How to Make BBQ Chicken
Combine the dry rub ingredients., Place the chicken in a plastic bag or baking dish., Sprinkle the dry rub over the chicken., Let the chicken sit., Sauté the onion, garlic, and salt in butter., Add the red pepper, paprika, chili powder, and black...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Combine the dry rub ingredients.
Place all of the dry rub ingredients in a resealable plastic container and mix thoroughly using a whisk, fork, or spoon.
You could use a non-resealable bowl, but using a resealable plastic container allows you to save some of the rub for later if you decide not to use the entire batch now.
Note that this recipe produces about 2 cups (500 ml) dry rub.
This dry rub is also fairly spicy.
While much of the heat will fade once you dust the dry rub off the chicken, a good portion of it will still remain.
If you prefer a milder taste, you can reduce the amount of cayenne pepper, chili powder, and paprika.
You could also skip the dry rub completely and simply use salt and pepper to season the chicken. -
Step 2: Place the chicken in a plastic bag or baking dish.
Transfer the cut-up chicken to a non-reactive container, like one made of glass or plastic.
A resealable plastic bag also works well and may actually make it easier to spread the spice around. , Dust the chicken with a generous amount of the dry rub.
Once you are satisfied with the amount of dry rub on the chicken, use clean hands to gently pat it down.
If you use a plastic bag, you can place dry rub in the bag, seal it, and turn it over several times to coat the chicken.
You do not necessarily need to use all of the dry rub at once, but you may do so if you prefer a stronger flavor.
Otherwise, start with 1/4 to 1/2 of the mixture and add more only if needed.
Do not contaminate the unused dry rub with any that has come into contact with the chicken. , Loosely cover the seasoned chicken and place it in the refrigerator.
Let sit a few hours to overnight.
You could technically use the chicken right away, but allowing it to sit will help the chicken absorb more of the flavor from the dry rub. , Melt the butter in a large saucepan over low heat.
Slowly add the onion, garlic, and salt, cooking just until the onion becomes tender.
Use a saucepan made of a nonreactive material.
The garlic and onion must be sauteed gently.
Do not allow them to brown at this stage. , Stir the ingredients in and cook for a full minute.
You need to give the spices enough time to cook before adding the next set of ingredients.
If not, the spices will not build up enough aroma or flavor. , After thoroughly mixing these ingredients into the seasoned onions and garlic, let the mixture reach a simmer. , Stir the molasses into the sauce.
As soon as the molasses is incorporated, whisk in the tomato paste.
To make whisking the tomato paste easier, scoop it up from the can or measuring cup using your whisk and transfer it into the saucepan directly.
Instead of trying to remove the paste off the whisk by "tapping" the utensil on the side of the pan, simply whisk the barbecue sauce with the clump of tomato paste still attached to the whisk.
As you continue whisking, the paste will dissolve into the sauce.
Continue whisking until smooth.
Let the sauce reach a simmer once more, still over low heat. , Let the sauce simmer on low heat until it becomes thick and smooth.
Leave the saucepan uncovered.
Stir the sauce occasionally as it simmers. , Transfer 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) of the sauce to a bowl to use while preparing the chicken.
Place the rest of the sauce in a resealable container and store in the refrigerator.
You cannot serve cooked chicken with sauce used to prepare raw chicken, so the stored sauce is the portion that you will serve alongside the chicken once you finish cooking it. , Simultaneously heat 1/4-inch (2/3-cm) cooking oil in a 12-inch (30-cm) skillet. , Remove the chicken from the dry rub, shaking off any excess rub still clinging to the skin.
Place the chicken skin-side down in the preheated skillet and cook until well-browned on both sides.
Turn the chicken once during the searing process.
Each piece of chicken will need to be seared for roughly 5 minutes.
Cook the chicken in batches.
Do not crowd the skillet. , Place the chicken skin-side up into the two dishes, separating the breast portions (white meat) from the leg portions (dark meat).
Add 2 Tbsp (30 ml) water to each dish.
Use 2-quart to 3-quart (2-liter to 3-liter) baking pans made from glass or another nonreactive material.
The dark meat and white meat need to cook for different amounts of time, which is why the pieces should be separated into different dishes. , Make sure that the sauce is spread evenly.
Loosely cover each dish with parchment paper and follow by tightly covering each dish with aluminum foil. , The leg portions will need to be cooked for 70 to 75 minutes, while the breast portions will only need 30 to 40 minutes.
