Hot Off the Grill

July is proving to be one of our busiest months of the year. I am in the midst of changing jobs, we went to the beach for several days for the 4^th, and we just seem to have lots of plans with friends and family. While we are having a very fun, busy month we are not finding much time to cook or grill. July for some reason just begs you to grill out and bake with fresh berries and we really have not had time for either. So, tonight we decided to dust of The Egg and finally grill out some chicken.

The latest issue of Fine Cooking has a tasty recipe for Grill-Roasted Honey Barbecue Chicken that I had been dying to try. To prepare the chicken you start by butterflying it which I happily let Russ handle. While he was doing this I started making the rub. In a small bowl you mix the olive oil, salt, chili powder, paprika, brown sugar, fresh thyme, black pepper, chipotle pepper, and garlic together. One the chicken is butterflied and patted dry you spread the rub all over the skin side and let it sit for about 30 minutes. While it rests you can go ahead and make the honey glaze. To make the glaze you combine the honey, soy sauce, ketchup, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, and chile paste in a small bowl. You then take ¼ a cup of the glaze and set it aside. Once the chicken has rested you grill it. I would tell you how to do this, but I really don’t know as Russ is the grill expert in our house. Fine Cooking does give great instructions in the recipe if you are not familiar with grilling. You do brush the glaze on the chicken while it is on the grill. Once the chicken is done you remove it from the grill and serve it with the remaining glaze drizzled over it.

This chicken just screamed summer grilling! It had a wonderful tasty outside with tender, juicy meat on the inside. I really liked the sweetness that the honey added to the dish and the overall balance of all the delicious flavors in the rub and glaze. The drizzled glaze on the chicken once it is done just makes the dish. This was a wonderful meal that we would recommend if you are looking for a fun meal to grill on a hot summer night. Russ rates the chicken a 9.

Grill-Roasted Honey Barbecue Chicken, Fine Cooking

2 Tbs. olive oil
2-1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. sweet paprika, preferably Hungarian
1 tsp. light brown sugar
1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. chipotle chile powder
1 clove garlic, minced
4-lb. chicken, butterflied, patted dry
1 recipe Honey Glaze

In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, salt, chili powder, paprika, brown sugar, thyme, black pepper, chipotle powder, and garlic. Rub all over the chicken and between the breast meat and skin. Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours or let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Set aside 1/4 cup of the honey glaze for drizzling over the cooked chicken.

Gas-Grill Instructions:

Heat all burners of a gas grill to medium low. An oven thermometer resting on the grill grate (over the hot zone of the charcoal fire) should register about 450°F with the lid down, or you should be able to hold your hand a couple of inches above the grill for 3 or 4 seconds. If it’s hotter than this, lower the burners slightly. Brush the grill grates with a stiff wire brush and then wipe with a lightly oiled wad of paper towels.

Set the chicken, skin side down, on the grill, cover, and cook until it’s nicely browned and easily releases from the grates, 5 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully during this stage and if a flare-up occurs, move the chicken away from the flames until they die down. If necessary, squirt the flames with a little water to quench them.

For a three-burner gas grill, turn the middle burner off and set the front and back burners to medium low. For a two-burner grill, turn the back burner off and set the front burner on high.

Move the chicken to the cooler zone of the grill (an oven thermometer set on the cooler part of the grill (with the lid down) should register about 350°F). Brush the bird with some of the glaze, cover, and cook, brushing with the glaze every 5 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thighs registers 165° to 170°F, about 30 minutes. Let rest on a cutting board for 5 minutes. Carve and serve drizzled with the reserved glaze.

Charcoal Grill Instructions:

Prepare a charcoal fire with a hot zone and a cooler zone by pushing all the coals to one side of the grill. An oven thermometer resting on the grill grate (over the hot zone of the charcoal fire) should register about 450°F with the lid down, or you should be able to hold your hand a couple of inches above the grill for 3 or 4 seconds. If it’s hotter than this, let the coals cook down. Brush the grill grates with a stiff wire brush and then wipe with a lightly oiled wad of paper towels.

Set the chicken, skin side down, on the grill over the hot zone of the fire, cover, and cook until it’s nicely browned and easily releases from the grates, 5 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully during this stage and if a flare-up occurs, move the chicken away from the flames until they die down. If necessary, squirt the flames with a little water to quench them.

Move the chicken to the cooler zone of the grill (an oven thermometer set on the cooler part of the grill (with the lid down) should register about 350°F). Brush the bird with some of the glaze, cover, and cook, brushing with the glaze every 5 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thighs registers 165° to 170°F, about 30 minutes. Check on the fire occasionally; it may be necessary to add fresh charcoal as the fire dies down. Let rest on a cutting board for 5 minutes. Carve and serve drizzled with the reserved glaze.

Honey Glaze, Fine Cooking
Yields about 1/2 cup.

1/4 cup honey
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. ketchup
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. cider vinegar
1/2 to 1 tsp. Asian chile paste, like Sriracha

In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients. Set aside 1/4 cup of the glaze for drizzling over the cooked chicken.

The glaze may be made up to 3 days ahead.