Barbecued chicken, when done well, is a beautiful thing.
But not every Chef puts the time and effort into making their barbecued chicken EVERYTHING it can be.
Some, think it’s all about their award-winning sauce, when, in effect, that’s only the cherry on the sundae.
What makes a truly exceptional barbecued chicken is focusing on the “ice cream”, that is, the chicken.
No matter if you’re grilling OR barbecuing your chicken, it’s important to remember that unlike some barbecued meats, such as beef and pork, chicken contains very little fat within its tissue, to counterbalance the long slow, or fast hot heat required to bring that internal temperature to the magical 165F needed to fully cook it.
It’s no wonder what so many people complain that their barbecued chicken is dry and or tough.
Of course, the first step in making a delicious, mouth-watering, lick your fingers goodness of a great barbecued chicken, is brining.
This super-hydration of the meat in a solution with salt, a bit of sugar and spices, is, perhaps, your best hedge against dry/tough meat in the end.
Everything from here on out is fighting against you, especially intense, dry heat.
The next best step is pre-seasoning.
The Red Goose Spice Company makes a number of delicious seasoning blends which you can consider, one, being our popular Barbecue Seasoning Rub.
Our recommendation here is to apply is rather liberally and then, allow the chicken pieces to “marinate” for at least 3 to 4 hours in this rub. You may even consider tossing in a bit of oil to this during this time. Not much however, just enough for that bit of oil, plus the juices which will be emitted from the chicken, to give each piece a wet coating.
Again, allow this flavoring to macerate and do its thing.
If you’re wanting to give your chicken a bit of light smoke, do it after this initial marination.
On to cooking.
If you’re smoking your chicken first, in a hot smoker, then your chicken is likely nearly, if not fully cooked through at this point. From there, you can finish the chicken on a rather hot grill, basting your sauce on as you go.
If, however, you’ve smoke them a shorter period of time, in a lower temperature smoker perhaps, then you would want to also set up your finishing grill on a lower temperature, (initially), and without basting them with sauce at first.
Then, once they’re fully cooked, raise the temperature of the grill, and finishing them with your barbecue sauce basting.
If smoking is not part of your method, after brining and then the wet rub marination, all of the initial cooking (from the raw state), can be done either in an oven, or, by Sous Vide if you’re really able to, or, on the grill itself, if it’s set on a low enough temperature at first.
However, barbecuing chicken, from a raw state, from beginning to end on the grill, is, perhaps, the trickiest method, and especially challenging if you’re also cooking for a large group and, on a tight schedule.
One other consideration, is your sauce of choice.
Very sweet barbecue sauces will caramelize/burn on your chicken a bit faster than sauces which are more vinegary and less sweet. That will, with your regulation of the intensity of the heat below, determine when to begin the application of sauce, with sweeter sauces being basted on later in the cooking process.
The end goal, is a piece of barbecued chicken which is both moist and flavorful.