Refrigerate the breast portions until ready to bake. , Uncover the dish and spoon more sauce over the chicken to prevent it from drying out.
Continue baking for another 10 to 15 minutes.
At this point, you can use your refrigerated serving sauce on the chicken since the meat should already be done and safe to consume.
Continue cooking until the meat is well-glazed and tender. , The chicken should also be served alongside any remaining barbecue sauce. , You can grill the chicken using a charcoal grill or a gas grill.
The choice is ultimately yours, but either way, half the grill should be heated to a medium-hot temperature while the other half should be cooler.
A gas grill burns cleaner, but a charcoal grill will produce a smokier flavor.To preheat a gas grill, switch on the burners of one side of the grill only.
If the burners have temperature control settings, choose a medium-high setting.
To preheat a charcoal grill, pile all of the charcoal on one side of the grill.
Light the coals and allow them to burn down until a fine layer of white ash forms on top and the flames have burned away. , Use tongs to transfer the chicken to the unlit side of the grill, placing the pieces skin-side down.
You can shake off some of the excess rub, but for this method, you still want a considerable amount of the rub to remain in order to produce a stronger flavor. , Cover the grill and cook the chicken until it turns golden-brown.
Covering the grill allows more heat to build up, cooking the chicken quicker and more thoroughly.
You will need to move the pieces around halfway through the cooking process.
The pieces closer to the coals or active burners will need to be swapped with the pieces furthest from the heat.
Use a meat thermometer to check the temperature of the chicken at the end of this stage.
It should read about 150 degrees Fahrenheit (65 degrees Celsius). , Transfer the chicken to the hotter side of the grill and brush your reserved sauce over the pieces.
Turn the chicken as often as necessary to make sure that it is completely coated with sauce. , Once done, the sauce should appear caramelized and the skin should be crispy on all sides.
Turn the pieces and glaze with more sauce as needed to make sure that the chicken cooks evenly.
This part of the process will require your full attention, and you will need to leave the grill uncovered.
This part of the cooking process can take another 10 to 20 minutes. , Remove the chicken from the grill and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving it with the refrigerated portion of your barbecue sauce. , Sweeten your favorite barbecue sauce with a little honey before using it as a glaze for your chicken. , An elegant yet simple barbecue sauce for chicken can be created with a bottle of tomato-based Russian dressing, an envelope of dry onion soup mix, and a jar of apricot preserves. , A beer-honey barbecue sauce can be spread over chicken to give it a more complex flavor. , The addition of liquid smoke, when combined with a sauce made of ketchup, brown sugar, allspice, nutmeg, and garlic, gives drumsticks or whole chickens a rich, smoky flavor, even when it is not cooked on the grill. , When made this way, chicken is cooked in a sauce made with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, achuete powder, onion, and lemonsito juice. , Like most barbecue sauces, the sauce for this chicken is made with a ketchup base and a bit of brown sugar.
The flavors of soy sauce and garlic are mixed in to create an interesting contrast, however. , You can always substitute the barbecue sauce described in this recipe with your favorite homemade or commercial sauce.
If you want to try something new, you could also consider a few of the following.
Make a simpler sauce.
A very basic, mild, yet flavorful barbecue sauce can be made with nothing more than ketchup, cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, onion, garlic, brown sugar, and paprika.
Prepare a sweet and spicy sauce.
A tomato base is livened up with the addition of chili powder, smoked paprika, and cayenne pepper, but the addition of brown sugar and sweet Hungarian paprika give this spicy sauce a hint of sweetness, too.
Make a mustard-based barbecue sauce.
Most BBQ sauces contain ketchup, but this version combines yellow mustard with other traditional barbecue sauce ingredients to form something a little more unique. -
Step 3: Sprinkle the dry rub over the chicken.
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Step 4: Let the chicken sit.
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Step 5: Sauté the onion
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Step 6: garlic
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Step 7: and salt in butter.
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Step 8: Add the red pepper
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Step 9: paprika
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Step 10: chili powder
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Step 11: and black pepper.
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Step 12: Stir in the water
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Step 13: vinegar
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Step 14: brown sugar
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Step 15: and Worcestershire sauce.
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Step 16: Mix in the molasses and tomato paste.
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Step 17: Cook for 10 to 15 minutes.
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Step 18: Separate the sauce into two parts.
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Step 19: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (160 degrees Celsius).
