Making Mouth Watering Chicken
Chicken is extremely versatile, and its mild flavor is an open canvas to create complex flavors on top of or even inside. Whole chicken or parts? Dark meat or white meat? Skin or no skin? Breaded, stuffed, fried, grilled, smoked, you got mad options.
Check back as we’ll be adding more cooking tips and recipes soon!
Grilled Is Better Than Fried - Buffalo Wings
Grilled Buffalo Wings are always a crowd favorite! For grilling, I buy the whole wing–this produces a better result and saves some effort on turning them over. On the Pit Barrel Cooker, spread them out on the grill grate, and sprinkle a little rub or seasoning on top. We don’t want to add any salt because there will be plenty in the sauce already. Need more grill grate area on your PBC? Add a second grate by hanging some “S” hooks from the sides. Smoke with the lid closed for about an hour, flipping the wings about half way through. Then open the lid to about an inch gap to increase the heat. This will crisp up the skin and give the wings a nice golden brown color. Once you get a nice brown on the one side, flip them over and brown the other side. When both sides are golden brown, paint on the sauce! The trick to sauce painting is that a little char is ideal, but a lot of char is awful! To get the best results, paint the up-facing side and let it sit a few minutes before flipping them (being aware that the bottom side is still cooking and your coals are getting hotter since the lid is wide open while you’re painting). Once you’ve flipped all of the wings sauce-side down, work quickly to get the other side sauced, then flip again. The Barrel is probably kicking off some serious heat now, so be careful not to burn the sauce…… or yourself… if you can avoid it.
Fast, Convenient, Delicious - Marinated Chicken Breast on the Grill
Boneless skinless chicken breast or tenders is a staple in our house. Marinade it in some Greek or Italian dressing for at least 20 minutes, but an hour or two is proffered. We love Gazebo Room Greek dressing as a marinade, but any decent Italian dressing will work great too. Marinating gives the chicken time to absorb the salt and moisture it needs to maximize flavors, tenderness, and juiciness. After marinating, throw it on the pellet-grill on high heat, flipping once to lightly brown each side, cooking to an internal temp of 160F. Add a starch and veggie, and you’ve got a high-quality home cooked meal super fast with little cleanup. Make extra so you have enough to slice up the leftovers and throw it on a quesadilla or taco the next day. It’s the ultimate convenience food on the homemade spectrum!
