wings or breasts you can just go with those pieces on your grill. One thing about doing chicken on the grill is that you need to really watch it so that the skin doesn’t burn before the rest of the chicken is actually cooked through. This is one of the reasons I like to make barbecued chicken in the oven more than outside, which works out really well for me since I only have the electric grill to play with anyway. This particular recipe that I used comes from Better Homes and Gardens and is for their classic barbecued chicken, though I did modify the sauce recipe a bit to fit my own tastes. I have included my modifications in the recipe itself.

Classic Barbecued Chicken

2 3 1/2 pounds whole chickens, or 7 pounds of chicken pieces

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup butter

1 cup finely chopped onion

1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic

2 tablespoons kosher salt

1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup cold water

1 1/4 cups cider vinegar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce

2 tablespoons molasses

1 cup ketchup

1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/2 cup tomato paste

Vegetable or canola oil

Water

If you are using whole chickens, cut up the chicken, leaving the drumsticks and thighs attached. Season the chicken pieces with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Refrigerate, covered, up to 24 hours or until you are ready to use the chicken.

For the barbecue sauce, In large non-reactive saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter. Add the onion, garlic and salt and cook until the onion softens and is tender, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the crushed red pepper, paprika, chili powder and black pepper. Cook and stir the mixture for about 1 minute.

Add the water, cider vinegar, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce and bring the mixture to a simmer. Stir in the molasses, ketchup, liquid smoke, soy sauce and Dijon mustard until it is all blended. Whisk in the tomato paste until the mixture is smooth. Bring the sauce to a simmer over low heat and cook, uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes or until the sauce has thickened, stirring occasionally. Taste the sauce for seasoning and make any adjustments with salt and pepper as needed. Remove 1 1/2 cups of the sauce to prepare the chicken. Store the remaining sauce in the refrigerator and simply reheat it to serve.

For the chicken, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Heat 1/4-inch of the vegetable oil in a large skillet set over medium heat. Working in batches, place the chicken, skin side down, in the skillet. Cook until the chicken is well browned, turning once, for about 5 minutes.

Transfer the browned chicken to a large roasting pan or baking dish. Place the chicken skin side up and add 2 tablespoons of water to the pan. Spoon the reserved 1 1/2 cups of barbecue sauce over the chicken. Cover the chicken with parchment paper and then cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Bake the chicken until all of the chicken is cooked through and an instant read thermometer inserted into one of the pieces registers 170 degrees. Depending on the pieces of chicken you are baking, this can take anywhere from 40 minutes for breast portions to 75 minutes for legs and thighs.

Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees. Uncover the chicken, removing the foil and the parchment paper, and spoon on some additional barbecue sauce. Bake the chicken, uncovered, for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until the chicken is well-glazed and the meat is very tender. Serve the chicken with the reserved barbecue sauce (not the sauce you used to put on the raw chicken!) and store any remaining barbecue sauce, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Unfortunately, I did not remember to take a picture of the chicken when I made this one but it came out really well. you could certainly use the same idea and make this on the grill yourself, just keep a closer eye on the chicken to control the heat, cooking it on a lower heat side of a gas or charcoal grill to keep it from burning the skin easily. You should always put the sauce on towards the end of the cooking process so that the skin can get nice and crispy before the sauce goes on and you can retain the great sauce flavor that you get. Seasoning the chicken ahead of time or even brining it the night before can make a big difference here too, so if you have the time I recommend it. The sauce was great and I actually used some of the leftover chicken and remaining sauce to make some pulled chicken sandwiches, which I will post the recipe for soon as well. This goes great with any classic barbecue sides like baked beans, coleslaw, potato salad, corn bread,corn on the cob and the like.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day, enjoy your meal and have a safe, happy and festive July 4th!

First Summer Barbecue, Part 1 – Easy Barbecue Chicken

08 Jul

Even though I am only allowed to have an electric grill here at our condo, I still try to do some grilling outdoors when I can. This past weekend was so hot I just couldn’t bring myself to turn the oven on and cook and this week does not promise to be much better. I want to try to grill at least twice a week during the summer to try some new grilling recipes out, and yesterday was the perfect day to start. I had picked up some chicken thighs and the store on Saturday and decided to barbecue them. I found this recipe from Williams-Sonoma that looked good, but I also wanted to try out a barbecue sauce recipe I had picked up from Food Republic, so I combined the two to make last night’s dinner.

Classic BBQ Chicken

For the basic poultry brine:

8 cups water

5 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons dried basil

2 tablespoons coriander seeds

1 tablespoon peppercorns

1 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds

1 teaspoon granulated garlic

2 bay leaves

1 chicken, about 4 pounds, neck and giblets removed, chicken cut into 4 pieces (or whatever assortment of chicken pieces you want to use totaling 4 pounds)

Freshly ground black pepper, for sprinkling

Granulated garlic, for sprinkling

1 recipe Tennessee Whiskey Barbecue Sauce (recipe to follow)

To make the brine, in a large bowl, combine the water, salt, basil. coriander seeds, peppercorns, mustard seeds, garlic and bay leaves and stir until the salt dissolves. Use immediately.

Place the chicken pieces in a large sealable plastic bag and pour in the brine. Seal the bag closed, squish the brine around the chicken and refrigerate overnight.

At least 30 minutes before you plan to begin grilling, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and remove the pieces from the brine. Discard the brine. Rinse the chicken pieces briefly in cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Lightly sprinkle the chicken on all sides with pepper and garlic.

Prepare a grill for indirect grilling over medium heat; the internal grill temperature should be about 350 degrees. If you are using charcoal, bank the lit coals on either side of the grill bed, leaving a strip in the center without heat, and place a drip pan in the center. If you are using gas, preheat the burners, then turn off 1 or more burners to create a cooler zone. Brush and oil the grill grate.

Place the chicken pieces on the grill over the direct-heat area and sear, turning once, for 2 minutes per side. Move the chicken pieces to the indirect-heat area, cover the grill and cook for 30 minutes. Now, start brushing the chicken with the barbecue sauce, turning and brushing the pieces every 5 minutes, for about 15 minutes more. The chicken is ready when it is firm to the touch and the juices run clear when a thigh or breast is pierced with a knife tip. Transfer the chicken pieces to a platter and serve immediately with the remaining sauce on the side.

Of course, you don’t have to brine the chicken if you don’t have the time or don’t want to do that, but I think it makes a big difference in the flavor. The brine infuses the chicken with some extra flavor and plumps the chicken up, helping it to make it juicier. You do need to watch the chicken closely on the grill as the fat tends to cause flare-ups, which can cause you to burn the chicken before it is cooked all the way. Using the indirect heating method with a drip pan can really help you with this and the chicken in this recipe turned out perfectly.

The sauce was a great find and really added nicely to the chicken. I was intrigued as soon as I saw this recipe and knew I was going to make it.

Tennessee Whiskey Barbecue Sauce

1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil

1/4 cup onion, finely minced

1/2 cup Jack Daniels or other whiskey

2/3 cup ketchup

1/2 cup cider vinegar

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon Tabasco or other hot sauce

A few drops of liquid smoke

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and saute, stirring frequently, until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the whiskey, stirring to scrape off any bits from the bottom of the pot, then add the rest of the ingredients and whisk together. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the sauce from the heat, allow it to come to room temperature and transfer it to a container with a tight lid. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

The combination of the whiskey, liquid smoke and hot sauce is perfect. It was not too thick or too sweet and had an awesome flavor. i could see using this on ribs, chicken or pork without any trouble at all. I served some on the side so people could extra to their meal if they wanted to.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time to see what recipes come up as I am trying out some new things this week. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!