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Step 20: Sear the chicken.
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Step 21: Transfer the chicken into two baking dishes.
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Step 22: Spoon the reserved sauce over the chicken.
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Step 23: Cook the chicken until done.
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Step 24: Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (230 degrees Celsius).
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Step 25: Serve warm.
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Step 26: Preheat the grill.
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Step 27: Transfer the chicken to the cool side of the grill.
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Step 28: Cook 25 to 30 minutes.
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Step 29: Move the chicken and coat with sauce.
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Step 30: Cook until crisp.
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Step 31: Serve warm.
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Step 32: Make honey BBQ chicken.
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Step 33: Try something different with a gourmet BBQ chicken recipe.
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Step 34: Prepare barbecue chicken with beer.
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Step 35: Give your BBQ chicken a smoky flavor.
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Step 36: Cross cultures with a Filipino-style barbecue chicken.
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Step 37: Create Asian-inspired sticky chicken.
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Step 38: Use a different barbecue sauce.
Detailed Guide
Place all of the dry rub ingredients in a resealable plastic container and mix thoroughly using a whisk, fork, or spoon.
You could use a non-resealable bowl, but using a resealable plastic container allows you to save some of the rub for later if you decide not to use the entire batch now.
Note that this recipe produces about 2 cups (500 ml) dry rub.
This dry rub is also fairly spicy.
While much of the heat will fade once you dust the dry rub off the chicken, a good portion of it will still remain.
If you prefer a milder taste, you can reduce the amount of cayenne pepper, chili powder, and paprika.
You could also skip the dry rub completely and simply use salt and pepper to season the chicken.
Transfer the cut-up chicken to a non-reactive container, like one made of glass or plastic.
A resealable plastic bag also works well and may actually make it easier to spread the spice around. , Dust the chicken with a generous amount of the dry rub.
Once you are satisfied with the amount of dry rub on the chicken, use clean hands to gently pat it down.
If you use a plastic bag, you can place dry rub in the bag, seal it, and turn it over several times to coat the chicken.
You do not necessarily need to use all of the dry rub at once, but you may do so if you prefer a stronger flavor.
Otherwise, start with 1/4 to 1/2 of the mixture and add more only if needed.
Do not contaminate the unused dry rub with any that has come into contact with the chicken. , Loosely cover the seasoned chicken and place it in the refrigerator.
Let sit a few hours to overnight.
You could technically use the chicken right away, but allowing it to sit will help the chicken absorb more of the flavor from the dry rub. , Melt the butter in a large saucepan over low heat.
Slowly add the onion, garlic, and salt, cooking just until the onion becomes tender.
Use a saucepan made of a nonreactive material.
The garlic and onion must be sauteed gently.
Do not allow them to brown at this stage. , Stir the ingredients in and cook for a full minute.
You need to give the spices enough time to cook before adding the next set of ingredients.
If not, the spices will not build up enough aroma or flavor. , After thoroughly mixing these ingredients into the seasoned onions and garlic, let the mixture reach a simmer. , Stir the molasses into the sauce.
As soon as the molasses is incorporated, whisk in the tomato paste.
To make whisking the tomato paste easier, scoop it up from the can or measuring cup using your whisk and transfer it into the saucepan directly.
Instead of trying to remove the paste off the whisk by "tapping" the utensil on the side of the pan, simply whisk the barbecue sauce with the clump of tomato paste still attached to the whisk.
As you continue whisking, the paste will dissolve into the sauce.
Continue whisking until smooth.
Let the sauce reach a simmer once more, still over low heat. , Let the sauce simmer on low heat until it becomes thick and smooth.
Leave the saucepan uncovered.
Stir the sauce occasionally as it simmers. , Transfer 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) of the sauce to a bowl to use while preparing the chicken.
Place the rest of the sauce in a resealable container and store in the refrigerator.
You cannot serve cooked chicken with sauce used to prepare raw chicken, so the stored sauce is the portion that you will serve alongside the chicken once you finish cooking it. , Simultaneously heat 1/4-inch (2/3-cm) cooking oil in a 12-inch (30-cm) skillet. , Remove the chicken from the dry rub, shaking off any excess rub still clinging to the skin.
Place the chicken skin-side down in the preheated skillet and cook until well-browned on both sides.
Turn the chicken once during the searing process.
Each piece of chicken will need to be seared for roughly 5 minutes.
Cook the chicken in batches.
