barbecue chicken
Pork is king when it comes to barbecue, but barbecue is not just pork. I love a good beef brisket or a plate of barbecue chicken. I am quite particular about my barbecue chicken despite never really getting into making it before today. I cannot abide by the use of boneless, skinless chicken breasts for barbecue – ewwwww. I’ve had leathery and rubbery chicken slathered in barbecue sauce and it’s really depressing. No, what is needed is fat (skin) and juicy tenderness (bone in).
Where to start with barbecue chicken? Unfortunately, my go to book for grilling meat does not cover poultry. Chicken is always the fuzzy designate… Are you vegetarian? Well, I eat chicken and fish. I don’t eat meat. Oh that’s okay, we have chicken! It’s somewhere in the netherworld between vegetables and meat, but never really either one. I consider chicken to be meat. If it writhes when you bite into it live, it’s meat. Nevermind the flexitarians. I referenced my Dinosaur Bar-B-Que book (since their famous Que was good enough for catering Carrie’s wedding) and found a good basic recipe.
I used whole chicken legs – the thigh and drum – with bone-in and skin-on. I had a lot of leftover spice rub from my pulled pork experiment earlier in the week, so I used that on six whole organic chicken legs. Why organic? Well, I prefer organic when I can afford it and organic chicken yields a clearer and less solid fat when I make broth with it as opposed to the bright yellow solid disks of fat from conventional chicken. I think that says a lot about the health and quality of the chicken. But the other reason was that no other f#$%@%^ store in Boulder HAD whole chicken legs except for Whole Paycheck Foods.
rub a dub dub: coat whole chicken legs in spice rub
I couldn’t find a length of time in books or online for how long to let the chicken sit in the rub. So I went for 5 hours, covered, in the refrigerator. Actually, it was supposed to be a rub of oil and spice, but I forgot the oil. I just rubbed some on before slapping them on the grill.
set on the highest rack over medium high heat – about 50 minutes with a flip
The flame was a little high on the left burner resulting in some “crispier” pieces, although it was only the skin that was blackened and the rest of the meat was still tender and juicy. After 30 minutes (30 at altitude, probably 25 at sea level) skin-side up, they were flipped for another 20 minutes. The last step was to flip them once more and brush on the barbecue sauce. I used Dinosaur’s Mutha sauce recipe, which is really pretty good. I omitted the green pepper because I can’t abide by that metallic taste it imparts, and I purée the onion instead of mincing for a smoother texture. The chickies grilled for 10 minutes on lower heat and we were ready to serve.
don’t sauce until the last minutes of grilling, then serve with more mutha sauce
I’m really pleased with the results and I know what I’d adjust next time. Jeremy’s comment on the rub, “I think you were supposed to rub it in the spice rub, not cake it.” Okay, it was just a tad too spicy. I’ll shake off the excess before grilling. I will also use a lower heat to avoid crisping the skin too much. That’s more of a “getting to know your grill” issue. But everything else worked out well and I have two large jars of Mutha sauce for more barbecue adventures. That’s the thing about these recipes, they make large amounts. I suppose that is handy for the Summer of Barbecue.
the mums that madge and bondy brought us
leftover cake – still fresh and delicious