Do not crowd the skillet. , Place the chicken skin-side up into the two dishes, separating the breast portions (white meat) from the leg portions (dark meat).
Add 2 Tbsp (30 ml) water to each dish.
Use 2-quart to 3-quart (2-liter to 3-liter) baking pans made from glass or another nonreactive material.
The dark meat and white meat need to cook for different amounts of time, which is why the pieces should be separated into different dishes. , Make sure that the sauce is spread evenly.
Loosely cover each dish with parchment paper and follow by tightly covering each dish with aluminum foil. , The leg portions will need to be cooked for 70 to 75 minutes, while the breast portions will only need 30 to 40 minutes.
Refrigerate the breast portions until ready to bake. , Uncover the dish and spoon more sauce over the chicken to prevent it from drying out.
Continue baking for another 10 to 15 minutes.
At this point, you can use your refrigerated serving sauce on the chicken since the meat should already be done and safe to consume.
Continue cooking until the meat is well-glazed and tender. , The chicken should also be served alongside any remaining barbecue sauce. , You can grill the chicken using a charcoal grill or a gas grill.
The choice is ultimately yours, but either way, half the grill should be heated to a medium-hot temperature while the other half should be cooler.
A gas grill burns cleaner, but a charcoal grill will produce a smokier flavor.To preheat a gas grill, switch on the burners of one side of the grill only.
If the burners have temperature control settings, choose a medium-high setting.
To preheat a charcoal grill, pile all of the charcoal on one side of the grill.
Light the coals and allow them to burn down until a fine layer of white ash forms on top and the flames have burned away. , Use tongs to transfer the chicken to the unlit side of the grill, placing the pieces skin-side down.
You can shake off some of the excess rub, but for this method, you still want a considerable amount of the rub to remain in order to produce a stronger flavor. , Cover the grill and cook the chicken until it turns golden-brown.
Covering the grill allows more heat to build up, cooking the chicken quicker and more thoroughly.
You will need to move the pieces around halfway through the cooking process.
The pieces closer to the coals or active burners will need to be swapped with the pieces furthest from the heat.
Use a meat thermometer to check the temperature of the chicken at the end of this stage.
It should read about 150 degrees Fahrenheit (65 degrees Celsius). , Transfer the chicken to the hotter side of the grill and brush your reserved sauce over the pieces.
Turn the chicken as often as necessary to make sure that it is completely coated with sauce. , Once done, the sauce should appear caramelized and the skin should be crispy on all sides.
Turn the pieces and glaze with more sauce as needed to make sure that the chicken cooks evenly.
This part of the process will require your full attention, and you will need to leave the grill uncovered.
This part of the cooking process can take another 10 to 20 minutes. , Remove the chicken from the grill and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving it with the refrigerated portion of your barbecue sauce. , Sweeten your favorite barbecue sauce with a little honey before using it as a glaze for your chicken. , An elegant yet simple barbecue sauce for chicken can be created with a bottle of tomato-based Russian dressing, an envelope of dry onion soup mix, and a jar of apricot preserves. , A beer-honey barbecue sauce can be spread over chicken to give it a more complex flavor. , The addition of liquid smoke, when combined with a sauce made of ketchup, brown sugar, allspice, nutmeg, and garlic, gives drumsticks or whole chickens a rich, smoky flavor, even when it is not cooked on the grill. , When made this way, chicken is cooked in a sauce made with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, achuete powder, onion, and lemonsito juice. , Like most barbecue sauces, the sauce for this chicken is made with a ketchup base and a bit of brown sugar.
The flavors of soy sauce and garlic are mixed in to create an interesting contrast, however. , You can always substitute the barbecue sauce described in this recipe with your favorite homemade or commercial sauce.
If you want to try something new, you could also consider a few of the following.
Make a simpler sauce.
A very basic, mild, yet flavorful barbecue sauce can be made with nothing more than ketchup, cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, onion, garlic, brown sugar, and paprika.
Prepare a sweet and spicy sauce.
A tomato base is livened up with the addition of chili powder, smoked paprika, and cayenne pepper, but the addition of brown sugar and sweet Hungarian paprika give this spicy sauce a hint of sweetness, too.
Make a mustard-based barbecue sauce.
Most BBQ sauces contain ketchup, but this version combines yellow mustard with other traditional barbecue sauce ingredients to form something a little more unique.
About the Author
Gary Harris
Enthusiastic about teaching practical skills techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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